Art fairs feel the heat at Barcelona conference

Dealers growing dependence on art fairs came in for criticism at the 5th Talking Galleries conference that was held in Barcelona this week (16-17 January). In his keynote speech, the Salzburg- and Paris-based dealer Thaddaeus Ropac, who opens in London in April, said that galleries should do 75% of their business in their own spaces, rather than at fairs. Galleries can make a good 50% of their annual sales on the art fair circuit, sometimes as much as 70%, according to the conference organisers