John Culme, who for many years has been connected with Sotheby's Silver Department, is author of several books and articles, including The Directory of Gold and Silversmiths, 1838-1914, published in 1987, and co-author with Nicholas Rayner of The Jewels of the Duchess of Windsor. He is also a Liveryman of the Goldsmiths' Company, London. In addition to being the best event of its kind in the world, The European Fine Art Fair or affectionaly known as TEFAF for short. It was held in Maastricht, Holland and is probably the most inaccessible event of it’s kind along with being the best! (At least from an English perspective)
After rising at an unholy hour (4am) on Friday, I eventually reached the unprepossessing conference hall which houses the fair at 2pm after a journey involving four trains and a taxi. All this to travel a distance not too dissimilar from London to Newcastle. (Frankly, the only way to reach the fair swiftly is by private jet but as such a display of wealth is rather infra dig these days, I imagine the really big hitters travelled, like me, incognito on Eurostar)
Having said the above, the journey was worth every minute and forgotten as soon as I entered this truly spectacular event. In a recent interview for Apollo Magazine, fair organiser and dealer Ben Janssen stated his aim of creating an “Alice in Wonderland” feel for TEFAF this year. He certainly did not fail. From the sumptuously decorated entrance to the cleverly lit aisles and stands, the fair had a magical look creating the perfect staging for hosting the mind-boggling treasures on show from (my favourite) a sixteenth century nautilus shell drinking cup with Paris dealer Kugel, to a ravishing seascape oil by August Strindberg at French and Company. Collectively the works of display rivalled a great museum but what gives this fair its extra frisson is the knowledge that anyone can take them all home (given the funds, of course, a rather inconvenient hurdle).
The fair is a level playing field where visitor and museum curator alike (and most of the leading ones attend) jostle for bargains in the most expensive and most beautiful shopping mall on the planet. Although endlessly distracted by the extraordinary works of art all around, I did manage to see many old friends in the antique silver trade including Francis and Nicholas Norton at SJ Phillips; Anthony Marks, Stephen Dale and Clive Toberman at Marks Antiques; Lewis Smith at Koopman Rare Art; and Stephen and Janie Burton from my former stamping ground at Hancocks & Co. It was early days when I visited (the fair continues until 22 March) but there was a quiet sense of optimism and no lack of interest as the aisles were packed all day long. Collectively all these dealers, and the many others attending from around the world, produce an extraordinary and unrivalled event which will live long in the memory (or until next year’s show!)
