Who said that art is only creative flair? Collecting, passion and investment. This is the recipe that emerges from the latest Deloitte report
“The Art and Collectibles Market” which investigates the relationship between art, finance and asset management. The study conducted together with ArtTactic explains that about 2 out of 3 collectors and 9 out of 10 sector operators declare that the drive to purchase works of art or collectibles it comes from the passion for the discipline, but without ever forgetting the intrinsic value of the investment. This new approach to art has triggered an increase in demand for new professional services related to the management and protection of the value invested in works of art.
Addressing to collectors, sector operators such as art dealers, auction houses and gallery owners, but also professionals operating in the finance sector such as Private Banks, the study conducted by Deloitte told of a year 2018 in which the art and collectibles market settled on positive values, in the wake of a positive two-year period. This growing trend has been determined by the number of people who have approached the art market and the consequent access to the public auction market which has reached an increasingly vast and international clientele which has made it possible to explore niche or unpublished artistic currents .
What made 2018 a year to remember for art aficionados was the growth of exhibitions curated by female artists or dedicated to female exponents. TO New York set 15 records for works by women artists last May, led by a 16,6s abstract painting by Joan Mitchell that sold for $9,5 billion. In London in October, Jenny Saville's self-portrait fetched £XNUMXm and made her the most expensive living female artist in the world.
Again, attention to contemporary African art has increased thanks to the acknowledgments from the global art market and the increase in African collectors active at an international level who can encourage the contribution of new capital and the opening of new buying and selling channels.
When we talk about art and the market, we don't just talk about ancient, modern or contemporary painting but also about photography, wines and design whose reference auctions have recorded an increase in the number of lots and in the average clearing price.
Disappointing result for the online channel used as a tool available to auction houses which in 2017 was equal to +12%, below the performance of 2016 in which +15% was recorded. “While on the one hand the channel allows you to participate in streaming auctions all over the world, on the other it risks undermining transparency on trading prices. The fears of collectors, market operators and gallery owners regarding authenticity, transparency and risk management have begun to be answered by the systems of cryptocurrencies and blockchain” reports the Deloitte report.
Regarding the use of art through social networks, Instagram appears to be the preferred channel of 63% of the operators interviewed and is increasingly strategic for reaching collectors.
There is no shortage of concerns for industry experts: come on authentication and provenance issues, price manipulation, conflicts of interest, lack of transparency. These fears are shared by about three quarters of asset managers, collectors and sector professionals who are called upon to face these challenges by focusing on the need to modernize the art market, as believed by 73% of wealth managers, 74% of sector professionals and 64% of collectors.
And it is at this point that the connection between the world of technology and that of art. Several ArtTechs, i.e. startups operating in the art sector, have increased their turnover in recent years: "It is evident that a purely analytical approach cannot be imagined in a sector with peculiar characteristics such as that of art, but it is certain that a combination of expert opinions and algorithms capable of capturing historical and forecast data would provide a more transparent and credible approach to the valuation of an asset such as art and collectibles”, as stated in the report.
“In this rapidly changing sector, there is an ever-increasing demand for asset management services and until now Private Banks and family offices have hesitated due to the complexity of the art market. A solution can come from technology, which appears capable of making the sector evolve, not only in the e-commerce field, but above all in favor of the desired transparency of the sector, greater traceability, ease of access to information and last but not least in favor of a growing need for democratization of the market” as he commented Barbara Tagliaferri, Art&Finance coordinator of Deloitte for Italy.A
An accurate picture of the art market worldwide cannot do without an analysis of the amounts relating to individual transactions and the geographical areas in which the main sales are highlighted: "only in 2018, 15 lots were awarded for more than 50 million dollars, 52 were sold between 20 and 50 million dollars; data in clear growth compared to 2017. In a market in great turmoil there are also elements of continuity: New York and London remain the most important squares for the art and collectibles market”, explained the Private Banker of Fideuram Pietro Ripa, who contributed to the study, during the presentation of the report.
“On the basis of all this information we can say that the art market continues to enjoy good health. The investments and purchases are based on three pillars: origin of the goods, quality and desire for novelty. 2018 will be remembered as the year in which there were fewer purchases of medium quality works of art, even if signed by "big names" in favor of works by authors often unpublished for the international market, but considered to have great potential ”, concluded Ripa.
