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| How to Develop the Contemporary Art Market in Latvia? Marita Batņa, Culture Theorist | |
| Last November Latvia's art market was stirred by fresh winds. Con-temporary art curators HOLE Curators and Swedbank Private Banking had invited to Latvia Don Thompson, economist and the author of "hot" literature on contemporary art, including the book "The $12 Million Stuffed Shark" (2008). Thompson, who is from Canada, addressed Swedbank clients at the opening of an art auction preview and presented a lecture at the Riga Art Space on 25 November. This was a dynamic and wholesome project, because it was free from the duty of imitating high spirits or issuing warnings at a time when there was a certain bewilderment in the art market. Going with the dynamic flow and against the background of the book's findings, Studija initiated an open discussion on the prospects for the development of the local contemporary art market. The informal discussion together with Don Thompson, which took place in November 2008, included Astrīda Riņķe (manager of the Alma Gallery), bank representative Māris Lazdiņš (Head of Swedbank Private Banking) and the contemporary art collector Ivo Strante (as the representative of HOLE Curators). | |
 Conversations at the "Vīna studija". Photo: Didzis Grodzs | |
| "Studija": As we meet, the situation in the world's art market is in the middle of a process of change. So Don's view on the future would be interesting to start with. Is it reasonable to think that, as an alternative to conventional investments, art may remain relatively attractive during the crisis? Don Thompson: If the value of your home has dropped 25 per cent and your job is under threat, you feel less wealthy and less eager to invest in an illiquid asset like art. It's worth considering art only if you are looking for a long-term investment. This probably relates only to international art, where the resale market is more liquid, and less likely to apply to the purchase of work by most Latvian artists. Even in the global market, nothing you buy for less than 100 thousand dollars is very likely to appreciate, so we are talking about large sums of money. Even then, only some of this expensive art will increase in value. By all means, buy art, but buy art that you want to live with, that touches your soul. If I had 50 million dollars to invest I would spend 5 million - ten percent - on art investment. Astrīda Riņķe: You'ŗe absolutely right, however it is important to look at art in the context of investment, it is another kind of investment - that is, investment which has been made in terms of emotions - the most expensive thing. That's where you have added value. "Studija": A country or a region can also be considered a brand - which determines value. It's true that Latvia's status does not give any particular advantages. Astrīda, what are the pro-spects for Latvian art on the international market scene? Would Latvian art perform better if it were associated with Baltic art? A.R.: Basically Alma Gallery seeks to work internationally. We go to art fairs - we've just come back from Berliner Liste 2008. Our artists' works are noticed by the press and are well received by clients, in this way I get more invitations from other art fairs. Now I can say that my inbox is filled with invitations. Frieze is my favorite, even if it got criticized for too much commercialism this year. D.T.: It's a fact that there were about 450 significant art fairs around the world in 2008. There will be fewer next year. The major fairs, such as Art Basel Miami Beach, reduced the number of medium-rank galleries this year because of weakened demand, and asked the top-level galleries to bring along more modestly priced work. Frieze did the same. This year in Frieze, sales turnover was only 60 per cent of the value of the previous year. The big name galleries did better, some of the smaller galleries worked on a loss. Galleries will still go to fairs anyway, because giving international exposure to your artists is one way of attracting the best national artists to sell through your gallery. This is common practice in the world, and it's probably true also for Latvia. A.R.: Yes, it certainly is like that. Ivo Strante: I would prefer the notion "Baltic art" rather than "Latvian art". A.R.: Integrating into the Baltic art market is, of course, attractive. That's why we will take part in ArtVilnius 09. I must say that art in Lithuania gets promoted more. One can sense power and influence [at work] in Lithuania. People in Latvia are reserved. Studija: In that case let's discuss the power and influence of the private sector. Considering that the international context is not so favorable for Latvian art, wouldn't it be more rational to shift the focus to the local market instead? In the course of general development, can we expect wealthy residents to start developing the local art market, taking as their example world experience? Some interest can already be identified: for instance, among the list of the top ten richest people in Latvia, three are involved in the art sector. Still, the prevailing mood is one of cautiousness. As regards contemporary art - its buyers are probably not so sure that it is likely to be accepted by the public. You could conclude that well-known personalities who become art collectors set a good example, if this challenges the local art market. Māris, could contemporary art be a niche for local capital? Māris Lazdiņš: Back in year 2002 people got carried away by real estate: this was the only investment they wanted to hear about. I can assure you that things have changed over the last two, three years - wealthy people have started investing in art, and they follow the prices. However, here we are talking about older, more established art. The good news is that the general interest [in art] helps contemporary artists too. Publicity works. As an example, I can name Kristians Brekte and even more so, Otto Zitmanis, whose artworks have increased in price since the joint publicity campaign for "Brainstorm" (top Latvian band) new album. We have done a survey of our VIP clients about their chief hobbies. Number one hobby is travelling, chosen by 40 percent, followed by sports - 20 percent and art collecting is in the third place, chosen by 10 per cent of our clients. | |
 Astrīda Riņķe and Don Thompson. Photo: Didzis Grodzs | |
| "Studija": Astrīda, do you feel that interest in contemporary art is growing on the part of business people?
A.R.: Yes! In a way it's paradoxical, that prices for established contemporary artists are similar to the average price levels for classical art of average historical importance: five to six thousand lats. There are signs that people are growing to accept contemporary art. For me personally, contemporary art is more exciting and more clever to get involved with, even if in Latvia it's not associated with large amounts of money. With Modernist Art or works by Old Masters everybody can find out the price, but there isn't the excitement of the game as can be enjoyed in the contemporary art market. D.T.: In any country the main market is at local level. This applies to Canada, Mexico, Holland, Belgium. There are only 200 truly international artists in the world - those artists whose name and work is recognized in their own country and in another six countries. Even the Indian art sold outside India is collected mainly by Indian expatriates in New York and London. The current boom in Chinese art is really based on only about six artists. I.S.: In my view, the Latvian market is very small from various aspects. About myself and my friends who collect contemporary art, I can say that we also look at Estonians, Lithuanians, Ukrainians. There are Latvians who go on shopping trips to Milan and London, and the same is happening with art buying. I see the market as regional. A.R.: It's good that you are taking an interest in Estonians, for example. However, at the moment in Latvia there is powerful and very interesting work by new artists - its value is based on a high degree of skill, along with a powerful concept: for example, the substantiality of the artists is expressed in figural painting. I believe that the time will come when they will be noticed in the world, because conditions continually keep changing. This is one of the reasons why Alma Gallery goes to art fairs. D.T.: One of the basic ideas in my book "The $12 Million Stuffed Shark" is that most buyers want reassurance before they purchase contemporary art, and one way of getting that is to buy an artist, or to use a dealer or an auction house with a name - a well-known brand. If you can say: "I bought this at the Maastricht Fair" or "from the Gagosian Gallery" or "at Sotheby's evening auction", all your friends will agree that it must be good art! The city where you bought the art is also a brand. Saying that you purchased the work in New York, London or Berlin adds prestige. "Studija": Why should the local well-heeled go elsewhere in search of art, and why should galleries demonstrate their standard by travelling to fairs - why not stay here and join in the creation of "homegrown" brands? Does the local contemporary art market need a leader - like Guntis Belēvičs is for classical art? M.L.: To be completely honest, over the next two years the chances of achieving noticeable growth in the contemporary art market are very small. Yes, the museum will help the process, but we also need to find people who will be interested in contemporary art to the same extent that can be seen in the example of Mr. Belēvičs in relation to classical art. Before coming to this discussion I spoke to some of the bank's clients: classical art is more to their taste, rather than con-temporary art. Belēvičs is a brand: as soon as he does something, everybody else takes note and says "aha!"... Possibly we need to start up auctions for contemporary art in order to stimulate interest. This is something worth considering for the next couple of years. A.R.: I've been thinking about contemporary art auctions. They need to be started up at the right time - and right now is not suitable because of the crisis. | |
 Don Thompson. Photo: Didzis Grodzs | |
| D.T.: What Māris pointed out is common behavior all over the world. For instance, for years it has been accepted that if David Rocke-feller is collecting art, then art collecting is worth doing! So you need well-known, recognized collectors who show an example like this. I.S.: To promote a market for local art, a gallery should try to build up cooperation with collectors who are primarily interested in Latvian contemporary art. I know that in Latvia there are some collectors like that. D.T.: In some countries there are large private collections that are made available for exhibitions, providing fifty to a hundred pieces. A prestigious international exhibition in Riga could also help to sell the idea of contemporary art as something desirable. And then against this background you could highlight local art, it would make things easier. A.R.: The process is under way. I am convinced that the number of contemporary art collectors will grow. I believe that we - collectors and gallery managers - need to combine forces, so that a serious con-temporary art market becomes a reality in Latvia. It will take time. "Studija": Ivo, please add an individual investor's perspective to this discussion! Playing a game of luck versus value creation - which strategy should you choose if you wish to combine art buying with investment? I.S.: Generally, art collectors are not investors in art. I agree with Don that art is not the best investment vehicle. There are different motivations for collecting. One type is a "real collector" who collects art like others collect postcards, stamps, antiques. Another group, which I belong to, consists of collectors who enjoy the process. They find out what's new, compare, and go on exploratory journeys in the world of art. They also involve their friends, sharing the experience and the emotions that you get from art, such as surprise and joy. Combining fun with profit-making is something that applies to collectors of the calibre of Saatchi. When a museum asks him to provide some works from his collection he adds the works of artists he wishes to promote. I would love to receive a request from a gallery asking me to provide pieces from my collection to exhibit. "Studija": If promotion is difficult for one collector on his own, would you think of teaming up with other collectors, or is it more rational to follow the trend set by a leading collector? I.S.: Normally collectors have a principal occupation so promotion is not the competence of the collector. From my experience, I can say that amongst my friends there are those who become art enthusiasts, however we don't have the time for promotion, moreover spending even more money. We are passive. This is the case with the majority of collectors. Galleries should be the ones taking a leading role. "Studija": Could private capital, if united with the capacity of galleries, encourage the market? I.S.: Firstly, we need to improve the circulation of information. There must be an improvement in the exchange and flow of information between the galleries and the collectors involved. At the moment the communication is not that successful. D.T.: In the age of the Internet the flow of information can be organized effectively enough. A.R.: One can agree with Ivo, and the Alma Gallery is continuing to work in this direction too. D.T.: How many institutions in Latvia are collecting art? A.R.: Not many. M.L.: I would venture to say that the Swedbank collection is the largest institutional collection in Latvia, and it includes both classical and contemporary art. The collection was developed in tandem with the bank's new office building project. There is a curator. I.S.: Swedbank has done a great deal, and it wouldn't be fair to ask for more from one institution. The bank has also been promoting its collection with the publication of a catalogue. M.L.: The presence of art certainly helps in everyday customer relationships. When people see art, the dialogue takes the right direction and the conversation goes more smoothly, is more open. A.R.: Art tells a lot about its owner. It gives information about taste, about wealth. Having an art collection offers prestige: people are aware of this, and little by little they start thinking. D.T.: What you probably need for the development of the contemporary market locally are, first of all, collectors, who set the standard, as well as exhibitions of collections. What Swedbank is doing is a great start. | |
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