GrandPalais

Paris Follows London with Art Fair

Filed under: Art

The big money's in Paris this season. Last night, a $24 million painting by Pablo Picasso of his mistress, Marie-Therese Walter, was put on reserve at the VIP preview of the Foire Internationale d'Art Contemporain. The FIAC is France's largest art fair, and it follows the Frieze Art Fair in London. The French fair hopes to capitalize on Frieze's momentum, where dealers indicated that sales were up from 2008.

Picasso isn't the only major artist whose work is up for sale at a major price. L+M Arts, from New York, has put Francis Bacon's "Portrait of George Dyer Takling," which is being priced at approximately $40 million, and Fernand Leger's "Le Grand Dejeurner" is being shown by Daniel Malingue for $20 million to $25 million. The fair is already well attended, with Bernard Arnault, chairman of LVMH, and his ilk already in attendance.

FIAC ends on October 25, 2009 and has more than 200 modern and contemporary art dealers showcasing the work they represent. Most of the exhibits are in the Grand Palais, with another 80 by younger living artists displayed in a temporary structure in the Cour Carree of the Louvre. The art market slump has led to smaller numbers this year, with 40 galleries that participated last year not returning to Paris this year.

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Tags: art, art market, ArtMarket, artwork, bernard arnault, BernardArnault, fiac, francis bacon, FrancisBacon, grand palais, GrandPalais, louvre, pablo picasso, PabloPicasso, picasso

The French Resistance: Paris Art Market Defies the World

by Tom Johansmeyer (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Auctions, Art

In New York and London, art auction houses for ever dollar they can bring in, but the French have been able to fight back. The number of sales and lots brought to auction has remained stable year over year. And, in the first three months of the year, Paris put up better results than London or New York, thanks to the Pierre Bergé-Yves Saint-Laurent sale at the Grand Palais back in February. Historically, Paris has lagged these two cities, but its resilience this year has changed the game a bit.

For the first quarter, art prices in France came down only 5 percent, a level that's been maintained through the rest of the year, so far. Christie's bears much of the responsibility for this success, with some solid auctions this year, though Sotheby's has helped, as well, with a Contemporary Art auction that moved 95.2 percent of the lots offered. Also, Parisian auctions aren't as up-market as those in London and New York, which has muted the effects of the global financial crisis.

In addition to the Yves Saint Laurent sale, which brought in €373.5 million (€255 million for works of art), the late May auctions at Christie's and Sotheby's did perform well relative to past years. The summer is likely to be quiet, with smaller auctions in Paris, but Christie's is bringing a private collection to market with pieces by Henri Laurens, Hans Harp and Henri Michaux, among others. The numbers won't be eye-popping, but expect the momentum to continue.

Vive la resistance!

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Tags: art, art auction, art auctions, art market, ArtAuction, ArtAuctions, ArtMarket, artwork, auction, auction-house, auctionhouse, auctions, france, grand palais, GrandPalais, paris, parisfrance, pierre berge, PierreBerge, yves saint laurent, yves st laurent, YvesSaintLaurent, YvesStLaurent