There are neither direct flights nor trains to Maastricht from London, Paris, Brussels or more distant points, unless of course you have a private jet. Enough of the latter turn up to cause a no parking sign to go up at its small airport. Yet TEFAF, which takes place in March every year, is unquestionably worth the trek to this town in the far east of the Netherlands where it borders Germany and Belgium. It is not only the biggest and best art and antiques fair, it is like a giant treasure hunt; you just never know what work or object of art is going to reveal itself and send shock waves from head to toe.During last week's VVIP preview and indeed on the mere VIP preview the following day, I spent many million euros. The number would be far higher if more dealers were willing to tell me (a journalist) their prices. True my purchases (like the sums needed to take them home) exist only in my mind but happily I find so much food for hungry eyes a lavish banquet.
TEFAF's fame was built on the number and quality of Old Master paintings its dealers offered but these days there are many fewer top quality Old Masters on the market anywhere. Yet even in this category I was beguiled.
"Portrait of a Dog," by the Florentine painter Tiberio Titi (1578-1627) is a honey. This is no generic hound; no dutiful execution of a plump commission. It is a closely observed, beautifully painted portrait of an arresting, highly individual, living creature that happens to be canine. Okay I am doggie as the English call it and some might say also a little on the offbeat side. These are facts not explanations for why I wanted to buy this painting. And doubters note: Standing next to me in the stand of Paris dealer Maurizio Canesso and also taking photos of this Titi portrait, was Eike Schmidt, Director of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. We soon were chatting about other memorable dog portraits; he mentioned Giulio Romano, I was think of Paulus Potter.
Here are a few of the other surprise treats I gobbled up at the fair:
At the stand of Buenos Aires dealer Jaime Eguiguren-Arte y Antiguedades I was transfixed by five small caskets of a type I'd never seen before. These little 17th century chests were made in Colombia during the Spanish Conquest.
The rarest of these rarities (above) is inlaid with gold. All five of the little caskets are made with a technique that was inspired by the luxurious, mother of pearl inlaid Namban- ware made in Japan at around the same time when the Portuguese were allowed there to trade. These are made with less luxurious materials and some are less technically sophisticated. In Colombia they used what they had; plant dyes and pastes filled in the incised designs. The results however are beautiful even joyful and now rare.
At the stand of Ab-PAB, Paris- based dealers in Spanish and Portuguese Colonial art, ivory turned into a magnetic material as I was drawn across the stand to the vitrine in which stood the little sculpture below. They date it to the 17th century. I assumed it was from Goa (where the Portuguese had a flourishing trading post). I learned that, most unusually, it was carved in Thailand. Its subject is the young John the Baptist with his playmate the infant Jesus represented by a lamb. After all, the Baptist is often portrayed dressed in an animal skin and here were not one a single lamb but two. The dealers disagree. They label this a statue of the infant Jesus as the Good Shepherd. I remain unconvinced if also aware of my ignorance--and sigh, wishing the price was not 9,000 euros.
For an absolute killer chandelier with not a crystal drop in sight, a hugely oversized hidden treasure, is the magnificent metal artichoke chandelier at Brussels dealer Yves Maccou. "You need a room with a very high ceiling," he warned me, adding that its price is about 350,000 euros. Ruled out on both counts.
On Friday morning, my third day in town, I went to the weekly market to buy tulips and cheese (more my price range). It was cold, gray, raining, Dismal weather which seemed fitting as I looked up at the impressive State House that faces the square. It was here, in 1993 that representative of the member nations gathered to sign the treaty which established the European Union--the treaty that back home in London politicians were so chaotically attempting to unravel. It was a relief as well as a pleasure to head back to TEFAF and the abundant evidence that for many centuries men and women have been creating wonders for all of us to enjoy.
