by Stéphanie Pioda
Lobsang Durney (b. 1976), "Parafito," 2021, acrylic on canvas, 81 x 65 cm/31.9 x 25.6 in (detail). Bahia Utópica Gallery, Valparaiso.
While the announcement of the creation of an urban art fair at Drouot prompted surprise at its inception in 2018, it must be said that the formula has proved its worth and participating galleries have taken a liking to it: "The conditions at Drouot are optimal, with all the logistics, lighting, storage space and elevators, and plus we meet collectors we normally don't meet at other fairs like the Parisian Urban Art Fair at the Carreau du Temple," says Édouard Mazel (Brussels). A "Mecca for Old Masters and classical art and for the secondary market too," in the eyes of Virginie Barrou Planquart (Val d'Oise), Drouot enjoys a certain prestige as "the oldest auction house in the world," to quote Claude Kunetz of the Wallworks Gallery—who for the first time joins the 24 exhibitors of the 2022 edition with new pieces by Hendrik Czakainski (between €7,000 and €15,000). This "nerve center of the art market in Paris," says Mehdi Ben Cheikh, organizer of the fair and director of the Itinerrance Gallery, "attracts collectors familiar with contemporary art and open to street art." This is partly what convinced Loup Trentin-Bosquet of the Nîmes-based gallery Corps et Âmes and also Virginie Barrou Planquart, who views the event as an opportunity to refocus on the Paris market in a disquieting global health context, whereas she had hitherto been attending fairs outside France, in Hong Kong, New York, Miami, London and—new in November—Hamburg. Click here to read more.