All posts tagged: art market

CONDUCTOR Art Fair Opening Night in Brooklyn

CONDUCTOR Art Fair Opening Night in Brooklyn

Published by José Betancourt

Conductor, a new art fair hosted by Powerhouse Arts opened in Brooklyn on Wednesday night with a crowd size expected from a biennial preview, rather than a typical fair opening. Within hours, more than 800 people had passed through Powerhouse Arts, drifting between booths that offered the unexpected. There were 28 galleries and 20 special projects spread across the building, with installations that often spilled out of traditional stands and into shared space. This is the first full edition of the fair following last year’s teaser, and pulling it together was not far from straightforward. “Some of the gallery’s that wanted to participate had to pull out at the last minute because of the war in Iran, which was very difficult,” said fair director Adrianna Farietta. Still, the result is an inclusive fair with many works worthy of a serious look and a layout that rewarded wandering. You’d turn a corner and find yourself standing gazing into a large installation or entering a quiet, self-contained environment. Related Articles The fair’s jubilant pace shifted completely inside House of …

Contemporary Art Market Cools as Old Masters and Impressionists Rebound

Contemporary Art Market Cools as Old Masters and Impressionists Rebound

Published by José Betancourt

For much of the past decade, the art market behaved as though history had stopped. Collectors and speculators chased the wet paint with missionary zeal, convinced that the next studio visit might yield a future masterpiece (or a tidy return when flipped onto the secondary market). Auction houses obliged, turning evening sales into pageants for artists who barely had time to form a reputation. That fever appears to have broken, according to the latest Art Basel & UBS Art Market Report, written by economist Clare McAndrew of Arts Economics. While the global art market returned to modest growth last year, reaching an estimated $59.6 billion in sales—a 4 percent increase after two years of decline—auction sales of postwar and contemporary art have continued to fall. Those categories generated $4.5 billion last year, compared with $8.5 billion in 2021. Related Articles Despite four consecutive years of decline, postwar and contemporary art remains the largest segment of the auction market, underscoring how central it has become to the trade over the past two decades. For a decade, …

Art Market Reaches .6 Billion in 2025 as High-End Sales Drive Recovery

Art Market Reaches $59.6 Billion in 2025 as High-End Sales Drive Recovery

Published by José Betancourt

The global art market clawed its way back to modest growth in 2025, reaching an estimated $59.6 billion in sales, according to the latest Art Basel and UBS Art Market Report, by economist Clare McAndrew of Arts Economics. The total represents a 4 percent increase from the previous year, breaking a two-year slide in sales—though the market still sits below its 2022 peak. The recovery, however, came with an asterisk. While auctions bounced back strongly, galleries barely budged, and much of the market’s growth came from a small number of very expensive works. Related Articles Public auction sales rose 9 percent, helping lift the overall market. Dealer sales grew just 2 percent, reaching $34.8 billion globally. Private sales at auction houses, meanwhile, fell 5 percent, reversing the previous year’s trend, when collectors had increasingly opted for discreet deals behind closed doors. The number of transactions barely changed. Sales rose only 2 percent, to roughly 41.5 million, suggesting that the market’s growth had less to do with a surge in activity than with higher prices for a relatively small number of big-ticket works. As in previous …

US Art Market Rebounds to .2 B. as Speculation Cools, Report Finds

US Art Market Rebounds to $3.2 B. as Speculation Cools, Report Finds

Published by José Betancourt

The US art market showed signs of life in 2025. Auction sales rose 23 percent from the previous year to about $3.17 billion, according to a new report from Bank of America and the analytics firm ArtTactic. But the rebound did not come from a surge in demand. Instead, it was driven largely by major estate consignments, renewed interest in well-known historical artists, and an auction system increasingly supported by financial guarantees. Yes, the market appears to be stabilizing, but in a very different form than the speculative boom that defined the early years of this decade. Related Articles As a whole, the report suggests the art market is entering a more cautious phase. The surge of speculation that pushed prices for younger artists to precipitous levels earlier in the decade has started to fall flat. More than ever, auction houses are relying on financial guarantees to secure major consignments. And collectors are increasingly spread across the country rather than concentrated in traditional hubs like New York. For dealers, collectors, and artists trying to understand where the …

Victoria Helena on Why Artists Need Financial Agency

Victoria Helena on Why Artists Need Financial Agency

Published by José Betancourt

Victoria Helena has built a career most artists could never imagine for themselves. Before founding Artist Money Matters, a new artist-first financial consultancy launching this month, she spent two decades working in finance and studio administration while maintaining her own sculptural practice. The result is a rare fluency in both balance sheets and the psychic reality of making art. We spoke with Helena about why artists avoid money conversations, what they most often get wrong in contracts, and why financial literacy has become an issue of economic justice in the arts. Related Articles You’ve described yourself as both an artist and a former CFO. That’s not a common combination. How did that happen? I’ve always had a foot in both worlds. I grew up around money in a very practical way. My mother was a single parent and a bartender, and I watched her count cash at the end of every shift. Later, when I was in school, accounting ended up being my math credit, and it just clicked. It was logical. It was calming. …

Art Market Outlook 2026: ArtTactic Sees Confidence Returning

Art Market Outlook 2026: ArtTactic Sees Confidence Returning

Published by Jenni Sidey

The art market is heading into 2026 in a better mood than it’s been in years, according to a new Global Art Market Outlook report from research firm ArtTactic. After a long hangover following the 2022 peak, confidence is back, selectively, cautiously, and with clear favorites. More than half of art market participants now expect the market to grow this year, up sharply from last year. Auction sales are already reflecting that shift: combined fine art sales across major houses rose 11 percent year-on-year in 2025, driven largely by trophy works and single-owner collections that finally tempted sellers off the sidelines. Related Articles The recovery, however, is not evenly spread. The strongest confidence sits at the very top and the very bottom of the market. Works priced above $1 million are seeing renewed interest as high-quality supply returns, while sub-$50,000 works benefit from steady transactional activity and broader buyer participation. The mid-market remains squeezed between those two poles, with fewer buyers willing to stretch. Auctions are leading the comeback. A majority of experts expect the secondary market …