What used to be solely for the enjoyment of the holidays is now, for the art dealer, a month’s lull before the beginning of the fairs season. It used to be, in the good old days, that is, less than 2 decades ago, the winter fairs consisted almost solely of just two- the Armoury Show in New York in mid-January, and the Palm Beach fair in late January, basically for New Yorkers who had decamped south for the winter.
Now, the art fair has become a year-round occupation, although precisely serving what objective I have yet to determine. As it was, the fair served a simple function that was easily understood- dealers provided a buying opportunity in venues conveniently located to those who had money to spend. New York in January? Of course- with those money-centre types who for tax purposes postponed receipt of performance budgets from one calendar year until the next, they would naturally be replete with cash in January. Or for those already in the money, enjoying the fruits of their earlier labours whilst lounging in the gentle sun shine of south Florida. They, too, would have advantaged themselves of cash-basis accounting, with gains and profits deferred from December to January. In both cases, and in both venues, money was there and money was spent, and dealers of the best calibre flocked to long established fairs in both locations to, shall we say, reap the harvest.
Or so it was. Now, in a global economy, fairs have proliferated internationally, in particular European fairs that took their names from their original location. Basel and Maastricht are global brands, and are spread far and wide, with no more the established venues where liquidity was traditionally known to puddle.
But many fairs, like many dealers, come and go, with their markets less where the money is, but depend on the cash requirements and marketing blandishments offered by the fair promoters themselves. Actually, ‘blandishments’ is something of an overstatement, as any more, the promoters themselves offer very little but for a venue and advertising- and often very little of that save what can be offered at little cost via social media, or more typically, with inordinate reliance on the better heeled and more tech savvy of their dealer contingent to do their marketing for them.
And, frankly, it is online marketing that is about all dealers have anymore, with so very few of them now occupying bricks and mortar. It is marketing that provides them with the occasional sale, and it is then the fair that provides the only figment of a gallery setting in which to sell what their social media posts tout.
In reading the arts press, one pundit posed the open question about whether the number of arts fairs reflected a growth in the buyer community. Given the flux in the state of the trade, with many more closures marked than openings, I think these changes argue not. In a recent edition of The Art Newspaper, Tim Schneider notes that the highest end of the market is driven by only a handful of collectors. And it is the result of their activity, whether selling, or buying, at Christie’s or Sotheby’s, receives the lion’s share of headline press. The less sexy reporting, if it is is reported at all, about fairs cancellation, gallery closures or consolidations, more accurately tells the tale. Tim Schneider concludes, as the title of his article implies, that the art market is less shrinking than it is ‘right-sizing’, with galleries and fairs adjusting to the economic reality of the marketplace after several years of overexpansion. And why not? At the end of the day, art in whatever form- contemporary or old master- is a commodity, and a fungible one at that, that is responsive to market forces.
Although in a state of flux, art fairs always provide an opportunity for both the seasoned and novice collector. The better fairs provide an excellent opportunity to browse and develop one’s eye. Not to say that everyone will be able to, in one pass, evolve into a connoisseur, but based on the number of objects on offer a body might have the chance to discern the good from the bad.
Certainly at the contemporary fairs in London over the course of the last few years, a number of artists established within the contemporary canon are, shall we say, having a moment. The Bloomsbury Group, Camden Town Group, and the likes of Grant, Fry, Sickert, and more contemporary names like Keith Vaughan and Maurice Cockrill and Terry Frost and Ivon Hitchens are all fairly well represented.
But at the end of the day, any fair’s survival depends on sales- if the dealers don’t achieve sales, they won’t return, and absent dealers, there is no art fair. But I have to say, we find good value at most art fairs, bearing in mind that the dealers themselves are there to sell and in the main, what’s on offer is priced to sell. When in doubt, do a bit of homework, consult the art databases, and then- buy!
See you at the London Art Fair, Islington Business Design Centre, starting 20 January 2026.