PReviews #6
Paris Drawing Week and the Salon du Dessin (20th - 25th March)
Five Quick Questions with Louis de Bayser, Président du Salon du Dessin
The Salon du Dessin is the world’s premier art fair dedicated to the collection, study and exhibition of drawings, from the Renaissance to the present day. Hosted at the Palais Brongniart in Paris the event extends beyond the confines of the old Stock Exchange and since its creation in 1991 has initiated a veritable “Drawing Week” towards the end of March each year, with museum collaborations, pop-up exhibitions, a symposium, visits to collections and a contemporary drawing prize all taking place in the same week.
This year’s two-day symposium, under the direction of Marco Simone Bolzoni, curator of Old Master and 19th century drawings from the Debra and Leon Black collection, New York, will be devoted to the theme of "Travel drawings". Running from the 20th to the 21st, the timetable of talks here.
1). Le Salon du Dessin
In the publication released in 2016 to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Salon du Dessin one Parisian curator described the Salon du Dessin as the ‘Fashion Week’ of the drawing world. How would you describe the Salon du Dessin to a newcomer and what should they expect to discover inside the colonnades of the Palais Brongniart this year?
The Salon du Dessin is a specialty show. It allows for 39 dealers to exhibit their latest finds all under one roof, the Palais Brongniart. This gives collectors – and newcomers - the chance see drawing in all its diversity: from portraits to landscapes, by way of religious or mythological scenes, from the 16th century to the present day, from charcoal to watercolour, from pastel to red chalk.
2). La Semaine du Dessin
Partnerships with museums and academic institutions are clearly an important element of the Salon du Dessin’s programming, which now runs its own free on-site symposium, organises visits to special collections, and coincides with the launch of a number of museum exhibitions. Is there one talk in particular from this year’s programming whose subject matter has piqued your interest, and is there a collection visit that you are particularly excited to have facilitated?
The topic of this year’s symposium is “Travel Drawings”. The programming is directed by Marco Simone Bolzoni who has organized the various conferences for the next two editions of the fair. This year the symposium deals with journeys made by artists during the 16th and 17th centuries. One of the talks I'm most excited about is that of Dr. Christoph Metzger who will be speaking on Dürer's famous trip to Italy: “Next Stop Vienna: With Dürer on the Road to Venice”.
3). The Venue
It’s exactly 20 years since the Salon du Dessin moved home to the Palais Brongniart in the 2nd arrondissement. What makes this venue so special, and do you envisage the fair ever expanding beyond the 39 exhibitors that it hosts today?
When the Salon du Dessin moved to the Palais Brongniart in 2004, the venue was almost too big for the fair at the time. But the growth of the Salon du Dessin under the presidency of Hervé Aaron in the subsequent years allowed for the Salon to make the most of this magnificent Palace. The Salon du Dessin fits very well there and, for the moment, we have no intention of moving on.
4). Les Invités d’Honneur: The Fondation Dubuffet
Each year a museum or public institution is invited to present a selection of their drawings at the Salon. Can you tell us about this year’s guest of honour, the Fondation Dubuffet?
Each year we invite a different institution to exhibit at the Salon du Dessin. This year we will have a monographic exhibition since it is the Dubuffet Foundation who will be showing a group of approximately 40 drawings retracing the graphic evolution of Dubuffet over the years.
5). Highlights
As ever, you yourself will be exhibiting with your family-run gallery, Galerie de Bayser. Is there a work that you are particularly excited to share with visitors, and is there a work from another exhibitor that you are particularly excited to see for yourself?
Like every year, we will be exhibiting a set of drawings ranging from the 16th to the 20th centuries at the Salon. This year we will be presenting a set of Flemish drawings around Hans Bol. At the same time, we will be showing a group of French drawings from the 19th century, including a magnificent figure study by Ingres and a very lively study of wild beasts by Delacroix.
Pop-Up Exhibitions Beyond the Palais Brongniart
Vacant galleries also present younger dealers with the opportunity to host pop-up exhibitions in these spaces whilst their proprietors are exhibiting nearby at the Salon.
Galerie la Nouvelle Athènes @ Galerie la Nouvelle Athènes, 22 Rue Chaptal (7 Mar - 29 Mar)
Galerie Lowet de Wotrenge and Poncelin de Raucourt Fine Arts @ Galerie Alexis Bordes, 4 Rue de la Paix (18 Mar - 25 Mar)
Den Otter Fine Art @ Benjamin Perronet, 10 Rue de Louvois (19 Mar - 25 Mar)
Sabrier & Paunet @ 51 Rue Saint-Anne (19 Mar - 26 Mar)
Annual Reception @ Nicolas Schwed, 346 Rue Saint-Honoré (20 Mar, 6 pm - 9 pm)
Trois Crayons Old Master Drawings Board Game Launch Party @ Nicolas Schwed, 346 Rue Saint-Honoré (21 Mar, 6 pm - 9 pm)
