2017 Rare Books fair

The Museum of Franco-American Cooperation, Blérancourt (C23, West Nave)

 The only example of its kind in France, The Museum of Franco-American Cooperation in the castle of Blérancourt, is dedicated to transatlantic relations; the museum was set up by Anne Morgan, daughter of American financier and art collector John Pierpont Morgan, in support of the reconstruction efforts following the First World War in the devastated Picardy region. In addition to its museum collections, its resource centre and library contain over 8000 works and archives of historical and artistic interest concerning Franco-American relations.
 
This national museum will reopen its doors in 2017, following renovation and site work to extend its grounds carried out by architects Ateliers Yves Lion, and featuring a new exhibit created by the Adrien Gardère design studio, showcasing some significant archaeological remains uncovered during work on the site. Designed as a triptych – "The Sharing of Ideas", "Mutual Assistance in the Hardships", and "Artistic Tastes and Common Interests" – the new exhibit aims to promote the connections between France and America, using historical documents, artefacts, works of art and videos, which provide evidence of this relationship from the 16th century to the present.
 
Under the nave of the Grand Palais, the museum serves to showcase Franco-American works of historical interest, engravings illustrating transatlantic relations, and the key role played by American libraries in France in the aftermath of the First World War. To mark the centenary of America's involvement in the First World War, there will be an introduction the temporary exhibitions (Blérancourt, June-August 2017), plus another dedicated to the Royal and imperial libraries (Palais de Compiègne, Autumn 2017).

Our online collections:
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Bibliothèque des Musées nationaux : http://ccbmn.culture.fr/
Agence photographique de la RMN : http://photo.rmn.fr/
Base Joconde : http://www.culture.gouv.fr/documentation/joconde
Base Lafayette : http://musee.louvre.fr/bases/lafayette
European Film Gateway : http://project.efg1914.eu/​​​​​​​

The Department of Prints and Photography is pleased to participate in the International Rare Book and Art Objects Fair for the twelfth time. This not-to-be-missed event provides the French National Library with the opportunity to present a selection of remarkable works. During the fair, the enthusiastic and enlightened public can thus enjoy access to works which are not often exhibited. It is also the chance for the public to talk to the curators of the collections and to learn more about the department whose reading rooms are open throughout the year to students, artists, researchers and aficionados of graphic arts. Since it was founded in 1667 by Colbert, the French National Library's Department of Prints and Photography has collected and maintained a collection of some ten thousand prints, posters and images from every school, from their origins to the present day.

The collection is now one of the oldest and most extensive in the world. Moreover, it continues to expand thanks to the donations and generosity of major collectors and benefactors and through the legal deposits of engravers and publishers still in effect which enables the works of contemporary artists to rub shoulders with those of the old masters.

Focussing on the theme of Franco-American relations, the French National Library’s stand will present a selection of prints, drawings and posters from the modern to contemporary periods. Relations were initially highly asymmetrical: France discovered the otherness of an unknown land which offered scope for adventure once the Americans began striving for independence. Prints bore witness to the changing relations between the two countries in the 19th and 20th centuries: a mutual fascination gave rise to some of the outstanding works of contemporary art, created by Americans in Paris or French citizens in the United States.
 

Exhibition of bookbinding - contemporary colours
Les Amis de la Reliure d’Art – ARA France are proud to organise an exhibition of contemporary bookbinding for visitors to the Rare Book & Works of Art Fair. By presenting a range of works reflecting current creations, the association offers bibliophiles and aficionados the chance to discover the most recent developments in the field of artistic bookbinding. A selection of almost 70 works bear witness to the diversity, creativity and constant renewal of bookbinding in the present day. The essential function of protecting and conserving books, with the main requirement of respecting their content, has always guided the hand of bookbinders.
In the art nouveau and decorative arts periods, bookbinding enjoyed greater freedom and began to make a major contribution to the beautification of books. Calling on traditional know-how and technical progress, bookbinding has continued to expand and enhance its fields of expression. The inventiveness of the structures, the combination of traditional and new materials and the originality of the decoration all testify to a vibrant and blossoming industry. The wide range of contemporary bindings reflect the art of our era and should be seen as works of art in their own right.

The association ARA was founded in 1982 at the initiative of Marcel Garrigou, a bibliophile and collector of decorated bindings. The ARA’s aim is to promote the art of bookbinding in France and abroad. Its priorities are to encourage excellence, research, innovation and dialogue between creative bookbinders and bibliophiles while expanding the public of aficionados and collectors. Active in Europe and North America, the ARA organises conferences, workshops, library visits and international exhibitions accompanied by catalogues combining traditional know-how and contemporary creation. The FIRA, or International Art Bookbinding Forum, periodically exhibits the works of art bookbinders from around the world in a number of different countries.

ARA France has presented:
Regard(s) sur la reliure contemporaine en France, 1980-2007 (Paris, 2008)
Autour de Mallarmé, la reliure (Musée Stéphane Mallarmé, 2008)
Reliures Gourmandes (Metz, 2009)
Paris relié, le Paris des relieurs contemporains (Paris, 2012)
La Reliure en papier, la fibre créative (Reims, 2013)
XIe FIRA (Nîmes, 2014)
Reliures océanes, la reliure et la mer (Paris, 2016)

ARA France | 70, Boulevard Saint Michel, F-75006 Paris | + 33 (0)9 75 43 88 66 | amisrelart.france@wanadoo.fr