Louis de Bayser is a drawing specialist. He is also president of the Salon du Dessin and of Fine Arts Paris, which is associated with the Biennale: a unique first edition for Fine Arts Paris & the Biennale, bringing together ancient and modern art, within the walls of the Carrousel du Louvre from November 9 to 13.
What does this merger between Fine Arts Paris and the Biennale represent ?
Fine Arts Paris is a young fair that has existed for a few years. This year it joins forces with the Biennale, which has been present on the art market for a long time. There are a lot of expectations for this new fair, which welcomes 86 exhibitors in all. That’s 30 more than last year. We also hope to expand by moving Fine Arts Paris & the Biennale to the ephemeral Grand Palais in 2023 and to the Grand Palais in 2024. We plan to host 110 stands, 25 more than this year. The goal is to select quality dealers and objects.
What are the major novelties of this edition ?
To begin with, at the Fine Arts Paris Salon, we exhibited little primitive art, in contrast to the Biennale, which already had several exhibitors in its address book. With the merger of these two fairs, Fine Arts Paris now has an additional field. We are also organizing a symposium on what we call period rooms. It will explain to the public on November 10, at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs what these pieces are, which reconstitute the style of an era in minute detail. We try to make sure that there are activities to motivate amateurs to come and meet us.
What were the main difficulties in bringing these two shows together ?
It’s never easy to bring together two different elements. But it’s also about bringing together qualities that each of them had and making sure that this new event takes the best of both. This is the primary goal of the association.
One may think that art is reserved for the wealthy. But is it, finally, accessible to all ?
This is the very principle of the Salons we organize: to show what we know how to do and to arouse collectors’ vocations among connoisseurs as well as among amateurs and even among people who do not know us. We communicate a lot, to arouse such an interest and desire for collecting. We can have the impression that it is a closed world, accessible to few people. But the professionals want to open up and show everyone what art is.
How is the drawing market doing? And the more general market ?
Generally speaking, the period for the drawing market has been more complicated, as for many other fields. But the general market has held up quite well. It is true that important pieces by great artists are increasingly difficult to find and the prices presented in galleries or at public sales are becoming very high. Today, there are far fewer works available than there are potential buyers, which creates a phenomenon of strong price increases.
Can you tell us about the prices charged at these fairs ?
The price ranges are quite wide. At shows like Fine Arts Paris, we generally have works that start at 5,000 euros and can reach hundreds of thousands of euros. There are always some at over 400,000 euros. But we are not the only ones. Some of the works of ancient or early art are also close to these prices. For modern and contemporary art, we can find works for millions of euros as well as for thousands of euros.
Read also >FINE ARTS PARIS & LA BIENNALE : DISCOVER THE PROGRAM WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY
Featured photo : press release
