Art Basel Paris Closes Two Days Early Over Protest Fears

Art Basel Paris will close two days early. The fair was set to run through Sunday, October 25 at the Grand Palais. It will now end on Friday, October 23 at 7 p.m., organizers told exhibitors, "in light of potential demonstrations across Paris this weekend, and in the interest of safeguarding our visitors, exhibitors, partners, staff and artworks."

The fifth edition of the fair brought 211 galleries from 41 countries to the Grand Palais. It opened on Tuesday, October 20 with an invitation-only Avant-Première, followed by VIP preview days. The early close leaves Friday as the only full public day. Organizers said holders of Saturday and Sunday tickets would be contacted directly.

A protest planned at the door

Several artist groups and labor unions, among them the Syndicat National des Artistes Plasticiennes, had called a protest for Saturday, October 24 at 4 p.m. in front of the Grand Palais. A flyer for the protest denounced what it called the privatization of culture. France has seen nationwide demonstrations for weeks over education, living costs and public services. Protests on October 17 briefly put the Grand Palais into lockdown while the fair was being installed. Art Basel added concrete anti-ram barriers and round-the-clock patrols before opening.

The same building is also hosting an exhibition on Paul Cézanne, with insurance values running into the billions of euros, according to Le Monde. Hyperallergic reported that Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said troops from Operation Sentinelle, the military patrol mission set up after the January 2015 attacks in Paris, would be deployed over the weekend.

Dealers count the cost

For exhibitors, the lost weekend is the expensive part. Some paid more than 100,000 euros for their stands, Le Monde reported. Gallery owner Nathalie Obadia said she understood closing on Saturday but called staying shut on Sunday a major blow, since weekends bring collectors from across France and from Belgium and Germany. Philippe Charpentier, president of the French art dealers committee, said he had no information about possible compensation.

Dealer Georges-Philippe Vallois said he would open his two spaces on Rue de Seine on Sunday instead. Most galleries in the Marais and the 8th arrondissement plan to stay closed on Saturday, Le Monde reported. After the October 17 protests, the dealers committee, consulted by the City of Paris, reported no major damage, a few tags and no thefts.

What happens next

In their email to exhibitors, Art Basel chief artistic officer Vincenzo de Bellis and Paris fair director Karim Crippa asked galleries to keep their displays intact until the fair closes on Friday at 7 p.m. and to wait for instructions before moving works out. Artist Alicja Kwade said her 14-foot sculpture outside the Grand Palais, L'Élévation des Mondes, would be taken down on Friday instead of Sunday, citing "announced riots and people who simply want to resort to violence."

The closure is a sharp end to one of the busiest weeks in the Paris art calendar. Sales during the VIP days were strong, with at least two works selling for 10 million dollars, Artsy reported. The business that depends on weekend visitors, smaller galleries meeting new collectors face to face, will not happen this year.