Paris Photo, the largest photo fair in the world, is being held at the Grand Palais now through Sunday, November 16th. Director Julien Frydman spoke with us about Paris Photo’s success. First, the numbers: 169 exhibitors, 143 galleries (63 of which are specialized) and 26 publishers and booksellers from 35 countries, ten of which—Saudi Arabia, Australia, Brazil, Chile, China, Greece, Iran, Taiwan, Tunisians and Turkey—are attending for the first time, and 55,239 visitors in 2013.
The reasons for its success are multiple. First, Paris Photo went from being a fair dedicated to photography to a fair for artists who use the image in their work. It has become a place for an ongoing dialogue between the image, the user and art history. Secondly, the fair depends on the satisfaction of gallerists and collectors as well as the many visitors paying 30€ a ticket. And third, there’s no cabal conspiring against this or that gallery or publisher. Instead, we have a selection committee that reviews each application and accepts or rejects it, judging the gallery by its history and its submission. The committee is sovereign. Its members are Guido Costa (Turin), Howard Greenberg (New York), Tim Jefferies (Hamiltons Gallery, London), Yossi Milo (New York), Françoise Paviot (Paris), Timothy Persons (Taik Gallery, Helsinki), Renos Xippas (Paris-Athens-Montevideo) and Thomas Zander (Cologne).
EVENT
Paris Photo 2014
From 13 to 16 November 2014
Grand Palais
Avenue Winston Churchill
75005 Paris
France
http://www.parisphoto.com
