Guests make their way up the steps of the historic Grand Palais for the 17th edition of Paris Photo.
Among the limited Asian offerings, Japanese galleries occupied a few booths. Yellow Mustard (2012) by Tomoko Sawada at MEM Tokyo consisted of 56 lambda color prints with Photoshopped labels, making a striking installation.
Singapore-Manila gallery Silverlens presented Corinne De San Jose and Christina Dy’s “New Pairs” (2013) series, featuring collages and origami-folded photographs.
Among a mix of vintage and contemporary works at Howard Greenberg Gallery from New York, this year, there was something for everyone. Erwin Blumenfield’s Shadow Profile (1944) was indeed striking. Given that a major retrospective of the artist’s work was being held at the nearby Jeu de Paume, it was surprising that this portrait, which was being sold for EUR 40,000, was still up for grabs at the close of the fair.
At Michael Hoppen Gallery, Fernand Fonssagrives’ Studio Couch (1956), a portrait of his wife, was compelling in its dynamic use of light and shadow.
Another London stalwart, Hamiltons Gallery, had a room devoted entirely to Irving Penn’s mid-1980s skull series.
One of the best finds was a series of three 20-by-25-centimeter Candida Hofer works dated 1977 at Galerie Thomas Zander, Cologne. The works—which are very rare in the marketplace—were sold on the VIP preview day for EUR 20,000 each.
Interiors and empty spaces proved very popular at Parisian gallery Karsten Greve which was displaying several large-format interiors by Robert Polidori.
A different approach to the interior was presented by Juergen Teller with his nude portraits of Vivienne Westwood lounging in a sumptuous drawing room. The three-meter works shown by Gallerie Suzanne Tarasieve, Paris, were among the most discussed at the fair.
Italian photographer Massimo Vitali turned his voyeuristic gaze onto public markets. His São Paulo diptych at Brancolini Grimaldi, London, looked to be a tough sell due to its wall space requirement, but had viewers’ eyes darting none-the-less. Often shamelessly copied, Vitali’s work never skimps on quality and perspective.
Still hot on the market were works by Cindy Sherman. Twelve self-portraits taken in 1977 were selling at New York’s Metro Pictures at USD 100,000 for the set.
Also on view at Metro Pictures were Olaf Breuning’s quirky, life-size portraits from his “Art Freaks” series (2011).
Showcasing “undiscovered” talent was popular among around half of the galleries—namely those who could cover the cost of such displays with guaranteed sales of bigger names. Paris-based Galerie Vu had a magnificent wall of prints by the up-and-coming Jean-Michel Fauquet. Popular in Paris, it will be interesting to see whether these works can thrive in new markets.
At Galerie Feldbusch Wiesner, Berlin, two works by Friederike von Rauch stood out. The prices—an edition of five was being sold for EUR 7,500—seemed a tad high for an artist mainly sold in and around Germany.
Local Parisian gallery Camera Obscura, who always brings a large number of works at hand-carry sizes, had on display the likes of Sarah Moon, Michael Kenna, Marc Riboud, and Pentti Sammallahti among others, with friendly prices ranging from EUR 950 to 18,000.
New York’s 303 Gallery had an array of vintage and contemporary works, but three pieces by Stephen Shore were exceptional, in particular, his 1969 Four Part Variation, comprising of 32 small silver-gelatin prints, the last available for sale in the edition of four.
A rare group portrait by Louis-Emile Durandelle, well known for his documentation of Parisian architecture, features Charles Garnier, chief architect of the Paris Opera, and his team in about 1866–69. The albumen print was being offered for USD 10,000.
From California, Rose Gallery, had a 1975 work by Martin Parr. From a series the artist shot in England, this work gives a better sense of Parr’s innate sense of humour. It was fairly priced at EUR 2,150.
