Gilded, blackened, limed, lacquered wood ... At Virginie and Stéphane Baquet, the setting is infinite. This couple of passionate antique dealers will surely find the perfect match that will decorate the work you care about so well. But if the frames were created to sublimate the works of art, you will quickly realize here, that they are sometimes self-sufficient and become an object of contemplation.
What led you to work as an antique dealer?
Virginie : I was born a bit in this profession because my parents and grandparents were already antique dealers of 18th century classical furniture.
Stéphane : As for me, I was initially a collector, just like my grandfather who collected books and my father who loved paintings. I bathed in modern and contemporary painting.
When we met, we started our activity in my parents' shop on rue des Rosiers and very quickly, we wanted to gain our independence. This is how we settled in our first booth in alley 1 of Paul Bert, in 1992. We had several consecutive booths, we then left in the Carré Rive Gauche to finally return to Paul Bert Serpette.
What is your speciality ?
We present old frames, ranging from the 17th century to the 20th century. We are very attached to this specialty which fascinates us.
The old frame touches a very sophisticated clientele, we have sometimes framed drawings by Picasso or Victor Hugo! We work with a lot of galleries and in good intelligence, these send us customers. People also come to us for advice.
What type of frame do you prefer?
We particularly like the frames of the 19th century, but beyond an era, we are very attracted to atypical frames. Customers come to us for this because they know they can find fantasy.
Working as a couple, is it easy?
Virginie : We have always been on the same wavelength and we are very complementary. I take care of all the communication part, I manage the website, Instagram, but also customer follow-up. Stéphane meanwhile, takes care of everything related to the restoration of rooms.
Stéphane : We each have our role, but we are both hunting, we are hard workers.
What does Paul Bert Serpette represent for you?
We have always been in this market. It is a place that is dynamic, fashions and trends are done at Paul Bert Serpette and it is almost the only market where you can really hunt around.
Tell us about a piece that is close to your heart right now
We are currently presenting a very nice frame in red Japanese lacquer, which dates from the end of the 19th century. Its decor is very refined, you can just see a butterfly in the corner and bamboo. One has the impression that the decor has crossed the frame.
We love this piece first for its color, then for its rarity and for its Zen aspect which is very interesting.
It is a frame that can go with everything, whether a modern drawing, a photo… A work by Man Ray would be magnificent in it!
