If Bloomberg’s Scott Reyburn is anything to go by—and he is—then dealers at TEFAF in Maastricht are spending more time with clients and less time making big sales. Well, big is a relative term in this world:

• “I’m going to plaster the walls,” Naumann said. “It’s difficult to sell really high-value paintings at fairs, though a lot of things do get bought between $1 million to $5 million.” Last year Naumann showed pictures at Tefaf ranging in price from $12 million to $47 million. Nothing sold on the booth at the fair. This year the dealer will show 35 paintings ranging from $65,000 to $2.5 million.
• “It’s interesting that the two most durable fairs take place in relatively inaccessible locations,” said James Roundell, a director of Maastricht regulars Dickinson, referring to Tefaf and the Swiss modern and contemporary event, Art Basel. The latter’s June edition will be the 43rd. “People have to make the effort to come, and once they do, they spend time at the fair. They’re not distracted.”

Liz Taylor’s Bracelet, Gauguin Painting Boost $1.3 Billion Fair (Bloomberg)