There is one great advantage at not having a proper Biennale des Antiquaires and that is the staged show “Apotheosis of Genius” organized on place Beauvau by Galerie Neuse from Bremen. François Joseph Graf created a decor reminiscent of a “German opera” where the 19 th century treasures are presented in different “schatzkammers”. It is spectacular, with fake Cordoba leather on … Read More
Porquerolles, a natural Foundation for art
The fifteen minute boat trip to Porquerolles reminded me of taking the short ferry ride to Naoshima island in Japan. I had a few hours to wait at Toulon airport and when I realized that Fondation Carmignac was just a few miles away, I jumped in a taxi and boarded the crowded Sunday morning ferry to the beaches of this … Read More
Gainsborough versus Reynolds, and the winner is… Nature
Of course it would have been much more cheerful to see this exhibition in a beautiful English Country House but the 68 works lent by the Tate Britain for the exhibition “The Golden Age of English painting” are all stunning, with a central chef d’oeuvre, Reynolds’ “Colonel Acland and Lord Sydney: the Archers”. Musée du Luxembourg has good proportions for … Read More
The Paris Biennale, a little light with some good finds and Sam Szafran’s last paintings
La Biennale de Paris which now takes place every year, was a light affair with some good finds and a very sad news. It ends on Tuesday after only five days: the only traditional French 18 th century antique dealer was Steinitz with a very exceptional mirror (ca 1720) which belonged to Elisabeth Charlotte d’Orléans, duchesse de Lorraine and should … Read More
Galerie J. Kugel surprises us again!
The yearly invitation from Galerie J. Kugel is always a cheerful moment in the middle of the summer and this year again, Nicolas and Alexis managed a coup. The acquisition of a music room painted by Catalan artist José Marie Sert (1874-1945) for Corina Kavanagh in the tallest (120 m) building of Latin America built in 1936 in Buenos Aires. … Read More
In Quimper, happiness at the Breton museum and trendiness in Landerneau
When I decided to lengthen a little the summer until Labor Day and to go and visit the Fonds pour la culture Hélène et Edouard Leclerc in Landerneau (near Brest), I did not expect to see the marvelous exhibition at Musée départemental breton de Quimper. One is a trendy center for Parisians who like to see their friends’ art collections, … Read More
Pierre Yovanovitch, the Book!
It was the first book signing of the Rentrée and at Galignani’s, Danielle Cillien-Sabatier, the grande Prêtresse of the bilingual bookstore, was in full steam. Interior architect, designer and art collector Pierre Yovanovitch was chatting to all his friends while dedicating a superb 365 page album of his work, published by Rizzoli in English and in French. Everyone was glamorous, tanned … Read More
Templon, old artists and new ones in two spaces
Daniel Templon celebrated the 50 th anniversary of his gallery three years ago and Valerio Adami is one of the artists he has shown for fifteen years, on rue Beaubourg. When Théâtre du Châtelet commissioned a whole balcony painted by the Italian artists in 1989, he had been influential. 34 year old Prune Nourry is a more recent guest and … Read More