This year, the California event (February 9-11) immediately followed the ILAB Congress, which took place in Los Angeles. The fair spends alternate years in southern California and San Francisco and this 1st edition was based in the Pasadena Center. It hosted more than 200 booksellers as well as a special exhibit on Frankenstein, marking the 200th anniversary of the classic horror novel’s publication.
Date changes
However, there was some attrition of international exhibitors this year. In 2017, the New York fair dates were moved from early April to early March due to scheduling changes at its venue, the Park Avenue Armory. It sets the two fairs less than a month apart (this year New York ran from March 8-11), and for smaller businesses based overseas, the logistics of doing these two events essentially back-to-back is both complicated and costly.
The fair, which had its 58th edition this year, takes place during New York Rare Book Week (March 7-14) and hosted more than 200 dealers. Footfall was generally reported as higher than 2017.
Bernard Quaritch was among the UK dealers who attended both this year. “I get more overt enthusiasm from US buyers,” the gallery’s Alex Day said. “UK buyers may be just as enthusiastic but don’t show it to the same extent. There is a high level of interest from visitors to these fairs, even if they are just there for the afternoon, and there is a surprisingly broad range of interests.”
