ART FAIRS:Paris Internationale 2022

Throughout the years, Paris Internationale has established itself as a new model in the ecosystem of international contemporary art fairs. Forward thinking and collaborative, free spirited and audacious, this non-profit fair was founded in 2015 on the initiative of five galleries. Since its creation, the fair has been offered a rich selection of cutting-edge artistic projects presented by galleries from around the world.

By Dimitris Lempesis
Photo: Paris Internationale Archive

For its eighth edition, Paris Internationale will host 59 galleries from 26 countries and is honored to welcome back many longstanding collaborators including BQ (Berlin), Bureau (New York), Chapter NY (New York), Derosia (New York), FELIX GAUDLITZ (Vienna), greengrassi (London), Kayokoyuki (Tokyo), Kendall Koppe (Glasgow), KOW (Berlin), Max Mayer (Dusseldorf), Project Native Informant (London), ROH Projects (Jakarta), Temnikova & Kasela (Tallinn) or Stereo (Warsaw) along the three founding galleries Ciaccia Levi (Paris/Milan), Crèvecoeur (Paris) and Gregor Staiger (Zurich/Milan). Additionally, Paris Internationale welcomes 16 new exhibitors, amongst these: Amanda Wilkinson (London), Champ Lacombe (Biarritz), Galeri Nev (Ankara/Istanbul), Higher Pictures Generation (New York), Lodos (Mexico City), Lomex (New York), P420 (Bologna), Schiefe Zähne (Berlin), Theta (New York). Aside from these leading galleries and their artists that together drive the discourse in contemporary art, Paris Internationale also regularly hosts non-profit spaces, which aren’t charged a participation fee to make their contributions to contemporary art available to an international audience. For the first time, Paris Internationale benefits from the support of CNAP (Centre national des arts plastiques) and will present the collaborative exhibition “Maintenant!”, which will bring together four artists: Maxime Bichon, Vincent Ceraudo, Marcelline Delbecq and Suzanne Lafont. Paris Internationale, an art fair driven by a mindset of independence, collaboration, and partnerships, displays contemporary art at different locations each year. The 2022 edition will take place in one of Paris’ first glazed-facade buildings, which housed the former studio of the French photographer Nadar and was home of the first Impressionist exhibition in 1874. Transformed in the 1990s and most recently used as an office and commercial building, this venue was abandoned during the pandemic. Its entire interior infrastructure was removed, revealing a bare, skeletal framework, as well as its vast potential. Christ & Gantenbein, the Swiss architecture studio, relied on its substantial expertise in creating spaces for art and culture to customize the fair’s exhibition design to its location and context. The raw interior is kept largely intact, providing something unexpected in the center of Paris. Approaching the 3000 m2 area like a city within a city, the architests reinterprets Hausmannian principles by forming a radical system of lights and temporary walls. The empty shell and deep floor plates are superimposed by a network of straight lines perpendicular to the boulevard, creating an exhibition design that challenges the preconceived idea of the art fair booth. Open pathways stretch from the street to the courtyard, despite any obstacles. Paris Internationale’s public programs, accessible to all and free of charge, take place throughout the fair. Aiming to facilitate exchanges and conversations about art between members of the international art worlds, these events maintain an informal and unconventional dimension. Paris Internationale is also renewing Daily Dérives, its program of conversations led by emblematic personalities of the art world. Finally, Paris Internationale is setting up a specific program for kids and is designing a booklet for its youngest visitors.