The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts must be pretty frustrated. First, they shuttered their authentication board after getting sued by too many collectors, and now they’re planning to sell off all of their holdings of Warhol’s work to focus entirely on making art-related grants. Collectors are worried that the 20,000-work sale might hurt the artist’s brand.
Christie’s
Posted inArt
A Guide to New York’s Auction Houses
There is possibly no better place to witness the titans of the art market — the auction houses — duke it out than in New York. But ever wonder what they’re all about? Here’s a straightforward guide.
Posted inNews
As Chinese Artist Unseats Picasso, New Collectors Rise in China
Proof of the Chinese art market blowing up can no longer be denied. On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that two Chinese artists Zhang Daqian (1899-1983) and Qi Baishi (1864-1957) reign supreme in the art market, replacing Picasso as the top earner for 2011. Artprice has ranked Picasso as the highest grossing artist for the past 13 years, but with overall sales of $506.7 million this year, Daqian easily unseated the Cubism master. Meanwhile, Picasso tumbled down to fourth place, one below Andy Warhol, with total sales of only $311.6 million.
Posted inNews
Big-Name Artists Sue Sotheby’s & Christie’s for Cali Royalities
According to the LA Times, Chuck Close, Laddie John Dill and the estate of sculptor Robert Graham are suing the world’s largest auction houses, Sotheby’s and Christie’s, for royalties they say they are entitled to under the California Resale Royalty Act.
Posted inArt
India’s About to Explode in Contemporary Art
In 2011, India moved from the classification of “developing” country to that of being a “newly industrialized.” This upgrade was made along Mexico, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, Philippines, Brazil and China, all of which have economies showing promise towards becoming “developed.” Perhaps as a salute to this increase of stature, India had its first pavilion at the 2011 Venice Biennale with an exhibition curated by Ranjit Hoskote aptly titled, Everyone Agrees: It’s About to Explode.
Posted inArt
Christie’s Auction to Benefit Haiti: An Earnest Attempt or Not?
Ben Stiller, David Zwirner and Christie’s are teaming up to raise money for Haitian humanitarian non-profits by selling some of today’s most notable artists’ works. The auction is offering all proceeds to charity, a tax write-off for buyers and a waiver for all fees usually taken by the high-end auction house.
Posted inOpinion
Steve Martin Victim to German Art Forgery Ring
In a twist strangely echoed by the actor’s recent art-world novel An Object of Beauty, Der Spiegel reports that Steve Martin is the victim of a German art forgery ring. Martin purchased what he thought was Heinrich Campendonk’s “Landscape With Horses” (1915) for $850,000. Turns out, the painting was from an art collections devised by a group of German swindlers caught in 2010, the newspaper writes.
Posted inNews
Mystery Donor Gifts Pica$$o to Fund Science
A vibrant Picasso painting, which has not been seen in public for six decades, was donated by an anonymous American under the condition that the University of Sydney sell the work to fund scientific research. [BBC]
Posted inOpinion
Photo Break: Urs Fischer’s Giant Yellow Teddy Bear
Stationed outside of the Seagram building at 75 Park Avenue between 52nd Street and 53rd Street is a giant yellow teddy bear. Oh yeah, it also has a lamp sticking out of its back and through its head. Urs Fischer’s monumental sculpture “Untitled (Lamp/Bear)” has already attracted attention for its unique appearance, but I took some photos to show the piece from a different angle.
Posted inOpinion
Why China’s Auction Market is Tops
A study by Artprice finds that the Chinese art market is the largest in the world — but only in terms of auctions. The misleading news bite is telling in other ways, though. The Chinese domestic auction market is growing so quickly in part because Western auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s have failed to dominate even while the Chinese collector community has grown hugely.
Posted inOpinion
Why Ai Weiwei’s NYC Zodiac Is a Political Gesture
What’s your sign? Chinese artist and international icon Ai Weiwei will be bringing his own custom-designed set of Zodiac sculptures to New York City’s Plaza Hotel from May 2 through July 15, reports the New York Times. The works seem harmless, but they have a historical context that gives them a deeper political meaning.
Posted inArt
WTF is… the Secondary Market?
Throughout the course of NYC’s art fair week, I overheard questions over what art work was being sold, and who it was being sold to. Of course, art fairs exist to sell work, and the work on display is there to be sold. But where do these works come from? This is where the secondary market comes in. Though most galleries simply sell work from the studios of the artists they represent, the secondary market deals in works that have already been sold, at least once. Fairs like the Armory’s Modern section focus heavily on secondary market works, as do auction houses like Christie’s and Sotheby’s.
