The Art of Visiting an Art Fair from Afar

When I was a curator and a museum director, I never went to the art fair held by the European Fine Art Foundation, or TEFAF, an annual extravaganza held in Maastricht in the Netherlands. It’s the world’s premiere art fair, with dealers offering the best and freshest “magna opera,” and every one of this year’s 265 or so stalls is a mini museum. It’s closing today. TEFAF in ye olden days displayed very little American art, and I was an American art curator and director of a museum exclusively of American art. There was no reason for me to go, but I was once a provincial, I’m sorry to admit. Every art lover should go. It’s an essential and unforgettable experience.