Flanked by Russian oligarchs, Qatari royalty, and Chinese nouveau-riche, Parisian elites and socialites sipped and slurped champagne Thursday night, as the Biennale des Antiquaires opened for what amounted to a sort of relaunch, courting organizers and dealers who have navigated some shaky past years at one of the world's foremost fairs of antiques, fine art, and jewelry.

Karl Lagerfeld's scenography of Parisian window-shopping, with booths housed in white, wood-framed storefronts — not quite all identical, but close — became more effective as the sun set on the Palais, the faux street lanterns lit up, and the crowds arrived for the vernissage. At the heart of the event, a giant hot-air balloon served as conversation piece and a reminder of one of the Grand Palais's first exhibitions.

Bernard Arnault snuck through early on Thursday, while actress Sophie Marceau, Pierre Bergé, Hubert de Givenchy, Chinese cosmetics magnate Yue Sai Kan and Sheikh Hassan bin Mohamed bin Ali Al Thani turned out for the gala dinner, Wednesday night. At the Thursday vernissage, designer Peter Marino bounced between booths in a biker chic outfit, cutting a humorous figure among the high-heeled and expensively suited. The main trend among the crowd was, however, an ever stronger China and Hong Kong contingent — including a couple seemingly on their honeymoon — which made a beeline for the jewelers, crowding the Cartier and Dior booths.

Between the dinner and vernissage — and even earlier — there were notable sales. By Thursday night, the Galerie Vallois had ceded most of its booth of Art Deco from the long-coveted 1978-1982 Paris collection of a New York couple, with a Jacques-Emile Ruhlmann secretary, an Eileen Gray ivory lamp, Eckart Muthesius lighting made for the Maharajah of Indore, and ceramic pots by Henri Simmen and Eugénie O'Kin. For many dealers, the Biennale effect starts before, and lasts much longer, than the 10 days from September 13 to 23. "I've made deals and sold things even months after, based on the Biennale," said Paris gallerist François Léage in the run-up to the fair.

For years, the Biennale has struggled to find a firm identity, veering in and out of modernity. Christian Deydier, the president of the Syndicat National des Antiquaires, seemed to add to the uncertainty by pondering a "de-localization" of the Biennale, even in the midst of an edition paying hommage to historic Paris. The Biennale's first satellite fair will take place in New York in November. "It will be the first test," said Deydier. "I hope that next year, we can do one in Hong Kong. After that, it will depend on the economic climate. But whatever the place, as long as we do it well, people will come." He left open the question of whether the Paris version of the Biennale could disappear altogether, noting only that "the majority of the collectors are foreigners."

Back on the business side, L&M Arts quickly sold a red, eight-tear Lucio Fontana "Concetto Spaziale, Attese" from 1968. The New York gallery's booth juxtaposed Peter Marino's sculptural cabinets — selling well at between €130,000 and €250,000 — with some key modern artworks, among them the fetching "Titoli Bianchi" (1978) by Alighiero E Boetti, a rare embroidery in off-white and tan tones that put the artist at his closest to the core of Arte Povera's minimalism. That work sold almost immediately, followed by Yves Klein's "F124" fire painting, at undisclosed sums.

The rub, however, was at the far end of the space, where Andy Warhol's yellow "Liz #1 (Early Colored Liz)" (1963) commanded the wall. At a price "well above $25 million" but still to be finalized by its the unnamed collector-owner-seller, the screen painting could top Cézanne's "Tasse, verre et fruits," with an asking price around $21-23 million at Geneva’s Krugier, for the title of most expensive work on show. The fragile-looking Cézanne was the subject of much interest from both private collectors and museums though it remained available Friday afternoon, said Tzia Krugier. "We're in no rush no sell," she added.

Modern art has made a push this year, with 21 dedicated dealers. At Tornabuoni, the most accomplished of the hangings is a retrospective of the past century, through works by Picasso, Fontana, Giacometti, and Kandinsky, all with provenance from museum collections or exhibitions. Jean-Michel Basquiat's dark and profound "Skull" (1984) was the newest work at the booth and also the first to sell, at €8.65 million ($11.35 million). Among the other pieces was a 1919 Picasso, "Glass, pipe and packet of tobacco," formerly in the private Rosenberg collection. "All the antiques fairs use Modern art as a power of attraction," suggested Tornabuoni's Michele Casamonti.