The ongoing evolution of a trade association is a necessity. The change of name from the SNA, now the National Union of Antique Dealers and Art Galleries, is not just an ambition: it is a statement of intent. It is simply a matter of reflecting, in words, the evolution of the art market.
While in the past, there was sometimes a tendency to oppose Old Masters and Modern Art, Fine Arts and Decorative Arts, antique dealers and gallery owners, these boundaries are now tending to blur.
The art market has never been so global, and collectors' tastes so eclectic!
Our professions as antique dealers, merchants, or art traders are converging towards that of gallery owner. We all share the same profession: offering our collectors rare, high-quality, authentic, and aesthetically pleasing works of art with passion and expertise. Our know-how lies in authenticating them, sometimes restoring them to preserve them, researching often-forgotten provenances, and then showcasing them at fairs or in our galleries, which are modern and welcoming spaces designed to share them with a wider audience.
The Syndicate supports and even orchestrates this evolution with this Journal of Antique Dealers and Galleries. We are putting our words into action by welcoming several new members this month, all working in the fields of modern and post-war art. This is anything but symbolic! This new issue of the journal is an opportunity to analyze the progress of the modern and contemporary sector at Tefaf Maastricht, which has just closed its doors, to discuss the unmissable contemporary art fair Art Paris, orchestrated by Guillaume Piens – in which prominent members of the Syndicate participate in early April – or to explore the exhibition "Tous Léger!" at the Musée du Luxembourg, three events which materialize these bridges that we hope for between classics, moderns and current creation.
