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• Issue #282
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By Alex Novak

Alain Paviot receiving his French Legion of Honor metal during Paris Photo in 2021.

French gallerist and photo expert (and my dear friend) Alain Paviot passed away on Tuesday, September 29th after several years of illness and months of hospitalization. He was considered one of the great dealers and experts of the Photography World, and had received the French Legion of Honor for his work in photography at the end of 2021, which is the highest honor honor that country can bestow on an individual. He is the only photographer dealer to have ever gotten the award.

A mass will be celebrated this Thursday, October 8, 10:30 am at Saint-Eustache church in Paris, followed by his burial in the Père Lachaise cemetery.

Before opening his photo gallery, Alain went to engineering school. He got to Paris with the equivalent of about 150 euros in French Francs in his pocket. His parents had kicked him out because they didn't think he was being serious enough. That was a trait though that was to stick with him for the rest of his life, as his sense of humor touched with a bit of sarcasm was always there, and often got him in trouble.

Alain at work at Paris Photo © Jérôme Leplus.

One year after a so-so Paris Photo, Alain was interviewed by one of the major French newspapers which he gave a no-holds-barred report about "the dark, dingy Carrousel de Louvre", which got him banned from the show for a year. He told me with a wink at the show, "God, it's a fortune for such a few ugly square meters." It was vintage Alain Paviot, who always spoke his mind, no matter the consequences. Not everyone appreciated his sly sense of humor, but his friends who knew him best always did.

When he first got to Paris, Alain sold at the Montreuil flea market to make ends meet, and eventually set up shop in 1974 on rue du Vingt-Neuf-Juillet in the 1st arrondissement, where he specialized in marine instruments, hence the name of his first space, "Octant".

One day on a trip to London, Alain ran across some photo albums and was bitten by curiosity and the love of photography. He then launched a second gallery of the same name devoted solely to photography in 1981, on rue du Marché Saint-Honoré. His first photography show was devoted to 19th-cenury French photographer Alphonse Le Blondel.

Then, over 35 years ago, he moved to 57, rue Sainte-Anne, becoming an internationally acknowledged expert in the field of both 19th- and 20th-century classic photography. He was the photo expert for a number of Paris auction houses in his time.

Alain and Francoise at Maceo's last year for a private lunch.

In 1995 his wife Françoise joined him at the gallery. They had two spaces in the courtyard at rue Sainte-Anne, one for their multi-level office and warehouse space and for a while another across the courtyard for exhibition space. The gallery name shifted to Galerie Françoise Paviot.

Alain focused on the major photo artists, such as Charles Nègre (he represented the estate), Eugène Atget, Brassaï, Man Ray and László Moholy-Nagy, while Francoise expanded the gallery reach into the contemporary photography world. They exhibited at art and photography shows worldwide, including Art Basel, Paris Photo and AIPAD's Photography Show, among others.

Alain and Francoise in front of our shared wall at Paris Photo in 2021.

I first met Alain and his wife Françoise in 1999. We later became good friends and even shared a booth and exhibited together at several Paris Photos from 2019-2023; and we also co-sponsored what became one of Paris Photo week's most sought-after dinner invitations at our mutual friend's restaurant, Maceo, for an even longer stretch, hosting some of the world's top collectors and curators.

Whether it was in Paris, Basel or New York City, we would always get together to share a meal, wine and good conversation. Alain's friendship will never be forgotten. My dearest condolences to Françoise and their children.

Not surprisingly Alain Paviot's death hit many others in our business hard. Here are just a few of the comments on his passing below. (If you wish to add your condolence/comment, email me, and I will add it.)

"The French Professional Committee of Art Galleries has learned with sadness of the death of Alain Paviot. Gallery owner and art dealer, Alain Paviot has devoted nearly 50 years to photography, of which he was one of the committed actors in France. His singular career, which began in the 1970s, has led him to build a gallery recognized for the quality of his choices and for the attention paid to artists and works. The Professional Committee of Art Galleries salutes his memory and sends its most sincere condolences to his wife, Françoise, his loved ones and all those who shared his commitment to photography."

"I met Alain back in the early 80's when his "Galerie Octant" was one of two places in Paris actively showing photographs. He was an early proponent of the work of Charles Negre, and over his many years of activity also championed early 19th century French works, and did important projects and collections of both Man Ray and Moholy-Nagy. He and his gallerist wife Françoise together made Galerie Françoise Paviot one of the key places to go in Paris to see both vintage and contemporary works. His contributions to our field are many, and we will all miss him." --Charles Isaacs, New York City Private Photo Dealer

"This is sad news. Alain was one of the first French dealers I met. He was very supportive and knowledgable. His passion for early photographs was contagious. My deepest condolences to Françoise." --Hans Kraus, Jr., New York City Photo Dealer and Gallerist

"Yes, Alain will missed. His great love and deep knowledge of photography makes him one of the earliest and most influential members of our photography art market community." --Susan Herzig and Paul Hertzmann, San Francisco Private Photo Dealers

"Alain Paviot was a great friend, great dealer and I had known him since the 1980s. Alain and Francoise were a pleasure to do business with and Alain will be sadly missed by the photography art community." --Keith de Lellis, New York City Photo Gallerist

"He was a wonderful, learned man. Always gracious and generous with his time and deep knowledge. From another era." --Peter Fetterman, Santa Monica Photo Gallerist

"Am so so sad to hear this news. What a loss for our community. Paris did not feel the same without him last year. I will really miss dear Alain P. I have very fond memories of Alain putting golf balls down the aisles of Basel when he and Francois did the fair many years ago. He was fun, bright, super smart and had an eye few could match. RIP, Alain." --Michael Hoppen, London Photo Gallerist

"Lorraine recalls that it was Alain and myself stroking those putts down the aisle. Need I say, Alain scored best. Alain and Francoise were among the earliest European Gallerists to embrace the work of Ray Metzker, and the man himself. I believe their support was instrumental in Ray returning to France in 1989 to photograph the forests in Provence, the Dordorgne, La Napoule, among other locations. Many of these pictures became an essential part of his highly acclaimed Landscapes exhibition at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and published for the first time in the beautiful Aperture monograph Ray K. Metzker Landscapes, curated by Evan Turner." --Lawrence Miller, New Hope Private Photo Dealer

"I may have met dear Alain and Françoise back when I was working for Harry Lunn in the 1990s, around (or even before) the first Paris Photo. A brilliant eye. A mischievous grin. A generous man. I will dearly miss monsieur Paviot.” --Parker Stephenson, New York City Private Photo Dealer

"Alain was there at the beginning, when I was a puppy. I always admired his knowledge, confidence with it, and discreet style of dealing. We shared much, with mutual respect always. Alain was a good man, and an original. I only regret we never did get to play golf together. My deep sympathy goes out to Francoise." --Howard Greenberg, New York City Gallerist

"Sending our dearest condolences to Francoise. The Weston family has fond recollections of him and a shared passion for Man Ray. Good memories from back when it all began!" --Davi, Matt and Maggi Weston, California Photo Gallerists

"Such sad news, such a nice man." --Michael Shapiro, Westport, CT. Private Photo Dealer

Novak has over 49 years experience in the photography-collecting arena. He is a long-time member and formerly board member of the Daguerreian Society, and, when it was still functioning, he was a member of the American Photographic Historical Society (APHS). He organized the 2016 19th-century Photography Show and Conference for the Daguerreian Society in NYC. He is also a long-time member of the Association of International Photography Art Dealers, or AIPAD. Novak has been a member of the board of the nonprofit Photo Review, which publishes both the Photo Review and the Photograph Collector, and is currently on the Photo Review's advisory board. He was a founding member of the Getty Museum Photography Council. He is author of French 19th-Century Master Photographers: Life into Art.

Novak has published numerous photography articles and columns in several newspapers, including the Photograph Collector, Focus magazine and the Daguerreian Society Newsletter. He has been interviewed extensively on the photography art market by the Financial Times, the New York Times, the Boston Globe, the Philadelphia Inquirer, The Classic magazine, Maine Antique Digest, the Art Newspaper, Art News, Art Business News, Focus magazine, PDN, Black & White magazine, Photographie Internationale, Antiques & the Arts Online, Art Critical and the Photograph Collector newsletter, as well as by many other publications, television programs and websites, both in the USA and in France. He was quoted extensively in the book, "Collectingphotography" by Gerry Badger. He has spoken at numerous photography events and programs.

He writes and publishes the E-Photo Newsletter, the largest circulation newsletter in the field. Novak is also president and owner of Contemporary Works/Vintage Works, a private photography dealer, which sells by appointment and has sold at exhibit shows, such as AIPAD New York and Miami, Art Chicago, Classic Photography LA, Photo LA, Paris Photo, The 19th-century Photography Show, Art Miami, the Daguerreian Society, etc.