April 15, 2008, 11:35 pm
Singing in the Rain?
The art world knows how to battle the latest economical slump. Do galleries and art dealers have a chance for survival in this challenging time?
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In response to the article, "Singing in the Rain," (April 2008). I was pleased to see an article in FSB about the art market as most galleries, even those that record millions in sales annually, are small businesses often with only two or three employees. I would like to note that while the modern and contemporary art markets are prone to wide fluctuations predicated by the economy and changes in popular taste from decade to decade, there is at least one sector of the art market that is a veritable blue chip commodity – ancient art (or antiquities as the objects are also known). Christie's and Sotheby's for instance have been auctioning ancient art for well over 100 years and one needs to look no further than these sales results year after year to see that ancient Egyptian, Greek, and Roman art have never suffered from a sudden down turn in value. Furthermore, antiquities continue to be a veritable bargain in comparison to modern art and a much sounder investment, generally appreciating between 8% and 10% annually in value. Only recently have antiquities begun to reach the dizzying heights that other more publicized areas of the art market have, nonetheless for a fraction of the cost of acquiring a painting by a modern master, who may fall out of favor in a few years, one can still purchase an Egyptian statue or a Greek vase that will never go out of style.