PARIS.- In its 17th year, Paris Photo confirmed its position as the world’s top photography expo.

Gallery owners, photographers, publishers, and collectors were all impressed by the Fair’s incredible caliber, calling it a must-attend event.

PARIS PHOTO, A MAJOR PUBLIC ATTRACTION
When it closed on Sunday, November 17, the 17th Paris Photo Fair had racked up 55,239 entrances.

Paris Photo 2013 drew an audience of collectors, exhibit curators, institutions, and photographers from more than 40 countries. In addition to strong representation from across Europe, participants also came from South Africa, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Israel, Japan, Lebanon, Mexico, Qatar, the Czech Republic, Russia, Slovenia, and elsewhere.

MORE GROUPS OF COLLECTORS AND INTERNATIONAL MUSEUMS THAN EVER BEFORE, MAKING PARIS PHOTO A THOROUGHLY INTERNATIONAL EVENT
In 2013, 65 groups attended (up from 58 in 2012).

There was an especially strong presence of American collectors’ groups and friends of museums, including the Aperture Foundation (New York), Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, Getty Museum Photographs Council (Los Angeles), High Museum of Art (Atlanta), ICP (New York), LACMA (Los Angeles), Museum of Contemporary Photography (Chicago), Museum of Fine Arts (Boston), MoMA (New York), SF MoMA (San Francisco), and a group of private US collectors (Baltimore).

In addition, all of the gallery owners mentioned the very high attendance of American institutions and private collectors, who made some major purchases. The first Paris Photo Los Angeles event did a great deal to whet the American audience’s appetite for this unique Fair.

Naturally, the leading institutions from Europe and around the world were also present, including the Courtauld Institute of Arts (London), Die Photophische Sammlung (Cologne), FOAM (Amsterdam), Mamco (Geneva), MAXXI (Rome), Museum Folkwang (Essen), Museum of Modern Art (Warsaw), NEOS (Belgium), Tate (London), V&A (London), and Whitechapel (London).

Also of note were the many groups of Italian collectors who returned this year, such as MAXXI, which requested accreditation for all of its "patrons" and friends.

Meanwhile, the Tate Modern held its photography acquisition committee meeting at the Fair itself, on Thursday, November 14.

PARIS PHOTO 2013 MAJOR SALES AND ENTHUSIASTIC GALLERY OWNERS
Paris Photo 2013 was a success for all the gallery owners who attended, providing an extremely dynamic market and many sales worth hundreds of thousands of euros.

The volume of sales, quality of the collectors in attendance, and opportunity to make diverse contacts with institutions from around the world all contributed to make Paris Photo successful this year.

The gallery owners also pointed out that Paris Photo attendees have a very specific profile: "No other Fair in the world brings together so many photography connoisseurs and enthusiasts. The quality of the discussions that take place under that domed roof is exceptional, and one of the things that makes Paris Photo special."

GALLERY TESTIMONIALS
Howard Greenberg, New York: “It’s always such a pleasure to come to Paris Photo. Sales are brisk, and the quality of the collectors is exceptional, particularly with some of the newcomers from Europe and the US.”

Pace MacGill, New York: “Great Fair, great sales, many contacts with new collectors.”

Gagosian, Paris: “2013 was our third time attending Paris Photo, and so far it has been the most successful. We’ve made some major sales, including some to new collectors from the US and Europe. We had some very precise, sophisticated discussions with visitors; it’s clear that we’re dealing with real enthusiasts.”