Art galore! Visitors at the Art Basel show in Hong Kong, held from March 24-26, 2016. (Photo : Art Basel/Facebook)
French painter-sculptor Henri Matisse (1869- 1954) once said: “Creativity takes courage.”
For budding artists, marketing their artworks may likely be extra challenging nowadays given the present state of the art market.
Cultural economist Clare McAndrew presented the report for the state of the global art market in 2015 at the fifth TEFAF Art Symposium (“Informing the Art World - Speed, Needs & Globalization”) on March 11 in Maastricht, Netherlands.
According to Artsy, an online site for art collecting and education, the report “confirms suspicions of a downturn in the international art market.”
The report revealed that from a total global sale of $68.2 billion in 2014, sales of art in 2015 registered at $63.8 billion.
Artsy added: “The amount of art transactions also decreased to 38.1 million.”
In China, art sales declined by 13 percent, according to the report.
The European Fine Art Foundation (TEFAF) annually commissions the creation of the Art Market Report, which analyzes the international art market.
McAndrew, founder of Art Economics and author of the 2007 “The Art Economy: An Investor’s Guide to the Art Market,” compiled the report.
A holder of Ph.D. degree in Economics, she has been doing the report since 2008.
In terms of art fairs, McAndrew said, “They are a drain on dealers in terms of cost and time, but in terms of sales and visitors, they are very strong,” reported Art Net News.
The recently concluded Art Basel in Hong Kong paved way for more than 3,000 artists to showcase their works, according to the Global Times.
More than 70,000 people trooped to the two-day art fair, including Hollywood A-lister Leonardo DiCaprio, reported Observer.
Beijing Ink Studio priced Chinese artist Li Huasheng’s large-scale works on paper between $45,000 and $550,000.
Taiwan’s Eslite Gallery brought 10 canvases, priced between $26,000 and $91,000, by New York-based, Chengdu-born artist David Diao.
The art fair opened its doors to the general public, charging 200 yuan to 300 yuan to each visitor.
According to its website, Art Basel aims “to connect the world’s premier galleries and their patrons, as well serving as a meeting point for the international art world.”
Art Basel annually holds fairs in Basel, Switzerland; Miami Beach, Florida, USA; and Hong Kong, where it presents “20th and 21st century art with a strong curatorial perspective.”
Perhaps this year, artists, art dealers and gallery owners will see a flourishing art market.
As Henri Matisse also once said, “There are always flowers for those who want to see them.”
