2021 exhibitors

Paris Photo, the world’s leading art fair dedicated to photography, announces the participation of 177 exhibitors from 25 countries for its 24th edition at the Grand Palais Ephémère in Paris. The main sector and the Curiosa sector, dedicated to emerging creation, bring together 148 galleries and the book sector 30 publishers and booksellers. 

See the exhibitor list.

The fair welcomes 29 new main sector galleries including Afronova (Johannesburg) with recent works by young South African female photographers; Ceysson & Bénétière (Paris) with a four-woman show featuring Mounir Fatmi, Tania Mouraud, ORLAN and Aurélie Pétrel; Loft Art (Marocco) with multi-media work by Joana Choumali. Document (Chicago) showcases recent works exploring body politics by Paul Mpagi Sepuya, while Christian Berst Art Brut (Paris) presents a search for identity by Tomasz Machcinski. Addressing environmental and geopolitical issues, Bildhalle (Zurich) exposes the impact of climate change by Douglas Mandry; Isabelle Van Den Eynde (Dubai) takes a look at the socio-political landscape in 1950-70s Iraq with Latif Al Ani. Iconic images by Bill Brandt, Brassaï, and Irving Penn presented for the first time in 40 years by Marlborough (New York). Numerous galleries make their return to the fair such as Rosegallery (Santa Monica) with young breakout stars Kennedi Carter and Tania Franco Klein; Georges-Philippe et Nathalie Vallois (Paris) with socially engaged work by Pilar Albarracín; and Odile Ouizeman (Paris) with founding member of NO!art, Doris Lurie.

Main sector highlights inlcude 17 solo shows and 10 duo shows among them, Braverman (Tel Aviv) honours the artist Ilit Azoulay and her work on photography and hysteria; Karsten Greve (Paris) proposes a dive into the Mediterranean travels of the iconic photographer Herbert List; Lume (São Paulo) presents a search for Brazilian identity by Claudio Edinger; Magnin-A (Paris) unveils the new politically charged series “Allegoria” by Omar Victor Diop; and Gagosian (Paris) an ensemble of Poloroids by Cy Twombly. Group shows featuring rare and new works also include previously unpublished prints by Tod Papageorge presented at Thomas Zander (Cologne); new artist Carrie Mae Weems at Fraenkel (San Francisco); rare, dye transfer prints from Bruce Davidson proposed by Howard Greenberg (New York). Kicken (Berlin) proposes female ‘heroes’ of photography: Diane Arbus, Gertrud Arndt, Sibylle Bergemann,…; and Bruce Silverstein (New York) modernists Berenice Abbott, Ilse Bing, Germaine Krull, and Helen Levitt. Stevenson (Cape Town) unveils new images exploring gender and identity by Zanele Muholi; Nordenhake (Berlin) presents collage and film works by Frida Orupabo; and Gregory Leroy and Charles Isaacs (Paris & New York) propose Yolanda Andrade, one of the first artists to have documented the LGBT movement in Mexico in the 1980s.

The Curiosa sector, inaugurated in 2018 and dedicated to emerging artists presents a selection curated by Shoair Mavlian, director of Photoworks and former assistant curator of photography at the Tate Modern. The selection showcases solo presentations of twenty artists from fourteen different countries, some of whom exhibit in France for the first time, such as Maisie Cousins (TJ Boulting, London) and Jošt Dolinšek (Photon, Ljubljana). This year Curiosa highlights new trends in contemporary photographic practice including new documentary approaches, and themes focusing on identity and the natural environment.

Paris Photo continues its commitment to women in photography with Elles x Paris Photo, a programme initiated in 2019 in partnership with the French Ministry of Culture and supported by Kering / Women in Motion to promote the visibility of women artists and their contribution to the history of photography. For this 2021 edition, Nathalie Herschdorfer, art historian specializing in photography and director of the Musée du Locle, Switzerland, presents a selection of works chosen from the galleries’ proposals. 

In parallel to the show at the Grand Palais Ephémère, Paris Photo launches its first-ever online viewing room which opens to the public November 11–17. The new online platform powered by Artlogic the industry leader in digital technology for the art world—offers Paris Photo galleries and book dealers additional exposure to expand upon their artistic programs presented at the fair.  For collectors and enthusiasts, it is an opportunity to easily aquire artworks, list favorites, discover new talent, peruse curator picks and forge new connections with galleries and art book dealers from anywhere in the world. Visitors will also have access to exclusive digital programming and live content developed especially for Paris Photo.