The Tefaf fair It is considered the best art and antiques fair in the world thanks to the rigor of the selection of everything on display: days before opening, some 200 experts from around the world carefully review all the works of art, decorative art objects, furniture, jewelry and books on display, in order to verify them. These are the well-known days of vetting [verification], so these experts use all the means at their disposal, including AI. Thus, it may happen that one of these experts has a piece withdrawn or forces the gallery owner to correct the information on the label. In the field of books, the level of excellence is guaranteed by professionals such as the Swiss Jörn Günther, considered one of the three most important antiquarians of old books.

Another of the surprises of the edition of the Tefaf art fair, in Maastricht, It is a portrait that Gustav Klimt (1862-1918) painted in 1897 of Prince William Nii Nortey Dowuona, which had been missing since 1938. It is for sale by the Austrian gallery Wienerroither & Kohlbacher for 15 million euros, one of the highest prices. The history of the painting is marked by Nazism: the owner in the 1930s, Ernestine Klein, of Jewish origin, had to flee Vienna and took refuge in Monaco. Upon returning home, she realized that the painting and other possessions had been stolen.

Every year, for a week, the Tefaf fair in Maastricht becomes an oasis of art and luxury. This year, visitors are welcomed by a gigantic floral dome and the usual stalls selling fish, oysters, and lobster, offering a bite to eat while wandering in and out of the galleries—if they're still hungry after nibbling on the canapés distributed by a string of waiters along the fair's aisles. Whatever happens outside at Tefaf, which opens its doors this Thursday to journalists and invited guests and to the public from the 15th to the 20th, the noise of current events is muffled, aside from the fact that the art market isn't at its best and that the major auction houses have experienced losses of 3% for the gallery owner Artur Ramon: the closure of European airspace due to a volcanic eruption in Iceland, a robbery at the fair, and the COVID pandemic.

Every year, for a week, the Tefaf fair in Maastricht becomes an oasis of art and luxury. This year, visitors are welcomed by a gigantic floral dome and the usual stalls selling fish, oysters, and lobster, offering a bite to eat while wandering in and out of the galleries—if they're still hungry after nibbling on the canapés distributed by a string of waiters along the fair's aisles. Whatever happens outside at Tefaf, which opens its doors this Thursday to journalists and invited guests and to the public from the 15th to the 20th, the noise of current events is muffled, aside from the fact that the art market isn't at its best and that the major auction houses have experienced losses of 3% for the gallery owner Artur Ramon: the closure of European airspace due to a volcanic eruption in Iceland, a robbery at the fair, and the COVID pandemic.

The Tefaf fair in Maastricht (Netherlands) is considered one of the most important art fairs in the world. The next edition, which will be held from March 15 to 20, will be a big event, as the Stuart Lochhead Sculpture gallery will exhibit the painting by Velázquez The venerable mother Jerónima de la Fuente. But the presence of the painting at the fair is causing controversy: sources from the Ministry of Culture say that the painting "is not for sale", as reported by the newspaper. Abc and the ARA has confirmed it. However, the gallery assures that it is. The same sources from the ministry warn that, according to the Spanish heritage law, the owners received a temporary export authorization from the general direction of Cultural Heritage and Fine Arts to "exhibit" the painting, after a favorable report from the Board of Qualification, Valuation and Export. But if it wanted to be sold, according to the same sources, it would be necessary to request "another authorization in case the buyer wanted to take it out of the country, which would be evaluated at the time." "At the moment, it is only out on display and must return," they assure.