Morning Coffee Talk

»The Art Market. Where It Has Been; Where It Is Going«

Amerika Haus e.V. NRW and the American General Consul Matthew G. Boyse invited to a discussion with US art dealer Richard L. Feigen.

Richard L. Feigen is one of the greatest international art dealers. He was the first to present Joseph Beuys to the American public—in his gallery in New York’s Soho in 1966. In addition, his Max Beckmann collection is counted among the most important private collections outside of Europe.

At the residence of the US General Consul Matthew G. Boyse, Richard Feigen gave a talk about the development of the art market in the last 60 years, entitled “The Art Market. Where it has been; Where It is going.”

Mr. Feigen gave a comprehensive picture of the ascension of New York as perhaps the most significant art capital of our time.

After World War II, Europe was dominated by a cultural vacuum. Many artists had fled to the USA, contributing to the establishment of a local international art scene there. This naturally attracted many more escaping European artists as well. Mr. Feigen gave anecdotal examples of how the city was positively swimming in art in the 1960’s and 1970’s. Works from Beuys, Beckmann, or Kandinsky could be acquired for only a few hundred dollars.

He also referred to the situation today, in which the art market has appeared to stagnate.
Many collectors are unwilling to sell their works, and a serious discrepancy has arisen between the demand, which not too long ago was very high, and the supply, which has lessened over the years.

The abandonment of the artistic center of New York by young artists and gallerists has also proven itself to be an ongoing problem. Recently, the rent on galleries has become so exorbitant that a gallery attempting to support unknown artists can barely hold its head above water, especially when selling a lot of works that are relatively inexpensive.

It has become absolutely essential that a gallery sell major works with high price tags, earning several hundred thousand dollars in one go, and thereby securing its own survival. The art market bubble has been growing in recent years, explained Mr. Feigen, but it has finally burst. Too many artists have gotten lost in their own hype, charging prices for their works that are many times greater than what they are actually worth. Feigen himself only collects works by artists that have already passed away.  But how does he recognize the worth of a work? Just as most of us do—“from the gut.”