June fairs in London - Report from Europe - Brief Article

Magazine Antiques, May, 2002 by Miriam Kramer

Five art and antiques fairs will be held in London in June with overlapping dates that allow visitors the maximum opportunity to see what is on offer.

The Grosvenor House Art and Antiques Fair, sponsored by Zurich Financial Services, will beheld from June 12 to 18. This being the Queen's golden jubilee, the loan exhibition is comprised of objects from the reigns of Queens Elizabeth I and II. Among the works in the first category are the Walsingham Bowl (illustrated at right), a drawing of Elizabeth I recently reattributed to Isaac Oliver, and a suit of armor, made at the royal workshop in Greenwich. Objects from the time of Elizabeth II include a chair by John Makepeace and four prints by Andy Warhol depicting the queen.

The International Ceramics and Glass Fair and Seminar will be held at the Park Lane Hotel from June 14 to 17. The loan exhibition consists of rarities from the collection of the Winterthur Museum in Winterthur, Delaware. It includes examples of delftware, Bow, Longton Hall, and Worcester. Among the Chinese export objects is a plate from George Washington's own dinner service.

The largest of the London fairs is the Fine Art and Antiques Fair at Olympia from June 6 to 16. More than four hundred dealers from many countries display works for sale in a myriad of categories. The enlarged show now fills both the National and the Grand Halls at Olympia, permitting much larger stands.

Also at Olympia, between June 6 and 9, are the Antiquarian Book Fair and the Hall Antique Carpet and Textile Art Fair. The first offers not only books but also prints, early photographs, letters, maps, and illuminated manuscripts. The themes this year are children's books, travel literature, and, to mark the queen's golden jubilee, royalty through the ages. The loan exhibition at the HALI fair is of Caucasian carpets and textiles from before 1900, and includes classical and village carpets as well as embroideries and other textiles.