Local authorities attend the opening of the antiques fair

The local authorities attended the opening of AnticArt, the antiques fair at the precinct in the Polígon de Llevant. Among those present were Maria Antonia Munar, president of the Council of Majorca, government representative Catalina Cirer and Mayor of Palma Joan Fageda. Also present were Mateu Crespi, director general of Fires i Congressos de Balears, who have organised the fair, and Diego Riera, the business director of La Caixa, which sponsers the event. Crespi said that AnticArt, now in its eighth year, was one of the leading fairs in Spain, adding that “we must all make an effort to make it the top fair, within the next few years. Maria Antonia Munar said that the fair had “grown in quantity but above all in quality.” This year there are 79 exhibitors, 26 of them from Catalonia, 22 from Majorca, one from Minorca, 29 from other parts of Spain and one from France. Exhibits include a fine range of 17th to 19th century furniture, porcelain and glass. There is also a section on art, with works by Juan de Sevilla, Careño, Casademont, Ventosa, Ramon Nadal, Cittadini, Anglada Camarasa, Xam, Coll Bardolet, Roca Fuster, Miquel Barceó and Guinovart, among others. Fires i Congressos have set up a technical committee to guarantee the quality and authenticity of the pieces on show, and this year, the committee has been expanded to include experts on old paintings. Many of the exhibits are more than 100 years old while others are between 50 and 100 years old. The organisers expect to beat last year's figures, when there were more than 17'000 visitors and 3'000 transactions were carried out. This year, some of the exhibitors will travel to Minorca, where an antiques fair will be held in July. The fair is complemented by a series of lectures on antiques. The next one will be held at 7pm next Thursday and will be in Spanish. Casto Castellanos of Madrid, director of the School of Art and Antiques, will speak about Baroque furniture. He is the author of several studies on the history of Spanish furniture. AnticArt is open daily from 11.30 to 9pm, and admission costs 4 euros.