Maastricht and TEFAF – The European Fine Art Fair – is almost upon us (Friday 18th to Sunday 27th March), where John Mitchell Fine Paintings, run by another branch of the Mitchell family, is exhibiting…
Our last outing, to the Winter Fine Art & Antiques Fair at Olympia in November 2010, generated a lot of interest in our collection which we consolidated at our Christmas exhibition. Now we’re looking forward to Art Antiques London in Kensington Gardens (9th-15th June), in the beautiful surroundings of the park, near the Albert Memorial.
Real, physical fairs are still the heart-blood of the art world; the reports of technical setbacks besetting the online VIP art fair in January are daunting – too many users crashing the site, the disabling of the chat feature and worries about the privacy of those leaving their details. In time, of course, all these glitches will be sorted out, and the virtual fair will allow a lot more people access to the world’s art markets. However, it raises the question as to whether a digital image – however detailed and whatever the resolution – can replace an intimate contact with the actual object itself.
Seeing a painting hanging on the wall, in all its 3D physicality – height, width and depth, texture of paper and paint, luscious gleam of impasto and chalky scumble of pastels – can be the start of an instant love affair, when you know that you must possess the object of your passion. That’s why we encourage you to see what’s on our site – but to come here, too: fall in love with our paintings at first hand… after all, spring is the time for love…
