Old Masters and Roman statues vie for the attention of well-heeled collectors at Dutch art fair

By MIKE CORDER
Associated Press

MAASTRICHT, Netherlands (AP) — Old Masters, Roman statues, modern furniture, tribal masks and vintage watches are vying for the attention of well-heeled collectors at the annual TEFAF art fair that opened in the southern Netherlands. The show, which opened Thursday, is taking place in a cavernous exhibition center transformed in just over a week of frantic work into a mega-gallery. Its eclectic collection looks and feels like a mashup of Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum, New York’s Museum of Modern Art and the British Museum. It’s also a showcase of the resilience of the art market in times of global uncertainty. Hidde van Seggelen, an art dealer and chairman of the TEFAF executive board, says that “the art market is still very strong.”