The verdict of the public institution did not impress them.
The art galleries were dismissed Wednesday by the Council of State of their appeal for interim relief aimed at obtaining their reopening because of a distortion of competition with the auction houses, in the context of the Covid pandemic. 19.
The summary judge of the Council of State considered that the closure to the public of art galleries, like most other businesses, was justified by the need to limit the spread of the virus.
Read also: Art galleries appeal to the Council of State for their reopening
"
The infringement thus brought to several fundamental freedoms, including the freedom of trade and industry and the freedom of artistic creation and dissemination, can only be accepted in a health context marked by a particularly high level of dissemination of the virus. likely to compromise in the short term the care, in particular in hospitals, of infected people and patients with other ailments
”, underlined the judge, according to the summary published by the Council of State.
Unfair competition from auction houses
The Professional Committee of Art Galleries (CGPA) had filed its appeal on March 26 denouncing the continued opening of auction rooms as "
unfair competition
" and "
an intolerable distortion of competition
" to their detriment.
Its president, Marion Papillon, reacting Wednesday to AFP, regretted that "
the Council of State, while having recognized the serious distortion and the attack on fundamental freedoms, does nothing of it
" letting only reasons prevail. sanitary facilities.
Even if the ordinance "
insists on the temporality of the decision
" according to the evolution of the pandemic, "
we have very little visibility
", she complains.
Marion Papillon criticized the argument of the Ministry of Health which, according to her, defended the opening of auction houses by arguing the need to manage the flow of inheritances due to the increase in mortality.
She criticized "
the poor knowledge of the environment
" of art galleries by the ministry, which, according to her, would have mentioned the existence of "
tens of thousands of galleries
".
This professional committee represents 310 galleries, including the most important, which are located for more than 80% in Île-de-France.
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