This is Not a Fair

47 rue Chapon Paris
18 - 26 October 2025
opening:
Wednesday 22 October, 6 to 9 pm

with:
A1043, Paris
Etage Projects, Copenhagen
Maniera, Brussels
Galerie VIVID, Rotterdam

instagram.com/this_is_not_a_fair

Theophile Blandet
Yoon Shun
Wendy Andreu
Bram Vanderbeke

For a long time, galleries were influencers, people who gave direction and discovered creators. However, the development of social media and the proliferation of media and distribution channels mean that anyone can now have their say in a kind of cacophony without a clear message. Today, anyone can improvise as an actor, writer, designer and therefore gallery owner. A garage with a leaky roof in the middle of the countryside, an Instagram account, image processing software, good AI, and you're all set. This is undoubtedly a great opportunity, and a multitude of things will come out of it. Some good, some bad; the future will sort it out. And ultimately, does it make sense to have a gallery these days? We're talking about a space and a selection of creators and works. Gallery owners invest, take risks, get involved. They put themselves on the line. Gallery owners make choices. Through their decisions, they develop ideas, meaning and create an intelligible narrative. We tend to forget this today, but it must be said that they are as important as those they exhibit. Take it from a gallery owner. One cannot exist without the other. At a time when Paris Art Week and art fairs have long been part of the contemporary cultural landscape, it is worth remembering these few ideas.

At a time when we are witnessing an increase in offers and opportunities to see, if not buy, we wanted to invite galleries whose work we admire. Galleries founded by passionate people who bring meaning and who are perhaps reinventing their profession. Four galleries. Not one more. Two spaces. A hundred square metres. This is Not a Fair. An event on a human scale. The galleries present here have a deep love of design. For them, it all starts with passion, not ambition. No posturing, just love. Love of objects, of the relationship between object and use. Everyone here has made choices, and that is what we wanted to highlight.