Photo London goes 100% contemporary

This year's Photo London fair, opening on 31 May, has cut its ties with the past. For the first time in its four-year existence it'll be a contemporary-only event. Participating galleries and dealers will only exhibit photographs produced post-1970. That pretty much leaves out Weston, Man Ray, Cartier-Bresson, Steichen, Brassaï, Abbott...

The change reflects the shifting tide in the photo market. The recent explosion in the popularity of contemporary art photography has produced record-breaking auction prices like the $3.3 million for a Gursky image in February. But making Photo London 100% contemporary is also a clever strategy for the fair's new owners, who also own the more prestigious Paris Photo fair held every November. Limiting London to recent works limits overlap between the events, since Paris Photo runs the gamut from the 19th century to today. And if Photo London's new formula catches on, Paris Photo could always establish a similar restriction.