Révélations: International Craft Biennal – Report by Vera Belikova

Révélations: International Craft Biennal

Paris, France

Dates: 9th – 12th June 2022

Web: www.revelations-grandpalais.com

Vera Belikova

Italy

Web: www.verabelikova.com

AN EXTRACT FROM THE CASE STUDY FOR CRAFTING EUROPE

The big advantage of the visit was the fact that we were able to access the fair the day before it opened to the public, i.e. at the special opening for professionals. This was very conducive to open and often practical contact and dialogue with the exhibitors. Particularly interesting were the stands of galleries, associations, working groups or entire regions exhibiting together. So even very small companies that cannot afford a whole stand had the opportunity to exhibit. The fair is not very large, so it is possible to view each stand very carefully even in a single day. The fair represented a very fine selection of small or medium-sized companies dealing with a wide variety of crafts: from ceramics, wood, metal, stucco to prototype cars from Citroen and Peugeot. All the exhibitors were very good and some of them were the historic French companies with the experience of international business. In order to make contact, I had no language difficulties because all but one mosaic workshop could speak English or Italian.

I believe that this fair will be interesting for my workshop when I have defined my production. Thanks to the fair, I realised that the fact that I can range techniques, materials and applications is misleading for a business deal, which often does not have enough time to evaluate the potential of the mosaic and needs ready-made solutions, perhaps with some slight possibility of customization. During my visit to the fair, I managed to exchange contacts with two exhibitors who were a gallery of high craftsmanship with offices in Paris and New York and a large workshop of multiple craft.

I am currently waiting for a reply to the letters sent after my return to Italy, where I expressed and confirmed my desire to collaborate. In addition, I got to know my Italian colleague better, who visited the fair with me. After returning, we thought we could develop something together, and I think without the time we spent together and the intensity of the inspirations that the trip gave us, such a collaboration would be difficult to imagine.

I find the trade fair experience very positive. Particularly important was the comparison with other mosaicists and craftsmen of related techniques to understand their markets and possibilities for collaboration. Finally, I had the opportunity to see many beautiful objects live, which are a source of great inspiration for me, along with cityscapes, galleries, museums, languages, food and fragrances. Before the visit, I didn’t really consider the possibility of trading with France, but now in addition to the business idea, I also have the schedule of things to do to realise it and above all contacts with possibly interested people in a country that I didn’t really know before.

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