TEFAF

Join the TEFAF Team! We are looking for a driven Director of Vetting to join our team in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. The candidate will be responsible for the organization and coordination of the whole vetting process of the objects presented during the fairs of The European Fine Art Foundation. The Director of Vetting will safeguard the integrity, quality, and independence of vetting, dealing with all questions related to vetting from internal and external stakeholders throughout the year. Learn more and apply at https://bit.ly/4eMqIpT

After centuries in private hands, a rare chess crafted in the early 18th century resurfaced in 2018. The set was acquired by Galerie Kugel, who set about tracing the identity of the then unknown sculptor. A faded inscription on one of the ivory bishops led to identify the artist as Paul Heermann, court sculptor to Augustus the Strong. The exquisitely carved chess pieces are set on a silver or silver-gilt base stamped with the maker’s mark of Paul Solanier, one of the leading Augsburg goldsmiths of the Augustan age. The chess set was presented by Galerie Kugel during TEFAF Maastricht 2022 and is now in the collection of the Green Vault, part of the Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, which contains one of the greatest treasure collections in Europe. “The chess set has a special relevance for the Green Vault because the pieces are closely related to numerous small sculptures in the collection, which allows for new avenues of research,” shares Marius Winzeler, director of the Green Vault, noting that this also fills a narrative gap. “We know from the museum’s inventories that there were once several magnificent Baroque chess sets in the collection that are now lost.” On occasion of the museum’s 300th anniversary, the chess set was gifted to the museum by the Ernst von Siemens Art Foundation. Learn more about the fascinating story behind this rare chess set by one of Germany’s most important Baroque sculptors with TEFAF Stories: https://bit.ly/3YrCDUr Paul Heermann “Chess Set” c. 1705 Ivory and ebony Photo by Jitske Nap.

“Throughout history, the pearl is the most consistent jewel you will find,” shares Beatriz Chadour-Sampson of Les Enluminures. Laden with symbolic associations, from wealth and status to divine purity, the pearl remains the longest consistently venerated gemstone. These wonderous jewels have been admired across cultures and eras, adorning wearers from ancient Rome and Byzantium and the dark attire of the Elizabethans to the frothy pastel dresses of the Rococo period and the fashions of the 1920s flapper. But when did the notion of the pearl as a precious commodity begin and what ignited such passion for pearls throughout time? Discover the enduring allure of the pearl with TEFAF exhibitor Les Enluminures in the latest TEFAF Stories: https://bit.ly/3ZYlgf3 English School Detail of “Elizabeth I, 1533-1603 (the Armada Portrait)” c. 1588 Oil on canvas National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London. Acquired with the support of the Heritage Lottery Fund, Art Fund, Linbury Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, Headley Trust and other major donors, together with contributions from over 8,000 members of the public following a joint appeal with Art Fund.

TEFAF is pleased to announce acquisitions of significant artworks during the 2024 editions of TEFAF Maastricht and TEFAF New York by major international institutions. These acquisitions see the 7,000 years of fine art, antiques, and design exhibited at the fairs join some of the world’s greatest public collections. “TEFAF has cultivated relationships with the world’s leading collections for many years and we are honored to welcome many directors, curators and patrons from the international museum community to our fairs. The variety of these acquisitions reflects the dedication and broad expertise of our exhibitors, whose deep knowledge and rigorous research bring significant works into public view,” – Paul van den Biesen, TEFAF’s Head of Collectors and Museums. Featured works presented by: Deborah Elvira Thaddaeus Ropac Stuart Lochhead Sculpture Gallery 19C Aronson Antiquairs Learn more about some of the impressive museum acquisitions that took place during TEFAF 2024: https://bit.ly/40cMP4L

For Minjung Kim, being an artist has been the driving force of her life, a means of survival. Early in life, she gravitated towards the Hanji paper she discovered in her father’s print shop in Gwanju, South Korea. Decades later, Kim’s fundamental connection to the material has remained at the center of her practice. Foregoing any sort of narrative premises, the artist leans in to simply understanding the material and its reactive qualities. “My art is a consolation of daily life, providing me with a reason to be. I have always wondered about my profession’s contribution to the world. Perhaps, by practicing my inner peace through artistic expression, I could offer the world a small sense of calmness,” shares Kim, reflecting on a life and practice guided by intuition. Immerse yourself in the serene world of Minjung Kim: https://bit.ly/4dpRweg Photo by Antoine Lippens.

Apply to the second edition of the TEFAF Curator Course before October 16, taking place March 12–16, 2025 at TEFAF Maastricht. After a successful inaugural edition in March this year, the TEFAF Curator Course, presented in collaboration with Maastricht University, will once again bring together the academic world and the art market, offering museum curators an unparalleled gateway to gain knowledge, insights, and networking opportunities with their international peers during TEFAF Maastricht. Over five days, participants will gain insights from art market professionals, participate in hands-on assignments, and engage in high-level discussions about art market dynamics. This prestigious program is created for museum curators eager to enhance their expertise and expand their professional network. The application is open to museum curators and will close October 16, 2024: https://bit.ly/3MiPYYB Pictured here, Galerie Eric Coatalem’s stand during TEFAF Maastricht 2024. Photo by Loraine Bodewes. TEFAF Maastricht March 15–20, 2025 Lead Partner Maastricht: AXA XL

From Islamic art to northern European depictions, flowers are one of the most enduring subjects in the history of art. Embellishments, signifiers of the heavenly, harbingers of love—the language and symbols of flowers has persisted through many centuries, carrying a special potency in the 17th century as flowers took on new scientific, economic, and artistic meaning. Often associated with the genre of the still life, the history and usage of flowers have been anything but still: flowers were a global phenomenon, tied up in much longer, larger histories around aesthetics, science and religion. Discover the fascinating stories told by floral still lifes, from Islamic art to northern European depictions, with TEFAF exhibitors Galerie Kevorkian and Rafael Valls Ltd: https://bit.ly/3TDRZlR

“For almost four decades, TEFAF has been steward for 7,000 years of art history, gathering and inspiring a cross-cultural community of collectors, museums, academics, and art lovers. With our position in the art community comes a huge responsibility and unwavering commitment to systematically reducing the devastating impact of climate change on our planet for future generations. As we know, structural change requires immediate collective action and, in early 2022, TEFAF proudly joined the Gallery Climate Coalition (GCC). Their aim, and ours, is to help reduce the art community’s impact on the climate and to develop a meaningful industry-specific response to the growing climate crisis.”–Will Korner, Head of Fairs. Learn more about this new initiative together with Gallery Climate Coalition (GCC): https://bit.ly/3MZRr6h

The art of “urushi,” or Japanese lacquer, has been practiced and perfected by Japenese artists for centuries, but only became accessible to a Western audience when Japan’s borders reopened in the late 19th century. “Beginning in the early 20th century, French artists interpreted this extremely refined lacquer work with European imagery, blending East and West into wonderful visions,” shares Yana Mihailuka of Galerie Lefebvre. For artist Jean Dunand, lacquer became an integral part of his extensive œuvre, creating works that felt both quintessentially Art Deco and timeless. “He applied it to works as if he was painting a composition, establishing a new aesthetic and vocabulary in the art of lacquer,” says Maria Clerc Baranzelli of Galerie Marcilhac. Combining Asian and African motifs with Cubist-like abstractions, Dunand’s fantastical hybrid imagery undoubtedly shaped Art Deco’s iconic visual vocabulary at large. Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of lacquer with TEFAF exhibitors Galerie Lefebvre and Galerie Marcilhac with the latest feature from TEFAF Stories: https://bit.ly/3zoMpwT Photo courtesy of Galerie Lefebvre.

Only one week left to apply to TEFAF New York 2025. Offering the best in modern and contemporary art, jewelry, ancient art, and design, the eleventh edition of TEFAF New York will run from Friday through Tuesday, May 9–13, with a Collectors Preview Thursday, May 8. Apply before September 17: https://bit.ly/3KW0ynu Photo by Julian Cassady. Lead Partner New York: Bank of America