France

Paris saleroom Artcurial will offer a group of 20 works from the family of Camille Claudel (1864-1943) for sale on November 27.

When the French literature section of the great Bradley Martin library was sold in 1989 (at Sotheby’s Monaco), an 1845 first of 'La Reine Margot' by Alexandre Dumas père was offered as part of a job lot of three of his works that sold for FFr11,500 (£1100).

Bibliomania has been running for three years at the Espace Champerret in the 17th arrondissement in Paris. The biannual fair draws around 100 exhibiting dealers from across Europe (including Pablo Butcher from Oxford).

MADAM – I feel compelled to write and let ATG’s readers know about my experience at the recent Grande Braderie de Lille (2-3 September).

The personal seals used by the Qianlong Emperor, a known connoisseur and patron of the arts, are among the most highly prized Chinese artefacts in today’s market.

White-walled shop fronts, spindly trees and anonymous figures populate city scenes that Maurice Utrillo (1883-1955) painted in the early 20th century.

Stephen Camburn’s gallery is set in France’s Loire Valley. Camburn Fine Art France specialises in contemporary art and the paintings of Alan Halliday.

If you want to see some impressive room sets, then the biannual Foire de Chatou, 15km from Paris and held on the banks of the River Seine, is the place.

The Parcours de la Céramique has become a well-established feature of the Paris rentrée.

ATG canvasses the opinion of two exhibitors, one returning for the second time and a new recruit.

One highlight of the rentrée is the scholarly exhibitions put on at the same time as the 'Biennale' by the Paris dealership Galerie Kugel.

In Europe summer is traditionally a time of lower activity for much of the working world with schools closed and people heading off for a long break. This is especially true in France, so when activity rekindles in September the French make a big thing of La Rentrée (the return to work).

A well-established lynchpin of the Paris rentrée is the gallery-based, Left Bank tribal art fair known as the 'Parcours des Mondes' (PDM) staged in the small galleries that pepper the network of streets in the 6th arrondisement antiques district around Saint Germain des Prés.

Cristina Ortega is a specialist in Chinese and Japanese ceramics with a gallery in the rue de Beaune. Now taking part in her eighth Parcours de la Céramique, she remains very enthusiastic about the possibilities…

The auction season is only just getting into gear in September but as this is a hectic time of year for fairs and dealers, most auction houses are keen to capitalise on the potential footfall to the Grand Palais and the Left Bank dealers’ trails.

More than 90 exhibitors will gather at the Grand Palais in September for the Biennale Paris, France’s premier art and antiques fair.

All auctions are the same aren’t they? Well not exactly.