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BRAFA, TEFAF, MASTERPIECE LONDON ART FAIR: WELCOME TO THE REALM OF CLASSICAL ART
29/06/2022

BRAFA, TEFAF, MASTERPIECE LONDON ART FAIR: WELCOME TO THE REALM OF CLASSICAL ART


di Elisabetta Roncati

We often talk about art fairs dedicated to modern or contemporary art, but what about the antiques sector?

From time voices of crisis have been chasing each other: change in lifestyles, smaller houses, different needs, hyper-modern design that is becoming increasingly popular, changing tastes. Yet, every time, the collecting sector linked to the past amazes us with important sales results. Obviously this art niche has its reference market appointments.
I'm talking about BRAFA, TEFAF and MASTERPIECE London Art fair. It is true that when you visit these exhibitions you are faced with a kind of eclecticism: not only ancient art and antiques, but also jewels, design and some contemporary artworks.
In this strange 2022 that sees the most important global events dedicated to creativity overlap (think about the Venice Biennale, Documenta 15 and Manifesta which will open in Pristina on July the 22nd), the world of ancient art has its tour de force.







Until the 6th of July all three of the market exhibitions I have mentioned before will be back in presence.
BRAFA, acronym for Brussels Antiques & Fine Arts Fair, took place last week from the 19th to the 26th of June. This art fair is one of the longest-running in the world and has been organized for 67 years by the non-profit association called Belgian Antiques Fair Association. There were 115 stands, a little less than in the past, given the temporal overlap of events in the same sector. As I said before, it was the idea of ​​eclecticism that dominated: the works on display were about 15,000, ranging from archeology to African art, from the precious cuts of Fontana, to Islamic art, thanks to the Parisian Galerie Kevorkian.







The presence of Italian operators was also interesting: Barbara Bassi, Brune Fine Art, Cavagnis Lacerenza Fine Art, Chiale Fine Arts, Cortesy Gallery, Robertaebasta and Dalton Somaré.
In short, about 7,000 years of history.
3 days after closing to the public some reports suggest that BRAFA has maintained high levels of interest from Belgian and international collectors. The Rijksmuseum bought the Christ figure by sculptor Jan III van Doorne; Galerie Günter Phuze GMBH its 12th century BCE Egyptian sarcophagus-mask and the already mentioned Galerie Kevorkian traded dozens of Persian miniatures, Islamic ceramics and bronzes.







However this week it is the Maastricht appointment that has jumped to the headlines. The city is only 130 kilometers from the Belgian capital and the famous TEFAF market exhibition was the subject of a bad news. Established in 1988, The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF) is widely regarded as the world's pre-eminent organization for fine art, antiques, and design. During its 34th edition, on the 28th of June, four men wearing smart clothes, caps and glasses, tried to smash the case of the London art dealer Symbolic & Chase with a sledgehammer. They also pointed guns at visitors to keep them at a distance. An armed robbery which ended with two arrested and two wanted. The stolen diamonds have been partially recovered. Unfortunately, this is not the first time that TEFAF has attracted thieves. In fact, in 2008 a diamond necklace made by the American goldsmith William Ruser and worth one million euros was stolen.







However, the fair has regularly reopened to the public after about an hour and will remain open until tomorrow. A total of 242 exhibitors participated, including 21 first-time dealers.
As usually happens, the market exhibition presents only objects of high collectible value for as little as four figures. Some of them are: the oil painting “Les Soucis” made by Gustave Courbet in 1862; the print by Jan Lievens “Portrait of Admiral Maarten Harpertszoon Tromp” dated back to 1653; an Ottoman Emperor’s Ceremonial Saddlery of the 18th century.







TEFAF Maastricht will then give way to the Masterpiece London Art Fair which will open its doors just tomorrow and will end on the 6th of July. A good test for the British giant postponed by Covid and hampered by Brexit. Masterpiece London is an art and antiques fair held in Chelsea with an eclectic mix of galleries: from antiquities and old masters to contemporary art, jewelry and design.







Since 2017 the fair has been 67.5 percent owned by MCH Group, the operators of the Art Basel fairs.
The total amount of galleries will be only 127, less than in the previous editions.
However as a fair, Masterpiece London will have something for everyone: from a Triceratops dinosaur skull dated more than 60 million years old to a first edition of Jane Austen’s “Emma”. In addition the central aisle of the old Royal Hospital Chelsea, the fair location, will be filled with a sculpture series.







Art experts and journalists are all waiting to know if the London fair will achieve good results after the stops due to the pandemic and the changes brought about by Brexit.
What is certain is how the antiques market has restarted with good results, as the contemporary collecting. An excellent sign for the entire cultural sector.




Born in Genoa, Milanese by adoption, Elisabetta Roncati decided to combine her university education in economics and management with her passion for culture with a goal: bringing people closer to the art market in a clear, easily understandable and professional way. Interested in all forms of artistic and cultural expressions, contemporary and otherwise, she has two great passions: textile art and African art. As an art consultant, she firmly believes that culture has the power to transcend the boundaries of individual nations, creating a global community of art lovers. In 2018 he founded the registered trademark Art Nomade Milan that she uses to speak about art and culture on the main social media platforms.

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