Big mistake, HUGE

Plus books, reviews, and your questions answered [View in browser]( [Bloomberg]( Hi, I’m [James Tarmy](, Bloomberg’s arts columnist, and today I’d like to talk about the art professionals who cater to finance bros. These enterprising dealers/advisers/fractional ownership scheme-backers have done their best to adopt what they think is the appropriate lingo. Art, [they tell their clients](, is a “non-correlated asset,” which means that if the stock market tanks, their pretty paintings won’t. But where’s the data? (Finance types love data—why else would they spend so much time on Excel?) And so these art dealers point to 2008, when global equities flatlined. The art market, in contrast, took a brief hiatus, [then came roaring back](, faster and stronger than ever before. The hoped-for conclusion: art doesn’t lose value even when everything else does. There’s just one problem. Art doesn’t lose value in a downturn because people simply stop transacting. One of the largest van Gogh exhibitions ever has come to Detroit. Source: Detroit Institute of Arts No one has to sell art. Auction houses don’t have to accept what people offer (and often reject most of what they’re given). Dealers don’t have to take works on consignment. And collectors certainly don’t have to buy what people are trying to sell. So in a financial crisis, if auction houses are [fairly certain a work will bomb](, and dealers are fairly certain that no one will buy what you’d like to sell, and collectors don’t have the money to pay the price you think you’re owed, that painting is going to stay on your wall. ([Or in that hush-hush free port.]() The artist Barbara Kruger is having a market moment. Photographer: Chip East And so yes, if you bought an Andy Warhol silkscreen [for $15 million at the peak of the Warhol market]( in 2014, and then six years later no one is willing to help you sell it, technically it hasn’t lost its value. But that’s because no one is willing to put a price on it. The result is that many artworks sink without a trace. The few that don’t ([some art does appreciate](, after all) [enter the public record](, and then the art professionals that cater to finance bros can triumphantly point to numeric proof of a so-called “asset class” that [only goes up](. It’s survivorship bias at its most extreme. Inside the mayhem of Frieze London’s 2022 art fair. Photographer: David M. Benett/Getty Images Europe Keep this in mind as [European art fair October]( transitions into New York’s [mega-auctions]( in November. The multibillion dollar question is what impact ([if any]() catastrophic global uncertainty will have on rich peoples’ spending habits. A hint could be the volume of work that comes up for sale. It’s easy to look at the [biggest ticket items]( and assume that the art market is doing great; but you’ll be able to learn more about the health of your own “alternative assets” by looking at what’s not on offer, rather than what is. A painting by the super-in-demand French artist Pol Taburet had multiple museums fighting to buy it on the opening day of Art Basel’s new art fair in Paris. Source: Balice Hertling You can connect with James on [Twitter]( or via [e-mail](mailto:jtarmy@bloomberg.net). The season’s biggest art stories. [At Art Basel’s First Paris Fair, Great Expectations Meet Great Wealth]( Paris+ par Art Basel is either a sign the city has arrived … or is simply a very successful art fair. [What It’s Like Inside City, the Colossal Desert Artwork Thousands Want to See]( Only six people a day are allowed inside Michael Heizer’s 299-acre magnum opus. [At Frieze London, Huge Crowds Mask an Uncertain Art Market Outlook]( The long lines and busy aisles of the Regent’s Park art fair belied a paucity of blockbuster sales. [A 1,000-Piece Contemporary Art Collection Is Coming to Auction]( Acquired over decades by Sherry and Joel Mallin, the work will be sold by Sotheby’s over the course of several years. [Look Inside the $1 Billion Sale of Paul Allen’s Art Collection]( Works from the late Microsoft co-founder’s estate are being sold for charity. Books to help you understand the art market. In the same way that some fund managers still give new hires a copy of Fred Schwed’s 1940 [Where are the Customers’ Yachts?](, anyone interested in contemporary art should read a few of the classics. - [Duveen](by S.N. Berhman (1952) Joseph Duveen had a client list comprised of the richest people in the world. His strategy was simple: pay record amounts for art, and then charge his clients even more. The high prices were conflated with high value, though it all fell apart once he died. Sound like [anyone we know?](  - [The Sorcerer’s Apprentice]( by John Richardson (1999) Richardson, the extraordinarily charming [art historian]( and socialite who died in 2019, got his start as a much younger boyfriend to the prolific art collector, Douglas Cooper. Everyone seems to have agreed on two things: Cooper was unbearable, and also had an unimpeachable eye for great art. Through Cooper, Richardson met Picasso, Cocteau, and a glittering European circle that indoctrinated him into every facet of the art world and art market.   - [The Burdens of Wealth: Paul Getty and his Museum]( by Burton B. Fredericksen (2015) I cannot, for the life of me, understand why this juicy memoir had to be self-published. Fredericksen, deputy museum director of Getty’s museum while he was alive (Getty himself was the head of it), tells the story of the oil baron’s totally misguided acquisition practices. In short, he wouldn’t buy the best if he could buy the third-best at a discount. There’s tons of detail, gossip, and one-of-a-kind anecdotes, and anyone who’s interested in how museums are built and how money is wasted should read this cover to cover. We’ve been doing some fantastic reviews lately. [John Mack, Who Led Morgan Stanley Into a Crisis, Regrets Little]( [Superyacht Disaster Film Puts the Rich Through Hell, High Water]( [Ticket to Paradise: A ‘Meh’ Vacation Romp With Megawatt Stars]( [Hocus Pocus 2: The Witches Are Back, But the Magic Isn’t]( [TÁR: Cate Blanchett Takes on Cancel Culture]( [Bros: Gay Love Gets Its Hollywood Ending]( See these exhibitions now. - [Lucian Freud at the National Gallery in London]( A superb show filled with little-seen work in private collections, the show is the first serious Freud retrospective in a decade. It’s got the greatest hits, and then there’s exquisite deep cuts, like a gorgeous still life of buttercups in a sink. Until January 22  - [Barbara Chase-Riboud at the Serpentine in London]( Born in 1939, the Philadelphia-born Chase-Riboud lives and works in Paris, making sculptures that are often in a cascade of textiles and metal. The works have the raw visual power of the best kind of modernist sculpture, plus the nuance and conceptual underpinnings of provocative contemporary art. Until January 29  - [Wolfgang Tillmans at the MoMA in New York]( I like to think of Tillmans as the [Chloë Sevigny]( of the art world—a poster child of 1990s cool who somehow stayed relevant in the early 2000s, and who, if not exactly avant-garde today, is still a niche but significant cultural figure. This massive show has [divided opinion](, but regardless of your takeaway, you’ll be glad you went. Until January 1  - [Edvard Munch at the Musée d'Orsay in Paris]( At first you might be put off by Munch’s anguish, finding it a little adolescent: The girl doesn’t like you back? Society is pretty, but also ugly? There’s menace in beauty? Wow. But then you remember that in fact he nailed it—the world, as he painted it, was about to rip itself apart, and after that you can go back to enjoying his lovely portrayals of existential dread and despair. Until January 22  - [Rosa Bonheur, also at the Musée d’Orsay]( OK, this is maybe not the most *important* show on the calendar this fall, but it was definitely one of the most enjoyable I’ve seen in a while. Bonheur, a major artistic celebrity in her day, was famed for her animal portraits/genre paintings with animals in them. So, get ready for a lot of sympathetic cows, dogs, and horses. That said, if you’re in the d’Orsay, maybe don’t skip Manet’s [Olympia](to see it. Until January 15 You had some questions… So here’s some answers! Keep them coming for next week via our [Bloomberg Pursuits Instagram]( and [e-mail](mailto:askpursuits@bloomberg.net). Will the Paul Allen sale at Christie’s actually make $1 billion? Here’s what I know for sure. The art itself is top-notch. Allen had the taste and the money to buy the best of whatever field he was collecting in, and he collected in a lot of fields. Les Poseuses, Ensemble (Petite version) (1888) by Georges Seurat carries an estimate of $100 million. Source: Christies I also know that $1 billion is a lot of money.[There are six (six!) paintings priced at $75 million and above]( that are supposed to sell in quick succession; one of these is a Cezanne landscape that carries a presale estimate of $120 million. That’s a kind of rich that makes even billionaires feel poor. I also think it’s safe to assume that Christie’s is planning for the sale to exceed its $1 billion estimate, if only just because estimates don’t included auction house fees, but reported totals do. So tack on an extra $145 million to the total right off the bat. But the question stands: Can the market absorb this much super expensive material? My hunch is yes. You made the trek to see Michael Heizer’s City, but is it worth it for a civilian? For context, this question is referencing [a recent trip]( I took to a 299-acre piece of land art in the middle of the Nevada desert. The work is by the artist Michael Heizer, and has taken him about 50 years to create. Inside City, the monumental artwork by Michael Heizer. Photographer: Ben Blackwell I had a lot of fun. Aside from being pulled over for speeding (reader, you will be relieved to know I drove away with a warning), the trip was seamless. Getting the foundation that manages the artwork to let me go in the first place was slightly more convoluted. The people who handle visitors really want the public to come, but they’re also a small team. They’re trying to limit attendance to a handful of people a day, and literally thousands of people are trying to visit. Oh, also, it’s only open if the weather is nice. All of which is to say that if I was a “civilian,” as this Instagram follower self-describes, I wouldn’t have made it inside. Now that I have though, I cannot recommend it highly enough. It’s not as flashy as it looks in pictures, and it really requires a lot of walking to get a feel for the place. But once you do, it’s magical. Where do you go for art that’s off the beaten track? Great question. There are tons of small-ish museums that aren’t obvious destinations. If you’re in London, I suggest you visit the [Garden Museum]( (“celebrating British gardens and gardening”) which currently has an excellent, tiny show of Lucian Freud’s plant portraits. Large Interior, W11 (after Watteau) (1981-1983) by Lucian Freud is up for sale as part of the Allen collection at Christie’s, with an estimate of $75 million. Source: Christie’s If you’re in Paris, definitely go to [Musée Marmottan Monet](, which has a surprisingly good show dedicated to … the sun. You should see it, I’m serious. Another great exhibition in Paris right now is at the [Musée Carnavalet](, “Parisiennes Citoyennes” which has to do with female emancipation from 1789 to 2000. It’s mostly ephemera and it’s fairly dense, but it’s also fascinating and filled with incredible archival material. If you’re in New York, good luck. Honestly there’s no such thing as a museum that’s off the beaten track in New York, but the Morgan Library is kind of small and it currently has [a wonderful show]( featuring the original manuscript for The Little Prince so, definitely make sure to visit before it closes in February. Ask us anything! Each week we’re picking reader questions and putting it to our network of experts. So get in touch via AskPursuits@bloomberg.net. Follow Us Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Pursuits newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](