Paris is always a good idea, they say. It seems that Design Miami agrees.
The fair will launch its inaugural edition in the French capital in October 2022. That inaugural outing coincides with Art Basel’s own debut fair at the Grand Palais, which was announced last week.
“The decision to present an event in Paris this October is the natural next step in Design Miami’s evolution,” said Jennifer Roberts, CEO of Design Miami. “Rooted in the past with a hold on the future, the city truly complements Design Miami’s commitment to showcasing the best of historic and contemporary collectible design.”
Design Miami has served as a satellite event at both the Miami and Basel editions of Art Basel, and Art Basel’s global director Marc Spiegler expressed enthusiasm that it was joining October’s action in Paris. “We are not just thinking about this as an art fair, but an art fair as a core of a broader cultural moment, and Paris seemed like the right place for it,” he told Artnet News.
Le Grand Palais Éphémère, Champs de mars, Paris. Wilmotte & Associés Architectes. Photo ©Patrick Tourneboeuf/RMN_GP/Tendance Floue.
The design fair also announced the appointment of Maria Cristina Didero, a Milan-based curator, author, and consultant, as the global curatorial director. Didero will begin her new role with the Basel edition of Design Miami, slated to take place June 14–19 in Switzerland alongside Art Basel.
Didero has worked with Design Miami before, collaborating with Fendi for three exhibitions on view at the fair. She has also worked with international designers including the Campana Brothers, Bethan Laura Wood, Philippe Malouin, and Daniel Arsham’s design collective Snarkitecture.
The City of Light is seeing major shifts in its cultural scene, underscored by MCH Group’s unseating of FIAC at the Grand Palais, securing a seven-year lease in the landmark building. While Paris Photo will remain in the venue during its November time slot, galleries worry that a behemoth like MCH Group may disrupt the art landscape and cater to mega-galleries instead of regional outposts.
Both the dates for the concurrent art fairs and the name of Art Basel’s Parisian edition remain unknown.