PARIS — For its theme this year, the Biennale des Antiquaires has chosen the royal gardens of Versailles, transported and transfigured under the vaulted glass-and-iron ceiling of the Grand Palais by the French interior decorator Jacques Grange.
Trellises, arbors and potted topiary inspired by the work of the great 18th-century French gardener André Le Nôtre will add a green touch to the arts and antiques fair, which this year will feature 81 exhibitors — most of them French — offering works as varied as old masters, African masks, contemporary design and high-end jewelry.
The Biennale will kick off the art fair season in Paris, to be followed in October by FIAC, the contemporary art fair, also at the Grand Palais.
Mr. Grange said his installation represented a formidable challenge, given the security and safety requirements of the Grand Palais, as well as its monumental size. These constraints, he said, allowed “for a more modern reinterpretation of the gardens of Versailles.”
Mr. Grange said the Versailles theme was in part inspired by a recent exhibit dedicated to Le Nôtre, as well as by the gardens themselves, which he studied in detail with the help of Catherine Pégard, the president of the Versailles domaine.
Mr. Grange is no stranger to the Biennale, where he has designed individual stands in the past.
“The Biennale is unique,” he said. “It is a reflection of beauty, of savoir-faire as only the French do it.”
For its last show in 2012, also at the Grand Palais, the French National Union of Antique Dealers turned to the fashion designer Karl Lagerfeld, who set it in 19th century Paris, complete with period shopping arcades and an Arc de Triomphe that rose to a height of 22 feet.
That year, the show had 115 exhibitors and access to the striking Salon d’Honneur, located at the nave of the main hall of the Palais, which was recently restored to its original elegance, with 56-foot-high ceilings, oak floors and a glass roof.
This year’s show, the 27th since 1962, does not have access to the Salon, which forced the organizers to reduce the number of exhibitors to 81. As a result, it is being described as a more elite gathering.
Adding to the flavor will be a large elliptical fountain, filled with scented water designed by the French perfume maker Francis Kurkdjian. He, too, drew inspiration from the gardens once walked by Marie Antoinette.
The perfume, Mr. Kurdjian said by email, will carry a “light hint of roses like the sound of rustling silk taffeta.”
That should set the mood for visitors who, after paying an entrance fee of €30 or $39, will make the rounds of the stands during the Biennale’s 10-day run from Sept. 11 to 21.
Among the works for sale will be a 14th century silvery reliquary bust of Saint Ursula by Andrea di Nerio at the Galerie Giovanni Sarti; a richly decorated Japanese-inspired cabinet designed in 1895 by Edouard Lièvre, at the Chadelaud stand; a 63-inch bronze gorilla statue that doubles as a safe, by the French artist François-Xavier Lalanne at the Galerie Mitterrand; and at the Galerie Kraemer, a pair of gilded bronze Louis XV andirons, identical to a pair now in the Louvre.
From Gabon, the Galerie Bernard Dulon has a 19th century “okuyi” mask. From Teotihuacan, Mexico, the Galerie Mermoz has an ancient “Standing Dignitary” made of serpentine and pyrite inlay.
The Biennale this year will again be showcasing collections of fine jewelry, both vintage and contemporary, by 15 jewelers — mostly from France but also from Italy, the United States, Britain and Hong Kong.
The Siegelson gallery from New York will present an Art Deco diamond, enamel and gem-set bracelet made by the French jeweler Boucheron for an exhibit in 1925.
Boucheron itself will display a necklace in the form of cresting wave, made of 533 jewels of different sizes and colors. A necklace of orange and yellow sapphires, with black and red spinel gemstones and Thai cultured pearls, fashioned like a piece of delicate coral, will be offered by Giampero Bodinom, a Milanese jeweler whose group is part of the Richemont conglomerate, appearing for the first time at the Biennale.
The Chinese jeweler Wallace Chan, represented at the Biennale for the first time in 2012, this year is offering a large aquamarine pendant, enhanced by amethyst, diamond and sapphire gems.
And in keeping with a tradition that accentuates luxury and taste, the Biennale will offer daily lunches and dinners at its restaurant with menus prepared by French chefs including Guy Martin from Le Grand Véfour in Paris; Michel Rochedy and Stéphane Buron from Le Chabichou in the French ski resort Courchevel; and Gilles Tournadre, from La Couronne in Rouen.