The fair organisers
Joséphine Boyer
By Michael Diemar
By Michael Diemar
Joséphine Boyer, born on July 27, 1993, has, she explains, “Been drawn to the arts and history since early childhood.”. She is one of the youngest dealers on the classic photography scene but has built up substantial experience, including a position as Head of the Photography Department at the French auction house Millon, before embarking on a career as an independent photography specialist and dealer.
Having been interested in the arts and history from such an early age, was your educational route a given?
Yes, it was. I had a great thirst for learning and I earnt a Baccalaureate in literature, specializing in Artistic Culture and Visual Arts. After obtaining my baccalaureate, I obtained a Bachelor's degree in Art History at the University of Toulouse–Jean Jaurès, formerly Toulouse-Le Mirail. After these years of study, I decided to travel. A sabbatical year took me around the world: San Francisco, Vancouver, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore. After six months, I settled in Paris, the City of Lights, the capital where everything happens in art. I joined IESA and earnt a master's degree in Art Markets in two years. During this time, I completed several internships in auction houses, with antique dealers, and in an art fair organisation.
When did photography enter your life?
I had studied it but without really understanding it. An antique dealer, Alexandre Piatti, for whom I worked as an intern, once told me: "You don't choose your speciality; your speciality chooses you." That's exactly what happened to me. While I was an intern at Parisian auction house Millon, Alexandre Millon offered me the position of Head of the Photography Department. I accepted immediately and spent two fascinating years working alongside the independent expert Christophe Goeury. I learnt how auction houses work, how to organise a sale, dealing with buyers and sellers, administration, and much more. But above all, I discovered photography, an art form I knew so little about, which became a passion. Through my work with Christophe Goeury, I delved deeper into the history of 19th- and 20th century photography. I was captivated by the way photography had revolutionised the art world, pushing painting to reinvent and question itself. Photography is chemistry turned into art, a medium that still has many secrets to reveal.
What was the next step in your career?
After two years as Head of the Photography Department at Millon, I plucked up the courage to leave the auction house. I began hunting for bargains, and with the help of leading dealers, I learnt the trade, refined my eye, and broadened my knowledge. An antiques dealer friend informed me that a booth was becoming available at the Saint-Ouen Flea Market. I set up there for two years: I continued to hunt for bargains, sold photographs on weekends, sometimes at auctions, and gradually made a name for myself in the Paris photography world.
What kind of material did you focus on?
I explored all the subtleties of photographic art. I became passionate about daguerreotypes, those unique pieces that transport us to a bygone era. I've always had a particular attachment to the human figure and to La Belle Époque in France and Europe. But I'm not a monomaniac: I love photography in all its diversity. Daguerreotypes, tintypes, cyanotypes, amateur photographs, or snapshots from the 1920s to the 1960s. What appeals to me above all is the image: what is represented, what we see, and what we guess.
You are active as a dealer on many fronts.
Yes, I exhibit at the 24.39 fair at Pavillon Wagram I Paris, and at the fair in Bièvres. I also sell through Catawiki and I organise online auctions, mostly with Rossini.
Do you collect photographs yourself?
Yes, I do but as I said, I'm not a monomaniac. I collect daguerreotypes, family albums, snapshots, nudes, travel photographs, portraits... any image or object capable of provoking emotion.
And you recently opened your own gallery?
I left the Saint-Ouen Flea Market and set up my own gallery, the Atelier/Galerie Taylor on 7 rue Taylor in the tenth arrondissement. I continue to work freelance and sell vintage photographs. I've also expanded my field of activity to contemporary photography, collaborating with José Nicolas, particularly on reportage photography, a new world that I'm enthusiastically discovering.
You are also involved in Blast to the Past; a series of exhibitions dedicated to historical and modern photography, in anticipation of the bicentennial of photography, which will be celebrated until 2027.
I met Barnabé Moinard, the promoter of the 24.39 fair. We quickly connected as we share a similar vision of photography; the same desire to shake up conventions and take on new challenges. Blast to the Past is based on a desire to open the world of vintage photography to a new generation. We want to reach a younger audience, offer a different way of looking at these images, and make photography a decorative object in its own right, just like a painting, rather than a piece locked away in a box by a collector. We envisioned a photographic pop-up: a vibrant, contemporary, and spontaneous format. A place where people can discover photography in a different way. Our first Blast to the Past was a real success. And this is just the beginning: we fully intend to continue the adventure.