Art in the Park, a happy annual art exhibit at the Salcedo Park in Makati, will again be held online this time, like last year, because of the pandemic.
The event set a trend of sorts when it gathered under one roof, or rather the acacia trees, several art galleries, schools and artists to showcase and sell the works like a flea market where buyers could get excellent obras for a steal.
One could saunter around with a glass of wine on one hand and hot dog in another.
HOW MUCH FOR A PAINTING BY AN UNKNOWN?
Art in the Park was supposed to cater to condo dwellers around town who have limited wall space and to new collectors with new monies.
One of the questions that arise in a gathering of buyers and new or under-rated artists is, what is the right price for a work?
One of the formulas being used by artists and suggested by some galleries is to compute them by square inch.
Well and good. But that is still a guess by any measure because there is no set starting cost nor ceiling per square inch. It really depends on the artist – how much she or he values her work, or even self.
It also depends on how much the buyer is willing to part with for a work that he may fancy.
GOING FOR NAME ARTIST
My advise, as a collector and as an artist, is for the buyer to follow his heart. Acquire what resonates within. And that’s it.
There are collectors who would try to play it safe, stay away from Art in the Park, and purchase “name artist.”
Artnet News mentions that the prices of artworks could also be determined by the artist’s exhibit history. Or how “hot” the artist is, referring to how he is known in the market.
In the art circle, there is derision for artists with mediocre talent but high public relations skills.
On the other side, these are the monied ones who have terrible tastes in paintings but would want to peacock their name collection, earning the oohs and aahs of their amigas and amigos.
ART AS INVESTMENT
There are those who look at art as investments and indeed art works could rise in value way faster than real estate.
A collector in the Art in the Park who has an astute nose for art could buy a piece for P35k but would be valued ten to fifteen times more in a few years.
In the past few years alone, here and abroad, there have been news of paintings reaching astronomical prices. And notice that most are transacted in auctions.
An auction is a heavenly place for the artist who has arrived - although the true beneficiaries are the collectors and the middlemen.
WORLD’S MOST EXPENSIVE PAINTINGS
The site Work and Money lists 20 of the most expensive paintings ever sold as of end year 2020. Check it.
The range is a fascinating mix. Included are works of Jackson Pollock with his splatters of paint, contrasted with Mark Rothko and his planes of quietude and Paul Gauguin enamored by his figurative brown women.
The top selling is “Salvador Mundi” by Leonardo de Vinci, U$450-M sold at an auction.
There is the “Reclining Nude,” sold US$170.4-M at an auction, by Amedeo Mondigliani, my favorite painter who until his death was a starving artist. I didn’t know his works cost that much.
In the Philippines, the most expensive artwork sold at auction is “Transfiguration” by Dean Jose Joya at P112.1-M. Anita Magsaysay-Ho is a perennial favorite.
WHAT MAKES PAINTINGS VALUABLE
What makes paintings or artworks more expensive or valuable? The site The Collector mentions, among other things, the provenance.
It cites as an example the work of Mark Rothko that was bought first by David Rockefeller at US$10M and was sold at $70-M at the turn-around. The work is now nicknamed “The Rockefeller Rothko.”
And then there is historical significance as a factor. Another is social status where a buyer amass paintings just because he wants a coveted place in a society.
The site significantly mentions the thrill of auctions where participants gasp and observers clap not because of the significance of the artworks but over the oodles of moolah involved.
At one point, there is no longer any rhyme nor reason why the prices of paintings go high. I guess if I have 50 million in pin money, I could go for one that I would like to see in my home.
GENUINE VERSUS BOGUS LOVE
In our early years, my wife and I would spend relatively recklessly on books and artworks, even it meant not being able to pay the rent that month.
A billionaire, I suppose, who genuinely loves art could have them charged to his expense accounts.
But auctions have their sinister side. They are being suspected of being the channels of dirty money because of the walls of confidentiality in the transactions.
The US Senate, even at midst of the pandemic, is looking at these reports. It seeks to find out who buys and where were the artworks brought?
Legitimate business world also wants to know.
Why are huge monies moving? From drugs? Arms deal? Graft and corruption?
It is not surprising. The insanity and subjectivity of prices in auctions makes it a hat trick for nefarious deals.