Next week I’ll be at Paris Photo, a vast trade fair for galleries and publishers held in the rather claustrophobic underground Carrousel du Louvre in the centre of Paris and open to the public 15-18 November. I’m looking forward to it, but with some trepidation – last year I suffered a panic attack at one point and had to run for the fresh air.
It is big. 104 exhibitors from 17 countries – 83 galleries and 21 publishers. Some of the stands are pretty large, with hundreds of pictures on display – others smaller or having very large pictures. 40 of the best-known photographic magazines from around the world are there too, along with a special exhibition of Italian photography, and two major photographic prizes, the Prix BMW – Paris Photo and the Prix SFR Jeunes Talents (you can click on the names to see their work.) The Prix BMW, this year on the theme of ‘water’, has an illustrious list of photographers entered by the exhibitors at Paris Photo, including Alessandra Sanguinetti, Wout Berger, Trent Parke and Boris Mikhailov, and the winner will be announced at the show.
It is also an opportunity to meet many photographers, including over 30 who will be signing their books at the show. I’ll also be hoping to see a number of friends among the artists, dealers and others at the show – and perhaps even at a party or two or in one of the bars in the area around.
I’m there for 3 days – or at least parts of 3 days, as it’s best seen in a number of visits, with some time out to stroll around the city and do other things.
You can get a little idea of the range of work on show there – even if you can’t make it to Paris – by looking at the show preview on the Lens Culture site, which includes 120 images from the show, which you can see either by using the ‘next’ button or going into gallery view to see the thumbnails.
