february-2011

DUTCH MASTERS
Maastricht’s TEFAF prides itself on being
the world’s leading art and antiques fair,
and 2011 looks to be another great year
Where else would
you see under
one roof topdollar
pieces by Gauguin,
Bacon and Degas, Rembrandt
and Rubens? Or spot superstar
artists such as Marc Quinn
and Anish Kapoor snapping
up stunning works of ancient
art? The answer is the TEFAF
Maastricht art fair, located in
the southern Dutch market
town and capital of the province
of Limburg, which has
become an essential port of
call for fi ne art, antiques and,
increasingly, blue-chip 20thcentury
art.
Much of TEFAF’s appeal lies
in the encyclopaedic smorgasbord
of art it dishes up. “It’s like
going into a bubble,” says Iwan
Wirth of the London-based
gallery Hauser & Wirth. “There
are more than 2,000 years of
art history on show. It’s like the
British Museum.”
Georgina Adam, editor-atlarge
of the trade journal The
Art Newspaper, adds: “It is the
best place to see classic works of
art, from Renaissance treasures
to Old Masters of the Northern
school. Each booth feels like
somebody’s drawing room.”
The fair is indeed known for
its sedate, scholarly atmosphere,
a marked contrast to
head-spinning, party-packed
rivals such as London’s Frieze.
It’s also renowned for its lavish
sophistication: last year,
six-metre-high walls of white
roses lined the entrance. It’s all
a far cry from the fair’s modest
beginnings 36 years ago with
just 28 exhibitors. Last year
over 260 galleries participated,
of which just 22 were new or
returning after a break. So how
has Maastricht turned into a
premier art destination?
In 1989, the European Fine
Art Foundation (TEFAF) took
the reins, and has continued to
keep the fair fresh with special
exhibitions and fair design
revamps. In 1994, headline-hitting
20th-century art stars such
as Picasso and Warhol were on
view for the fi rst time. Contemporary
art is gradually making
its presence felt, appearing on
around one-fi fth of the stands;
works by US artist Cy Twombly,
known for his abstract scribbles,
and video supremo Bill
Viola have graced the booths.
Ben Janssens, chairman of
the organising committee since
2007, has kept the fair fresh by
introducing a new section each
year: Showcase, for younger
galleries, in 2008; Design in
2009 and TEFAF on Paper last
year [2010], when works on
off er ranged from antiquarian
books to Japanese prints.
Janssens also enjoys
Maastricht for other reasons.
Ein Kunstwerk wird auf seine
Authentizität überprüft
Expert eye: vetting the pieces
He claims to always buy his
shoes in the Dutch town
which is noted for its bijou
footwear emporiums. Retail
aside, it’s worth checking
out local cultural hotspot the
Bonnefanten museum which is
strong on medieval sculpture
and modern minimalist art.
The city’s location near the
borders of Germany, Belgium
and Luxembourg also provides
A R T
the ideal opportunity to visit
a range of major galleries in
Rotterdam (Museum Boijmansvan
Beuningen) and Cologne
(Museum Ludwig).
But the art showcase that is
TEFAF, presented over 10 days
every spring at the Maastricht
Exhibition and Congress
Centre (18-27 March 2011,
admission charge: €55), is still
the biggest draw.
GW—65