PARIS.- The 1st edition of District 13 - International Art Fair came to a close yesterday after four thrilling days at Drouot, iconic institution and eldest place for public auctions in the world. The Fair stood as a major rendez-vous for street art, driven by 23 of the world’s preeminent urban art dealers.

The fair gathered all actors of urban art: galleries, artists, auction house and editors, creating extraordinary energy and resulting in strong sales and great exchanges.

Exhibitors, collectors as well as the public have widely praised the high quality of the 500 works of street art selected for the fair which offered a global experience of the movement. Additionally, artists such as Shepard Fairey, Seth, Inti, Maye, Momies and others were present on the Fair and were pleased to share their experiences and ideas with the public. This proximity created a unique and dynamic atmosphere throughout the fair, reflecting the street art’s democratic approach. Finally, a consistent refrain among the galleries was the high-quality collective exhibition which offered to break the codes of street art.

District 13 and Drouot’s partnership has brought together the strengths of both actors of the art market, from the galleries and auctions worlds. This duo illustrates the audacious cohabitation of different means to support urban art artists.

It is a success that will be remembered. --Mehdi Ben Cheikh, Founder and Director of Itinerrance Gallery and Artistic Director of District 13 - International Art Fair

The partnership established between District 13 - International Art Fair and Drouot had two main purposes. The first, was to support street art just as Drouot had supported artistic movements in the past, acting as a key cultural player. The the second was to make different actors of the market benefit from Drouot’s assets in terms of brand, location and logistics. Our expectations have been met completely. --Olivier Lange, CEO of Drouot

Artists and participating galleries from the Fair shared their positive experiences:

Paris is the perfect place for street art. In France, you don’t really separate contemporary art and urban art. D13 perfectly illustrates it. --Swinton Gallery - Madrid

An antique dealer came here and he never had seen this kind of art before. He had a revelation. It is a new audience. --Pure Evil Gallery – London

The level of artists is really good. The place is amazing. --The artist Caiozzam represented by Galería Lira - Recoleta Santiago

We understood on this fair how much people are interested by this art in France. --Dorothy Circus Gallery - Rome ; London

We have left the sense of street art to delve into post-grafitti thanks to a highly selective Fair. [...] Just as graffiti, D13 is a risk taken by all actors of the Fair. --Backside Gallery - Marseille, France