A Record for Works of Art

I recently read an article about the upturn in the sales of artwork during the current recession. The upcoming sale of Picasso’s painting of Marie-Therese Walter by Christie’s, New York, this May is expected to bring in a record breaking amount. This follows a string of significant sales by the auction houses early this year and this past fall.

According to the author if the Picasso sale goes as expected, this will be the second time in four months that the record for an auction has been broken. What makes this particularly noteworthy is that we are still experiencing a global recession. The explanation of course can be attributed to who is purchasing the artwork. It is pretty obvious that those having the least financial difficulties in these times are buying art.

This also appears to be the best time to place pieces on the market. While there is not an abundance of artwork for sale these days, the items offered at auction houses are of particular interest to those who are looking to buy specific pieces of art at good prices.

There will be a lot of people watching to see if Christie’s Picasso auction this spring will break another record. If it does, this may be the deciding factor in the return of the auction houses dominating the sales of great art work.

You can find art books, art auction and exhibition catalogs at Nella’s Books and Collectibles.

www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com

Art in Unlikely Places

I recently read about the art collection in the Dallas Cowboys new stadium. This is a nice art collection that includes privately-commissioned and funded pieces which are mostly abstract. In preparing to welcome hundreds of thousand of visitors from all over the continent for the Super Bowl next year, the new Dallas Stadium will have some resemblance to an art gallery.

The art work for the Dallas Stadium was created by 14 living artists. Some of the artists are from the local area. The colorful works of these artists are displayed in the concession stands, large concourses and restrooms. This newly designed stadium could be called a work of art. Having a large public stadium to house art work is not a totally new concept. In ancient times the sports arenas represented some of the best art work for the time period. There is no doubt that the Romans enjoyed the magnificent splendor of the Colosseum.

Another unlikely place for art can be found at the Indianapolis International Airport, one of the newest airports in the United States. The airport was designed by HOK Architects in St. Louis and AeroDesign Group in Indianapolis.

The airport contains 4 million dollars worth of public art. The art work was selected from 550 submissions for this state-of-art airport. The intent is to broaden the cultural experience for the visitors to Indianapolis. The permanent collection of art consists of 36 pieces. All pieces share the common themes of flight, nature, changing seasons, and unique features of Indiana culture.

Many individuals today who have never stepped foot into an art gallery or museum can and probably will experience art in a whole different way.


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New Art

I was recently introduced to contemporary Asian art. It seems that this is the big news this spring in major auction houses. Sotheby’s will be having a major auction presenting Chinese Contemporary Art this year.

There are many reasons for the growing popularity of Chinese contemporary art. Those of us who watched the Beijing Olympic Stadium or Birds Nest were no doubt impressed with the creativity of the Chinese artist. There has been an increase in popularity of Asian art in New York and London. In 2009, the auction sales of Asian Contemporary Art began to rise. This year’s sale in Hong Kong with 170 pieces is expected to be over $12 million.

According to an article, Chinese contemporary artists can be divided in 2 groups: the overseas Chinese artists and the China-based artists. The artistic qualities of the overseas Chinese artists who seem to be influenced by many foreign cultures are the most popular for collectors.

This may be a great time for the small-time collector to start taking notice of contemporary Asian art. It seems like new artists are arriving on the scene everyday and affordable art work should be in abundance.

www.nellasbooksandcollectibles.ecrater.com