Art Basel Paris has announced a new ultra-VIP preview program called "Avant Première" for its upcoming edition at the Grand Palais. Scheduled for Tuesday, October 21, from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m., the initiative allows all 203 participating galleries to invite select clients for an exclusive early viewing, ahead of the fair's official VIP days on October 22–23. The fair declined to disclose how many invitations each gallery can extend. The program was first reported by the Baer Faxt, and Art Basel CEO Noah Horowitz described it as "for the market, by the market."
The move addresses an open secret that certain billionaire mega-collectors with hometown foundations have previously accessed the fair before official VIP openings. By formalizing this ultra-VIP access, Art Basel Paris aims to offer galleries a focused business engagement with their closest clients, potentially intensifying competition among VIP previews. It remains unclear whether similar programs will be introduced at Art Basel's other fairs in Miami Beach, Hong Kong, and Basel. The initiative comes as the Paris fair increasingly eclipses the Swiss edition in popularity, and outgoing Paris director Clément Delépine will depart for Lafayette Anticipations after this edition.