Collectors, museums, and art lovers returned in force to the opening weekend of the first TEFAF Maastricht since 2020. Visitors flocked to view and acquire museum-quality works of art spanning 7,000 years from the 242 dealers representing 20 countries presenting extraordinarily diverse works of art, all under one roof.

There was a strong presence from the museum community, with over 100 institutions sending representatives to the fair and reports of robust sales to this audience alongside significant acquisitions by private collectors. Museums in attendance included the Metropolitan Museum of Art, J. Paul Getty Museum, and the Art Institute of Chicago from the US, along with the British Museum, Courtauld Institute of Art, and Ashmolean Museum from the UK.

Other major European institutions visiting included the Musée de Louvre, the Rijksmuseum, Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, and the national galleries of Denmark, Berlin, Scotland, and Ireland.

Among notable sales from the opening weekend (June 24 and 25) were:

Antiques:

  • The London specialist in Indian and Japanese works of art, Joost van den Bergh (booth 264), sold two pieces to the Metropolitan Museum of Art for an undisclosed amount.
  • Aronson Antiquairs (booth 117), specialists in Delftware, sold its masterpiece—a pair of ‘Porcelain’ paintings—for a six-figure sum.
  • First-time exhibitor Thomas Coulbourn & Sons (booth 262) reported the sale of three pieces, including a Huanghuali game and tea table, priced at €100,000, along with a wine cooler for €225,000 and a pair of engraved pictures.
  • Steinitz (booth 136) sold a set of terracotta roundels depicting busts of emperors and other figures attributed to Andrea Briosco Il Riccio for over €3 million.

Antiquities and ethnographic:

  • Dr Jörn Günther Rare Books (booth 108) had a strong start selling two manuscripts which achieved over €1 million combined. Gregory IX’s Decretales and Boccaccio’s Lives of Famous Men and Women.
  • Ben Janssens Oriental Art (booth 205) sold a Pottery Seated Lion to a British private collector for around €40,000.
  • London-based dealer, Charles Ede (booth 523), sold an Egyptian sculptor’s trial piece of a kneeling pharaoh from the Ptolemaic Period to the Musée Royal de Mariemont in Brussels.
  • Serge Schoffel (booth 500) from Brussels sold a pair of Bulul, made by the Ifugao people, Northern Luzon, Philippines.

Contemporary and modern:

  • First-time exhibitor White Cube (booth 400) reported multiple sales, including Hove by Antony Gormley for £500,000.
  • Beck & Eggeling (booth 436), who are based in Düsseldorf, sold multiple works, including Fiore III and Azul Blanco by Manolo Valdés for $650,000, as well as Urpflanze III by the Ukrainian artist, Aljoscha, who attended the fair’s opening day.
  • Japan-based dealer, A Lighthouse called Kanata (booth 447) experienced an exceptional opening day, selling 16 pieces, of which half were to new clients.
  • Galerie Le Minotaure (booth 434) sold Quatre plans irréguliers à volutes by Sophie Taeuber-Arp, which had an asking price of €300,000.
  • London’s The Mayor Gallery (booth 446) sold 2 Trames de petits tirets 0º 90º by François Morellet.
  • TEFAF Chairman, Hidde van Seggelen (booth 408), sold two works to the Dutch Museum Voorlinden.

Silver:

  • A. Aardewerk (booth 261), a specialist in Dutch silver from the 17th and 18th centuries, sold an exquisite wine cup created in 1688 by Jan Diamant in Haarlem. It sold for over €100,000.

Paintings:

  • Madrid-based Caylus (booth 338) sold its painting Virgin and Child for approximately €1.5 million.
  • Old Master heavyweights, Colnaghi (booth 307), reported the sale of its Portrait of a Noblewoman by Rodrigo de Villandrando for €700,000.
  • Galleria Carlo Virgilio & C. (booth 357) sold its star piece, Portrait of an unidentified sitter, by Charles Mellin, along with several further works.
  • Trinity Fine Art (booth 350) sold one of its highlights for €180,000, a depiction of Antonio Canova in his studio surrounded by his sculptures by Pompeo Calvi.
  • Kunstgalerij Albricht (booth 319), the Oosterbeek-based dealer, sold its masterpiece, Two Boxers by Isaac Israels, along with six further works, all to private collectors from the UK, US, Germany, and The Netherlands.

Sculpture:

  • TEFAF newcomer, Paris-based Galerie Sismann (booth 249), sold its bronze highlight Corpus, designed by Michelangelo Buonarroti, for a seven-figure sum.
  • Galerie Xavier Eeckhout (booth 147) sold five sculptures on the opening day, including the two Élephants d’Asie ‘il y arrivera’ by Rembrandt Bugatti for €350,000.

Design:

  • Galerie Marc Heiremans (booth 606) reported strong sales, including a unique eggshell-ware porcelain-lidded vase made between 1893 and 1900.

TEFAF Chairman, Hidde van Seggelen, said, “This has been a momentous return for TEFAF Maastricht, and it is exciting to once again feel the energy of this great fair, which brings together our community of exhibitors with international art lovers and collectors. Our exhibitors have been busy acquiring and researching truly exceptional works of art to bring to TEFAF Maastricht. They have made a huge effort both in the quality of material and presentation, and it shows. The strength of early sales has affirmed TEFAF’s Maastricht’s continued position as the world’s leading showcase for 7,000 years of art history.”

Commenting on this year’s fair, long-time exhibitor Alessandro Di Castro said, “TEFAF Maastricht 2022 marks the grand return to the world stage of the arts. The liveliness among the stands by visitors and the study and search for unique objects by dealers contributed to the exciting atmosphere of this edition.”

TEFAF Maastricht runs until Thursday, June 30, at the MECC, Maastricht. For information, visit www.TEFAF.com.

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