Shapero Rare Books, Maggs Bros and Bertram Rota are among the UK dealers already exhibiting at the inaugural fair in October and they will be joined there by a number of international booksellers.
“What London really needs is a small, prestige book fair that would be a joy to come to,” rare books dealer and the fair’s communications chief Leo Cadogan told ATG. “Everything will be carefully selected and laid out.”
The idea for the fair originated with dealer Ines Bellin, former director of ILAB dealership A Venue of Art, which went into liquidation in 2015.
Bellin, now managing director of INK LDN, and Cadogan started serious preparations for the fair in the beginning of 2016. They seek to fill what Cadogan describes as a widely felt gap in the market for a luxury event.
“We don’t do that many book fairs in London, and in a month when there’s not that much happening for us in London we thought we would give it a try,” says Yulia Fedorenko of Shapero Rare Books.
“It’s interesting to try new things and there are a lot of big dealers already involved,” she added.
A prestige book fair
INK LDN is to be held at 2 Temple Place, an established venue for exhibitions and fairs, which is geared to match the fair’s identity. The website describes the event as “a unique new international antiquarian book and art fair with an emphasis on luxury and quality”.
It differs from the other major book fairs in London which are run by leading bookseller associations, ILAB, ABA and PBFA.
Cadogan says that their fair is “aiming for a higher price point,” while it will also have a “Fresh Faces” scheme which will showcase newer dealers.
“It’s not just going to be dusty shelves,” Cadogan adds. “Everything’s going to be in glass.”
INK LDN runs from October 20-22.
