2.1 Art Index and Methodology The case for investment into art and the development of art indices has been at the forefront of the evolution of investing into alternative assets. Databases, indices, and market reports are now essential analytical tools with which art investors can assess financial performance. Over the past few decades, researchers have used different methodologies to calculate the financial returns on art investments, based on public auction records.
2.1.1 General Review There are four main methodologies for producing art price indices. Average prices, geometric means, repeat sales and hedonic regressions. The first significant study was by Stein (1977), who analyzes the financial return of auctioned paintings in USA and Britain for the period of 1946-68 by using the average prices methods. Stein considered the auctioned objects each year as a random sample of the underlying stock of art and constructs an index based on the yearly average transaction price. Baumol (1986) and Frey and Pommerehne (1989) calculate the geometric mean return on works that sold at least twice during the considered time frame. Baumol constructs a data set of transaction prices of the best-known art works from 1652 to 1961 in London by using geometric mean method. Revisiting Baumol’s study, Frey and Pommerehne enlarge the data set by extending the time period to 1987 and including auction sales from European countries. However, these two methods do not enable the construction
Furthermore, he considers secondary sources in interpreting and analyzing the different artists’ paintings. Baxandall examines the importance of contracts, where marketing negotiations are made between an artist and their client. This includes detailed aspects in the content of the painting, the quantity and quality of materials used in the painting and the cost for labor in making the piece. He argues that although a painting is convincing and strong, the painting could, however, be reduced to nothing more than a constructional argument between the buyer and the seller. This is done by explaining the mechanics through which the Renaissance artists went about to develop their talent. A painting in Italy during that period resulted in a social relationship between the painter, who produced the picture, and the client, who provided the funding and ultimately used the artwork. He clearly suggests that the great materials and effort placed into an art piece provide the groundwork for an
Throughout the historical debate of this topic, many fallacies about the relationship between art and commerce have presented themselves. One of the most common misconceptions about this relationship is that commerce controls and debases art. Rather than a harmonious
Countless art has been sought-after throughout history. Explorers, scientists, art collectors, politicians, and entrepreneurs from Western nations have sought out and removed art from the lands of great civilizations, often with the assistance and participation of local people and governments. Even as cultural property faces immediate danger today in conflict zones like Syria and Mali, there is circumstantial evidence that some nations are awakening to the political and foreign policy benefits that can flow from the repatriation of cultural patrimony. While on a different scale from World War II, historic structures, religious monuments, and other priceless ancient times continue to suffer collateral damage and manipulation in armed conflict. Relics have been stolen, smuggled and sold in what is a reported multibillion dollar underground market. They have become the illicit prizes of private collectors and the subject of legal claims against museums. Of the countless museums subject to legal claims, The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City happens to be one of them. “The Metropolitan Museum has acquired thousands of works and objects of art from the antiquities”. “For the past several years, the government of Turkey has warned U.S. and foreign museums (including The Metropolitan Museum of Art), that unless ancient objects from Turkish soil are given up on demand, Turkey will stop lending artworks” (The Committee for Cultural Policy, 2015). Turkey continues to up the
The assignment will require you to explore several website to learn more about their efforts, examine one case of art theft and identify why art is so valuable. Prepare a five paragraph essay citing at least two sources.
Artwork is a unique commodity. It is easily identifiable, and thus, subsequent purchasers may initially succeed in concealing stolen artwork for some time. Eventually, the artwork is likely to resurface. This resurfacing often gives rise to claims to the work and disputes over its ownership. Sentiment is often the driving force behind Jewish survivors and families of
Situation: A buyer of “Portrait of a Man” previously attributed to Frans Hals, renown European old master painter, held Sotheby’s liable for alleged forgery. As a result, Sotheby’s had to pay the buyer back over $10.7 million dollars. Sotheby’s sold the art work on behalf of Mark Weiss, a London art dealer, and David Kowitz, a collector and the founder of Indus Capital Partners. After Orion Analytical, a scientific analysis firm that Sotheby’s acquired last year, conducted thorough research of the work, Sotheby’s announce that the work is “undoubtedly a forgery”. Sotheby’s is threatening to start court proceedings against Mr. Weiss and Mr. Kowitz. Mr. Weiss responded in a statement that he is not persuaded by
The art gallery set the tone and the price of the collection. So they don’t set prices subject to the whims of the market. Art is a freestanding market comprised of commodities embodied by culturally specialized qualities that are often controversial when being measured. The article Expensive Art is Good Art reference economist Allison Schrage views on art galleries manipulating prices. She state, “The nature of art as a commodity inherently makes efficient prices, meaning prices that reflect all available information about value, impossible. Value is subjective; the intrinsic value of a painting is paint and canvas—beyond that value is often a matter of taste. This is why the industry has developed an intricate signaling process where the
Mr. Cameron Bean spoke to the class last week on the importance of arts in the Business Community. What caught my attention being an accounting major is the revenue and what it cost for the arts to run. Where how the arts programs wouldn’t be able to run without the help of corporations. The total economic impact of the arts community they found from a recent study that was 75 million dollars per year. The direct economic activity that is related to the companies around is about 45 million dollars and then there is 30 million dollars of multiplier effects from the money spent from local businesses as their evening out for maybe potential clients that they are trying to land. Taking
The Mona Lisa, 1503 - 1506, painted on poplar wood (77 x 53cm) with oil paint.
A speech except from Sherman E. Lee, a former art museum director, denies the idea of solely educational aim as well as sole aims for product reproduction. Lee claims museums should and do chose works based on marketability. This then allows for an avenue of both education and museum profit. For example, Houston has a butterfly conservatory. Even though very few individuals identify as “butterfly enthusiasts,” the conservatory turns a profit?
Although this statement is controversial, art can indeed offer an opportunity to reduce risks of an investment portfolio in a market that underperformed with financial crisis and the subsequent recession. At worst, art is able to hold its value better than conventional assets such as stocks and bonds, especially in an inflationary environment. Company shares might become worthless, but the value of artworks will never fall to zero. According to the Deloitte ArtTactic Art & Finance Report 2014, 67% of collectors stated that the most important motivation for including art and collectibles in their portfolios was for diversification and capital protection rather than returns. Even though holding artworks in their portfolio does not increase the chances that the portfolio will outperform, investors will continually take into account for portfolio diversification.
The relationship between art and commerce has always been subject of hot discussion. Many people look at creativity as a vehicle for economic interest, while others view it as pure dedication for personal creative needs. The world as we live in today sees the creative industry, including visual and performing arts, sound recording, book publishing, and movie making, a highly commercialized global enterprise. People constantly buy and sell art products in a highly active market. Although it is difficult to conclude whether art and commerce is perfectly compatible or mutually exclusive, one thing is true, that the relationship between the two has not stayed constant throughout the history of art. From the early Renaissance period to contemporary and modern time, we see art gets intertwined with business more and more. There are multiple well known historical examples demonstrate the dynamic evolution of creative expression, though new system also brought challenges.
Finances for an artist can be one of the toughest topics to be brought into discussion when thinking about starting their own business. This shouldn’t be a shock to any artist since there are major finance issues behind every field of being a successful artist. To put it into simple context, being an artist of any kind is costly. First, there is a variety of how expensive a career can be to an artist all while depending on the type of work you put in. While considering art, you have many issues to take into account such as finding and paying for a workspace, supplies, and the time to be productive.
In contrast to the findings that artwork is a profitable investment comparing to conventional financial assets, a number of academic studies address the issue of art price movement over time
of art as a finished product, signed by the artist and authenticated by the art market,