Living through this current art market takes more than courage for most artists; it is
the ultimate test on living up to one’s own convictions.
Mark Porter (President of Christie’s America) during his recent interview on Consuelo Mack’s
Wealthtrack Channel 21, (which aired on June 6, 2006), gave his advice on where to invest in
the arts. His comment was to buy art which is original, of highest quality and not newly made.
I have been selling art work since 1988 and have seen the market go up and down. There
were years when I could not paint fast enough to satisfy the galleries and my customers. The
prices for my work had increased at a steady pace over the years, yet from 1996 to 2006 they tripled. Despite the enormous
demand I decided to produce only a few highly refined, content rich paintings with a deeper
meaning. I studied to gain more knowledge, refined my skills, used materials of the highest
quality and enriched the subject matter by adding meaning to the content. I became a
painting philosopher expressing the human condition at large; a deeper meaning penetrated
my work, thus the art was capable of touching every soul through the merging of intellect and
feeling. The content of my art work came alive under my brush.
Unfortunately the overall body of art work on today’s market is missing this quality. Most
art works have become mere decorations, where matching the color of the dining room curtain
or fitting in with the overall interior décor seems to be the most important criteria. I can
respect the need to be pleasantly entertained by some decorative objects. We all have our
preferences and that is good so, life needs to be as diverse as possible to give meaning and to
assure survival. Lately though, I find this diverse survival being threatened by an overall
financial market in search of the latest fad and hottest way to reap monetary benefits.
Are we living through another bubble? Perhaps an art market bubble?
For but a few artists the art market ceased to exist after March 2001. Ever since the stock market
went down and the real estate market became strong, the art market has vanished for most
established artists and especially the young new talents. The galleries representing contemporary
artists are not excluded from this down turn. I expect many small galleries to falter during the
coming years. The art market has turned corporate and is now dominated by the auction houses
and a few galleries who have managed to become global.
Artists are very sensitive to the Zeitgeist and are often years ahead through subconscious recognition what is happening in their culture. By 1997 I had noticed signs of a turning
market. I had expected and talked about an upcoming
strong commodity market, which can now
easily be seen by looking at the enormous gains in housing prices, in the surge of oil prices,
precious metals, and the high prices auction houses have commanded for antiques, older paintings
and art works by well known living artists who had gained recognition during their earlier years.
What happens when interest shifts away from the stock market to commodities?
I like to share my thoughts as an artist on the current situation we are facing in the arts. Middle
income people had lost much of their savings during the collapse of the techstock
bubble as we
all know. Consequently they were eager to invest into the housing market, since it had proven to
bring in returns and was perceived as being more stable than the stock market. During the last
years the remaining money was invested into the housing market, meaning all the available
capital was used as a downpayment
and additional money had to be borrowed. It created frozen
assets with additional costs. By comparison, investing in the housing market bears higher risks
than placing money into the stock market. If the market collapses it may wipe out more than the
lifesavings
people have.
Investing in stocks etc. means the money stays fluid. Stocks are bought and sold, and gains are
taken and partially reinvested. In our current situation people of middle income are stretched
over the limit with mounting debt they have taken on during the last years. In addition rising
commodity prices are making it impossible for most people to purchase artwork. Higher income
groups are not affected as much or at all and have the means to support the arts at any time.
This sounds great; however the current trend is drawing everybody to the auction houses, trusting
only the so called “experts” for advice to increase wealth. This fear driven movement of investing
exclusively into art works by already well known or deceased artists may increase wealth momentarily, in the long term it will deprive future generations of the richness and diversity of an art world we as a society have come to cherish.
Is making a lot of money the only meaning left in our culture?
Where is all of this leaving the new generation of artists who are struggling to survive?
The visual arts are a form of dialogue. It is a dialogue that is very much needed in our culture.
Painting with its rich historical past remains to be a vital form of communication entering the
public consciousness through placement into private homes and public collections.
How can there be a continuum without our willingness for support?
The artists of today are already now and will definitely continue to be the masters of tomorrow’s
dialogue. If we neglect to support today’s artists, we will deprive the whole nation of the
opportunity and possibility of recognizing itself, thereby denying ourselves the pleasure of
discovering the meaning of life through a colorful, painterly dialogue.
If this market continues long enough we will certainly lose a whole generation of very talented
artists, diminish our respectable art schools and decimate many small galleries who with their
courage to nurture these new talents are often the breeding grounds for the masters of the future.
I hope to have opened up a worthwhile dialogue.
By Marlies Ihmels
June 22, 2006
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