In an unprecedented move, the Paris museums have overcome their traditional distrust of the art trade to the extent of collaborating with the Salon de Dessin ( 29 March-2 April). This fair, now in its ninth year, had become the world’s top meeting place for collectors and dealers in the field of drawings. In 1999, half its 10,000 visitors came from outside France, including some leading US collectors and curators. The museums have presumably realised that it would be foolish to miss this opportunity of showing themselves off to this discriminating and monied public. The Louvre, the Carnavalet, the Jacquemart-Andre, the Petit Palais, among others, will be making works from their Print Rooms especially available and organising lectures at the fair itself. The Musée Victor Hugo, for example, will be allowing a foretaste of the drawings by the famous author due to be exhibited at the Thyssen Fundation this summer. The Musée de la Vie Romantique will be getting out drawings by Ary Scheffer. Last year the fair turned over FFr30 million (£3 million; $4.8 million) in works priced at FFr20,000 to 500,000. Twenty-five dealers from Europe and the US are taking part this year, including W.M. Brady from New York, Colnaghi, Yvonne Tan Bunzl, Kate de Rothschild and Agnew’s from London, Katrin Bellinger and Arnoldi-Livie from Munich, Moatti, Heim, de Bayser and Derom from Paris, among others.
For details, see p.81
Originally appeared in The Art Newspaper as 'Museums support drawings fair'