22 Ene Art Market 2018: Upcoming trends revealed by international experts, Part I

As the new years begins, we decided to offer you a resume of the upcoming tendencies as ¨predicted¨ by the market’s most influential art experts. First of all, Deloitte’s Art and Finance Report 2017 provided us with crucial data to analyze this year trends. Secondly,  we utilized Judd Tuly (an awarded art market journalist and critic) interview with Art Tactic as resumes 2017’s most relevant events. Let’s begin:

REFUGEE ASTRONAUT II © YINKA SHONIBARE MBE (2016), PHOTOGRAPHER: STEPHEN WHITE

Data and tendencies provided by Deloitte’s Art and Finance Report 2017:

1. Greater investment in art and luxury goods: the latest report published by Knight Frank Global real Estate Consultant titled World Wealth affirms that 37% of wealth managers are handling investments in art, wine and classic cars.
2. Numbers of Ultra-Rich-Individuals grows 3.5% and their common wealth represents 27 trillions dollars. En 2016, more than 226.000 people formed the U.H.W.I. (Ultra-High-net-Worth-Individual). This term is assigned to individuals who holds investable assets of at least 30 millions US$ excluding personal assets and property. In 2026, it is estimated that this ¨population¨ is will grow 43% and reach a total of 275.740 people
3. Positive growth in auction sales for 2018: especially the markets in USA, China, Russia and Africa. Previsions are a bit more reserved regarding the UK, Europe and Latin America. Results obtained in the first half of 2017 (versus 2016) and exceptional sales such as the 450 millions US$ Salvator Mundi signals a strong market.
4. Clearly, political and economical uncertainties such as Brexit, Trump, widespread growth of nationalism are viewed as the biggest threats to the art market.

Regarding Art & Finance Reports tendencies for 2018, we’ve highlighted the following:

1. Technology is playing a crucial role in the evolution of the art market.
2. Online sales continue to grow as revealed by The Hiscox Online Art Trade Report.
3. Traditional auctions houses (Christie´s, Sotheby´s and Heritage Auction) are up to the challenge and have all invested in online sales platforms.
4. Auction and gallery sales converge online: clients are showing great interest in searching and buying artworks on the same platform. Invaluable and Artsy are trying to position themselves as “One-stop-shops”
5. More transparency than ever in the market thanks to new tools which analyze, compile and publish the market’s indicators daily.
6. Blockchain technology could revolutionize the industry: this technology (invisible to the collectors) could resolve certain issues such as provenance, copyright and ownership as it offers open public record of every transaction made within the Blockchain network.

Now that we are aware of the data, we want to incorporate the opinion of a renown art market expert. Judd Tuly, in a recent interview with Art Tactic, shared what he is hoping to see in 2018 and revealed the details of what caught his attention the most in 2017. Here is our recap:

1. The inclusion of Salvator Mundi in a contemporary art sales by Christie’s and the incredible marketing campaign that preceded the sale, opens new possibilities concerning how to put an artwork on the market.
2. The financial guarantees are now of crucial importance in securing the sale of blue-chip artwork.
3. Philips is consolidation itself as the third auction house in importance after Sotheby’s and Christie’s as it’s being hiring numerous former employees.
4. Tuly is describing Instagram as “a powerful marketing tool”.
5. Regarding online sales the expert said: “They are growing and for the first time, at the evening auction at Sotheby’s in November a lot was won by an online bid.”. Tuly considers that collectors are more and more comfortable and incline to use technology to bid and buy art.
6. Regarding the Rockefeller sale: Tuly is hoping that it will be the first auction to obtain 1 billion US$ in a single evening.
7. Art fairs will continue their expansion through Asia and auctions houses will hire more Asian experts.

In the next few days we will publish more articles regarding the closing of 2017, the most important sales achieved at auction, art fairs and international events that you cannot miss in 2018, the best auction sales of 2017 in Spain and the trends to come in the Spanish market in 2018.

Sources: Art & Finance Report 2017 and Art Tactic Podcast, interview with Judd Tully, 24th June 2017.

Translated by Camila Jourdain.

Juan Antonio Rodriguez

Fundador, The Art Market Agency.
Experto en marketing online con más de diez años de experiencia ayudando a empresas a crecer en el entorno online. Conocedor de las principales plataformas de comercialización del sector arte y de cómo sacarles el mejor partido para rentabilizarlas.