The fair organisers
Vienna Vintage Photo Fair
Interview with Reinhold Mittersakschmöller
By Michael Diemar
Interview with Reinhold Mittersakschmöller
By Michael Diemar
On 4 June 2023, Vienna Vintage Photo Fair held its inaugural edition at the MQ in Vienna’s MuseumsQuartier. Co-founder Reinhold Mittersakschmöller, who exhibits at several fairs as “Rainworld Archive”, explains when, how and why the fair was founded.
– The Vienna Vintage Photo Fair was founded in 2023 to meet the demand for a tabletop fair that reflected the interests of photo enthusiasts of all age groups, not just the traditional audience of high-profile art fairs. It was founded by me, photo gallerist Mila Palm and collector Stefan Fiedler. All three of us have been active not only in commercial ventures but also in the educational sector and the creative industries. I’m a collector and dealer with a background in academic research and several years of museum experience. Mila Palm is a collector, curator, writer and publisher. She has her own gallery in Vienna, Milaneum. We share a photo-historical approach in our collecting strategies. Stefan Fiedler is a photographer and a pioneer in digital printing processes. He combines exceptional technical expertise with key aspects of the creative industries, and as an avid collector of daguerreotypes, possesses a deep understanding of early photographic processes.
Can you tell me about the fair and where the exhibitors come from?
– The first edition was well received by the Vienna photo scene and attracted more than 1,000 visitors. We have built on that success, and so far, around 40 exhibitors have come from Austria, Germany, France, Italy, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Great Britain, the Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina.
What’s the range photographic of material that is offered at the fair?
– Anything from the 19th to the 21st century photography is on offer at the fair: daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, tintypes, albumen prints, gelatin silver prints, in a wide range of processes, substrates and formats, from CDVs and stereoviews to large-format albumen and silver prints. Alongside a rich selection of art photography, visitors will also find press photos, vernacular images, and collectible vintage photo books.
Who are the buyers?
– The fair caters to a wide variety of target groups, including art lovers, collectors of theme-oriented photographs such as topographical views or snapshots, and history buffs in search of a special image from a particular era. So far, buyers have included artists, art and photography students, museum staff, exhibition curators, snapshot collectors (often from a younger audience), and a broad spectrum of other collectors from all walks of life. These range from amateur photographers and teachers to media professionals such as publishers, journalists, and others working in the creative industries. There is also a noticeable overlap between customers who frequent antiquarian bookshops and those who attend vintage photo fairs. Most buyers are drawn to original works, tending to leave reprints and copy prints aside.
Do you have activities beyond the commercial side, lectures, debates, workshops, for instance?
– Our exhibitors include academic institutions such as the Bonartes Institute, photo museums such as WestLicht, as well as professional photo restorers and conservation specialists, all of whom have engaged in discussions with visitors at the fair. In 2024, we hosted a demonstration of the wet collodion process, which attracted great interest among attendees. Accompanying events such as lectures and workshops are currently in the planning stage.
The fair is held in April, but since last year, there’s also a Christmas edition. Where is it held? How does it differ from the April edition?
– The Christmas edition grew out of a collaboration with the WestLicht Photo Museum in Vienna. Due to its initial success, it has become a regular event. It is a smaller fair, with approximately half the number of exhibitors, owing to limited space. However, visitors enjoy free access to the ongoing exhibition and the camera museum or can mingle with fellow photo enthusiasts at the museum’s bar. Commercially, the event is just as successful as its larger sister fair at the MuseumsQuartier in April, which hosts about 40 exhibitors.
It’s a new fair. What suggestions do you have for expanding the market?
– A collaborative network of European vintage photography collectors, archives, and institutions could help spark greater interest, ideally among younger audiences. At the Vienna Vintage Photo Fair, we aim to attract exhibitors from European countries that have been underrepresented in the photography market, particularly from Eastern and Southern Europe. Looking ahead, I would also suggest expanding into the Global South. This approach has already proven successful in the growing international photo book market and should be considered for vintage photo fairs as well. Today, there are established photo fairs in Paris, London, Amsterdam, Vienna, and Senigallia, but none in Germany. A strong alliance among the organisers of these fairs could potentially launch a new event, perhaps in Berlin, Düsseldorf, Cologne or Munich, bringing together a broader audience from Germany, its Eastern European neighbours, and Switzerland.