PRESS

In February this year, two leading French art fairs – the venerable Biennale, one of the world’s oldest art fairs (formerly known as La Biennale des Antiquaires) and the fast- growing Fine Arts Paris – announced that they had merged to create a new annual flagship event in Paris celebrating art from the Antiquity to present day. Today, Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale unveils details of its inaugural edition which will take place at the prestigious Carrousel du Louvre, from 9 to 13 November, before moving to the Grand Palais Ephémère in November 2023 and the renovated Grand Palais in November 2024.

Over 80 internationally renowned galleries and talented young dealers will participate in what promises to be a major event in the global art market calendar. A showcase of art, culture, savoir-faire and heritage, Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale will present carefully selected artworks spanning no fewer than 14 categories, including Antiquities, Old Masters, Antique Furniture, Modern & Contemporary Art, Tapestries, Ceramics, Jewellery but also Tribal Art, Asian Art, Islamic Art and Books & Manuscripts.

Louis de Bayser, President of Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale said: “Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale is Paris’s only fair dedicated to Fine Arts, tracing the entire history of art across time and continents. In the next three years, as we move from the Carrousel du Louvre to the Grand Palais Ephémère and ultimately the Grand Palais, our objective will be to expand the fair’s global reputation and growth, as well as to contribute to reinforce Paris’s status and importance on the international art market”.

The Fair in Numbers

• 2 founding entities combining 70 years of existence
• Over 80 exhibitors from around the globe
• No fewer than 14 disciplines
• Works of art spanning over 2,000 years of history

A First Glimpse at the Fair’s Highlights

Pendule à l’éléphant époque Louis XV (Pascal Izarn)
Edgar Degas Femme s’épongeant la nuque Fusain et estompe 60×46 cm (de Bayser)
Chaise rocaille à la reine en bois sculpté et doré, Allemagne, milieu du XVIIIe siècle (Galerie François Léage) ©Sylvain Deleu

Old Masters

Following on the footsteps of its illustrious predecessors, the new fair will bring together prominent Old Master galleries, led by a strong contingent of renowned French specialists (De Bayser, Didier Aaron, Baulme, Perrin, Giovanni Sarti, Mendes, Terrades, Leegenhoek, Talabardon & Gautier) and young art dealers (Edouard Ambroselli, Chaptal). They will be joined by London gallerist and Charles Beddington; Artur Ramon, one of Spain’s most important specialists in the field; Costermans, Brussels’ oldest art gallery, and the Geneva-based Dutch and Flemish painting specialist de Jonckheere who will present a 16th-century panoramic view by Hans Bol (pictured above), among other masterpieces. pre-eminent scholar of 18th-century Venetian view painting

Antique Furniture and Decorative Arts

France’s long and glorious tradition of furniture-making and decorative arts will be reflected in the extraordinary selection showcased by Parisian galleries Steinitz, Léage and Oscar Graf. Belgium silver specialist Janssens van der Maelen will also participate alongside London dealer Brun who will unveil a terracotta bust of Napoleon.

Furthermore, the fair will welcome passionate gallerists with an unusual profile, including Portuguese neurologist turned collector and art dealer Mário Roque and 36-year- old Maxime Carron who, following a sporting education, created Royal Provenance, a gallery in Paris specialising in European heirlooms. Having recently sold a chair that once belonged to Queen Marie-Antoinette’s bedroom, he will unveil many more fascinating treasures, including a rare early 19th-century Morocco case containing the keys of Paris parks, possibly given by King Louis Philippe to his eldest son, Ferdinand-Philippe d’Orléans, Duke of Orléans (1810-1842) on the occasion of his coronation in 1930 .

The fair will also welcome Carolle Thibaut-Pomerantz, one of very few specialists in historic wallpapers in the world. The New York/Paris-based gallerist, whose greatest finds are now part of the major museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, will present a selection of wallpapers dating from the 18th century to the 1950s, including three large panels known as Jardins de Bagatelle and Jardins Anglais, designed by Pierre-Antoine Mongin and produced circa 1800-04 by the French wallpaper and fabrics manufacture, Joseph Dufour in Macon.

Singe se grattant d’Edouard Marcel Sandoz (Xavier Eeckhout)
Figure d’oiseau d’Océanie (Galerie Flak)
Yipwon ewa (Galerie Anthony Meyer)
Simon Hantaï (Galerie Berès)
©Sylvain Deleu

Sculpture

Sculpture will feature strongly, with some of the most discerning specialists in the discipline vying to present rare pieces. The Parisian gallery Sismann who focuses on Old Master sculpture will present a Virgin and Child in limestone, made in Toul (France), circa 1330-1340. Trebosc + van Lelyveld, Chiale and Ratton-Ladrière will amaze with an ensemble of works from the Renaissance to the early 20th century. Michel Poletti and Alain Richarme from Univers du Bronze will celebrate the Golden Age of French sculpture (1830s- 1930s) with works by Antoine-Louis Barye, Emmanuel Fremiet, Henri Laurens and a life-size bronze nude representing David victorious of Goliath, circa 1894-1910 which was once in the collection of Auguste Lumière, the inventor of the cinematograph. The bronze is one of only two known similar works by the artist, the other being in the collection of the Musée d’Orsay.

Renowned for his early 20th century animal sculptures, Xavier Eeckhout will exhibit an exquisite bronze lion cub made in 1935 by Louis de Monard. Galerie Malaquais will celebrate French figurative sculpture with Assia, a 1936 monumental sculpture by Charles Despiau, dedicated to and from the collection of the eminent French art dealer, editor and historian Georges Wildenstein (1892-1963).

Modern and Contemporary Art

Modern and Contemporary Art will also take centre stage in this inaugural edition of the fair. In a nod to history, Marianne Rosenberg, the granddaughter of Paul Rosenberg, perhaps the most important Modern Art dealer of the first half of the 20th century (who, for a time, worked with Wildenstein) will be present at the fair. Her New York gallery, Rosenberg & Co will exhibit a very rare oil on board by Henry Rousseau, La Citadelle, circa 1893 and Flying woman, a magnificent bronze made in 2020 by French contemporary artist Aude Herlédan.

Other leading modern and contemporary art galleries will include Jill Newhouse (New York), Lancz, La Béraudière (Brussels) and reputed French dealers, such as Applicat-Prazan, Berès, Brame & Lorenceau, Laurentin, Seine 55, Ary Jan, La Présidence and Opera Gallery which will showcase a roll call of modern and contemporary artists, from Fernand Léger and Marc Chagall to Pierre Soulages and Fernando Botero. They will be joined by two Paris-based contemporary art galleries, RX and Christophe Gaillard.

Sonia Delaunay « Rythme couleur » 23 juin 1975 Gouache et fusain sur papier (Galerie La Présidence)
L’Etoile de René Babin (Galerie Malaquais)
©Sylvain Deleu

Antiquities and Non-Western Arts

Tracing a complete world art history, Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale will bring together specialists in Antiquities, Tribal Art, Asian Art and Islamic Art. A Roman Marble head of Aphrodite, second century A.D. will be one of the highlights presented by Kevorkian, a third-generation Parisian dealer specialising in Islamic Art. They will be joined by Kent Antiques, a prominent London gallery dealing in Islamic and Indian art, Orientalist paintings and courtly objects which will present a rare Iznik blue and white ‘wheatsheaf style’ pottery jug made in the Ottoman Empire, circa 1580.

Asian Art will be represented by two highly regarded gallerists: Tamio Ikeda whose Parisian gallery Tanakaya will feature original Japanese prints, Ukiyo-e and Shin-Hanga, paintings, bronzes, ceramics and lacquers; and Christophe Hioco who will showcase a bronze head of Buddha, Thailand, Sukhothai, late 14th – early 15th century.

In addition, the fair will be distinguished by a roster of Tribal Art galleries, led by Belgian African art expert Didier Claes and Oceanic art specialist Anthony Meyer. Visitors will be able to admire a 19th-century Dogon mask from Mali  in the booth of Barcelona dealer Montagut, while the Parisian galleries Monbrison, Flak, and Belgian art dealers Mestdagh will impress with a display of artifacts from Oceania, Indonesia, Africa, India and Japan.

Jewellery

Finally, breaking the boundaries between fine and decorative arts, the new fair will also celebrate jewellery as a form of art. Renowned dealers in antique jewellery (Bernard Bouisset, Orpheo Genève, Martin du Daffoy, Larengregor) will be joined by contemporary artist- jewellers Walid Akkad, Frédérique Mattei and Chinese designer Feng J. A year after one of her masterful creations entered the collections of the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris, Feng J will uncover spectacular new designs especially made for the fair. These include a masterpiece of jewellery craftmanship inspired by the artist’s passion for the impressionist period: a diamond tiara whose various pastel tones are reminiscent of a Monet painting.

Practical Information

Carrousel du Louvre, Paris
Public opening: 9 -13 November 2022
Press Preview on 7 November, 2-4pm
Gala dinner on 7 November 2022
Private View on 8 November

About Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale

Fine Arts Paris & La Biennale was created in February 2022, in a move to combine the synergies, expertise and global reputation of two highly regarded French art fairs: La Biennale and Fine Arts Paris.

The world-renowned Biennale (previously widely known as La Biennale des Antiquaires) was founded in 1956 by André Malraux, the famed novelist and France’s Minister of Cultural Affairs. Over the following six decades, the event, hosted at the Grand Palais, had become one of the world’s grandest decorative arts fairs and one of the most important cultural events in Paris.

Fine Arts Paris started as a boutique offering of 34 exhibitors at the Palais Brongniart in 2017. By 2021, under the leadership of its President Louis de Bayser, the salon had grown to include 55 leading art dealers at the Carrousel du Louvre. Focusing on museum-quality paintings, drawings and sculptures, the fair distinguished itself by its intimate atmosphere and its selective nature. The last edition of Fine Arts Paris in November 2021 featured for the first time the disciplines of Jewellery, Asian art, ethnographical material and rare books, alongside Fine Arts.

The new fair will be run by the Agence d’Événements Culturels (AEC), which is also behind the Salon du Dessin and previously in charge of Fine Arts Paris. Managed by Hélène Mouradian, the AEC belongs to nine art dealers* and the French art magazine, Connaissance des Arts (which is part of Les Echos Group). As for the SNA (Syndicat National des Antiquaires), the century-old association of French antique dealers which had organised La Biennale at the Grand Palais since 1962, it will concentrate its activities on supporting its members and continue organising the grand gala dinner it had traditionally hosted. An honorary committee, composed of eminent guest members, will be in charge of the VIP events around the fair.

Acclaimed French interior designer and decorator Jacques Garcia has been commissioned to create the fair’s scenography and transform the gallery of the Carrousel du Louvre under the famous glass pyramid of I.M. Pei.

The fair will be accompanied by a series of cultural events organised in partnership with Paris museums, as part of the French capital’s Semaine des Beaux Arts (“Fine Arts Week”).

*Hervé Aaron, Bertrand Gautier, Gabriel Terrades, Sylvie Tocci-Prouté, Antoine Lorenceau, Louis de Bayser, Xavier Eeckhout, Florence Chibret-Plaussu (Galerie La Présidence) and Alfred van Lelyveld.