Sales were on the whole satisfactory with most works going for between 1,000 and 25,000 Euros. Several galleries sold out including Paris-Beijing and Claude Bernard with a one-man show of ink paintings by Gao Xingjian. Some galleries reported their best performance yet this year, including A2Z Galerie and J.P. Ritsch Fisch. Galerie Vieille du Temple sold 40 pieces at between 1,000 and 25,000 Euros. Duplex 100m2 et L’Agence à Paris (Sarajevo/Paris) doubled its sales from last year while Galerie Oniris Florent Paumelle sold five works by François Morellet at 50,000 Euros, with half the buyers being new or foreign clients. Claude Lemand sold a piece by Shafic Abboud for 300,000 Euros and a tondo by Iraq’s Dia Al-Azzawi at 80,000 Euros. Galerie Templon sold the “Roll Up” sculpture made in 2010 by British artist Antony Caro while Galerie Particulière let go of “Schema” a sculpture made of feathers by Kate Mccgwire for 60,000 Euros. Zürcher sold two large paintings by Marc Desgranchamps at 35,000 Euros each. Newcomers to the fair were satisfied, in particular Thailand’s Adler/Shubashok gallery which sold nine of Manit Sriwanichpoom’s “Pink Man” trolleys and a piece by Chatchai Puipa at 80,000 Euros. Françoise Livinec sold 31 drawings and paintings at between 400 and 25,000 Euros while Françoise Besson from Lyon let go of 16 works by Laurent Mulot at between 1,500 and 3,000 Euros. Clients also commissioned a work from her artist Patrice Giorda. .

Concerning thematic sections, buoyed by huge exposure in the press, the China platform was a resounding success. IFA gallery sold 3 works by Jiang Shanqing at between 10,000 and 25,000 Euros as well as a large photograph by the Gao Brothers at more than 20,000 Euros. Photography gallery M97 from Shanghai did well, selling some 20 works at between 1,000 and 8,000 Euros, in particular by artist Luo Dan who caught the attention of many visitors who discovered him for the first time. 10 Chancery Lane Gallery let go of a large painting by Huang Rui for 35,000 Euros. Xing Dong Cheng, a leading gallery on the Chinese art scene who had not been back to the fair since 2009 “was very impressed by how the fair has changed,” adding that “this is the first time a European fair produces a tribute of such size and quality to the Chinese art scene.”

Satisfaction was high among the 12 participants in the “Promises” section reserved for young galleries (less than 5 years old) whose booths were sponsored (50% of the cost) by ART PARIS ART FAIR. ALB – Anouk le Bourdiec gallery stood out with her two large drawings by Dutch artist The Kid that went for 20,000 and 27,000 Euros. Muriel Guépin from New York sold 4 drawings by Korean artist Keun Young Park at 4,500 Euros each while Feizi Gallery (Brussels, Shanghai) let go of some 20 drawings by Ye Linghan at 2,500 Euros each.

This year’s ArtDesign section was completely remodeled and directed by design expert and collector Caroline Mondineu-Jollès. Supported by IDEAT Magazine and Maserati, the section included 9 participants. An exhibition entitled “ArtDesignLab” with experimental work by 8 designers was widely acclaimed for its discriminating and cutting-edge selection. Many galleries expressed the desire to come back next year, including the Manufacture de Sèvres which sold works to new clients with prices ranging between 2,600 and 20,000 Euros. For its first time at the fair, Armel Soyer gallery was delighted, having sold a mirror by Mathias Kiss to Russian collectors for 30,000 Euros.

The ArtDesign prize that rewards the best collaboration between a gallery and an artist went to Florence Doléac represented by Jousse Entreprise for her work “Satellite Dreams II” made exclusively for ART PARIS ART FAIR. For the first time this year, the winning work will be donated to the Paris Musée des Arts Décoratifs. Vera Molnar and her gallery MiniMasterpiece received a special mention from the jury of the 2014 ArtDesign prize.

In conclusion, all the galleries that were interviewed were pleased with the nature of the fair’s visitors who were seen as high level and serious. They all mentioned the significant number of new contacts made, in particular among foreign visitors.