In the London art world, “PAD” is a word that carries weight. These art fairs are more than social events; they are boutique affairs where galleries large and small exhibit visual art, furniture and jewellery by international artists and designers, known and unknown. Founded by Parisian dealer Patrick Perrin, who started his home city’s Pavilion of Art and Design (originally the “Pavillon des Antiquaires et des Galeries d’Art”) 22 years ago, PAD debuted in London in 2007, in Geneva last year and in Monaco last April.
“With PAD, we privilege dealers with a real niche expertise,” Perrin says. “It’s not about the size of their galleries, it is about their level of connoisseurship and passion for what they do. We showcase a vibrant range of works across various disciplines, historic and contemporary, and wish to inspire collectors and show them what it means to ‘collect’ in the real sense.”
The unusually intimate size of PAD makes this aim achievable, with this year’s London edition (30 September to 6 October), hosting 68 galleries from 14 countries in one marquee on Berkeley Square, its home since 2009. The Mayfair location is strategic. “It’s a very cosmopolitan crowd,” says Perrin, “with collectors from Asia, South America, USA and Europe, either based in London or flying in for the big art week,” which also includes Frieze London, Frieze Masters and The Other Art Fair.
Immersed in art since his youth, Perrin has worked to bring design into the artistic sphere, raising it “to something more than a mere functional object. Today, a chair, table and lamp by the greatest historic and contemporary designers are appreciated and valued as art. Recognition for craftsmanship and creativity no longer belongs to a small clique of cognoscenti.”
He is also keen to prevent art becoming mere investments for the super-rich. “With prices rocketing and creating a bubble, the art world is losing its real collectors, those collecting out of passion,” he says. “It should be about falling in love with an artwork for the pleasure it brings, whether small or large, expensive or not, and about combining genres with flair and taste.”
And if he could offer just one piece of advice for the novice collector? “Buy the chef-d’œuvre of the smallest artist, not the cheapest work of a great master.”
