Air de Paris was a contemporary art gallery owned and directed by Florence Bonnefous and Edouard Merino from 1990 to 2026, located in Nice, Paris and later Romainville, France.[1]
| Established | 1990 |
|---|---|
| Location | 43, rue de la Commune de Paris Romainville, France |
| Directors | Florence Bonnefous & Edouard Merino |
| Website | www.airdeparis.com |
History
edit
In 1990 Air de Paris was established in Nice by Bonnefous and Merino,[2] who had attended the École du Magasin[3] in Grenoble together. In 1994, the gallery relocated to Paris, first at a location on rue des Haudriettes. Alongside other galleries including Almine Rech and Galerie Perrotin, Air de Paris moved to spaces on Rue Louise Weiss in the 13th arrondissement in 1997, as part a city-sponsored initiative.[4] In 2019, Air de Paris joined forces with three other galleries (Jocelyn Wolff, In Situ Fabienne Leclerc and Sator), a public institution Le Plateau frac île de france and Fiminco Foundation to open spaces in Komunuma, an 11,000 m2 (120,000 sq ft) four-building arts complex in Romainville.[4] Together with In Situ Fabienne Leclerc, the gallery occupied a four-storey space and a shared roof terrace.[5]
The name "Air de Paris" was a tribute to Marcel Duchamp and his "ready-made" 50cc of Paris Air.[6] At the beginning, there was Les Ateliers du Paradise[7] with Philippe Perrin, Pierre Joseph and Philippe Parreno. Paul McCarthy, Lily van der Stokker and Jean-Luc Verna, among others, participated to the reputation of the Nicean formula.
Air de Paris represented established practicing artists such as Liam Gillick, Claire Fontaine, and Trisha Donnelly, historically important artists such as Guy de Cointet, Dorothy Iannone and Allen Ruppersberg, and emerging artists such as Eliza Douglas and Aaron Flint Jamison. Air de Paris also represented the photographic work of Michel Houellebecq following his large survey exhibition at Palais de Tokyo in 2016.[8]
In 2026, Air de Paris declared bankruptcy and ceased operations.[9]
Artists
editAir de Paris represented numerous living artists, including:
Art fairs
editAir de Paris was present at many contemporary art fairs including Art Basel (1999–2025),[12] Independent in New York, FIAC in Paris and Artissima in Turin. From 2022, Bonnefous served on the selection committee of Art Basel's Paris edition.[13]
References
edit- ↑ Devorah Lauter (12 May 2026), Air de Paris, a Radical Stalwart of the French Gallery Scene, Is Closing Cultured.
- ↑ "The Top Galleries in Europe". Archived from the original on 2013-09-26. Retrieved 2013-09-24.
- ↑ "Ecole du Magasin". Ecole du Magasin. Archived from the original on 2014-02-19. Retrieved 2014-02-06.
- 1 2 Anna Sansom (July 29, 2019), "'Grand Paris': new art complex to open in Parisian suburb", The Art Newspaper.
- ↑ Anna Sanson (October 15, 2019), "Imane Farès drops out of new Paris gallery complex", The Art Newspaper.
- ↑ "Marcel Duchamp -Air de Paris". Centre Pompidou. Archived from the original on June 26, 2019. Retrieved June 24, 2017.
- ↑ Bourriaud, Nicolas (2002). Relational Aesthetics. Les Presses du réel. ISBN 2840660601.
- ↑ "Michel Houellebecq". Palais de Tokyo.
- ↑ Devorah Lauter (12 May 2026), Air de Paris, a Radical Stalwart of the French Gallery Scene, Is Closing Cultured.
- ↑ Alix Browne (3 June 2007), The Strong, Not So Silent Type The New York Times Magazine
- ↑ Alex Greenberger (27 February 2024), Painter Emma McIntyre Joins David Zwirner, Becoming the Youngest Artist on Its Roster ARTnews.
- ↑ Maximilíano Durón (22 April 2025), Leading Parisian Gallery Withdraws from Art Basel’s Swiss Edition Due to Booth Placement ARTnews.
- ↑ Kabir Jhala (24 March 2022), Art Basel reveals directors and name for new Paris fair in October The Art Newspaper.