Drawings fairs and events
FOR just over a week in early spring the modest drawing makes a bid for fame and fortune in the Parisian sunshine.
Locals and visitors to the French capital will have circled the date in their diaries and there is a resulting influx of collectors, curators and the simply curious who arrive to search out graphic art on paper from the master drawings to contemporary creations in the city’s fairs, auction rooms and art galleries.
The roots of this graphic fest lie in the 26-year old Salon du Dessin. It is the success and pulling power of this small, select fair of 39 international dealers in Old Master and classic drawings that have focused everyone’s attention and persuaded auction rooms and galleries to capitalise on the visitor influx.
As explained by Bertrand Gautier, one of the fair’s founder members: “The Salon is one of those rare events where the salerooms have joined in on the fair rather than the other way round.”
So, while it remains the fulcrum, events have expanded dramatically beyond the Salon to make Paris a destination for drawings events of all kinds during March.
The components of the semaine du dessin, as it is popularly named these days, cater for all tastes and all price points as our selected preview on the next four pages shows.
