The Bièvres International Photo Fair due to take place in June – which includes Europe’s largest camera fair – has been cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic.
The organisers of the fair, which was due to take place on 6 and 7 June, made the announcement on Facebook on Wednesday (8 April).
In a statement, the organisers said: “Every year since 1964 we have devoted a great deal of pleasure and enthusiasm to the organisation of the International Photo Fair. Unfortunately, this year, due to the difficult public health situation in France and in Europe and the ensuing restrictions, we are obliged to cancel the 2020 edition of the Fair.
“We are devastated for the exhibitors, all our partner and sponsors, and for the general public. It is bad news for all of us but we know how attached you are to the Fair and we look forward to seeing you at the 2021 edition!”
The fair includes a used camera market which regularly draws some 200 camera dealers from around Europe. It is around 17km (10.5 miles) south-west of the centre of Paris.
The fair is the latest casualty in this year’s photography events in Europe, postponed or cancelled because of the disruption caused by the pandemic.
March’s The Photography Show was postponed at the 11th hour, just a few days before it was supposed to take place. The event, the biggest photography show in the UK, will now be held in September.
Days later, the Photokina trade show in Germany due to take place in May was cancelled for 2020. The next event will take place in 2021.
Another major camera fair, the London-based Photographica held by the Photographic collector’s Club of Great Britain was also cancelled. The next event will now take place in May 2021.
I'm a New Zealander who has been living in London since the mid-1990s, shooting film seriously since the year 2000. Kosmo Foto was launched in 2012 and has since become a film brand, with the release of my first films Kosmo Foto Mono 35mm (2017) and Kosmo Foto Mono 120 (2019).
I’m doing everything I can to promote film photography in the 21st Century, and help it survive and thrive. If you want to write something for Kosmo Foto, please drop me a line at foto.dowling@gmail.com.
C’est dommage, mais je comprends.