
IT’S not all bad news as the financial markets totter; prices for contemporary ‘art’ are in freefall, sales over the weekend reached about half of the estimates, according to Bloomberg, and Andy Warhol’s grinning skulls sum up the plight of those idiots, sorry, artistic patrons, who bought into the delusion…
Posted: 20th, October 2008 | In: Twitterings Comments (11) | Follow the Comments on our RSS feed: RSS 2.0 | TrackBack | Permalink
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October 20th, 2008 at 9:36 pm
I’m with you all of the way on the Turner prize, but I suspect that there is going to be a massive collapse in the prices; much further than the 50% or so over the weekend.
Push comes to shove, many the purchases have been funded by credit, and the cost of servicing that credit is likely to soar as people realise that the collateral itself isn’t worth anything like the sum borrowed.
A bit like margin calls but nastier…
October 20th, 2008 at 9:30 pm
‘He’s known to pack a lot of turkeys into his art storage depot, but that could just be for Nigella’
It woz Nigella wot started the fire! She wanted them well done for a massive banquet she had arranged but forgot to call the fire brigade in time. Such is life….
October 20th, 2008 at 9:20 pm
The problem with having it on display is that people might start looking at it, and the more they look the more they might realise it’s not werf bovring wiv, innit? The exact opposite is the case with a great painting by Turner, whose name is dragged through the dirt every year to satisfy the whims of our cultural overlords. Of course, culture died in Britain on the first day of Big Brother anyway…..
October 20th, 2008 at 9:10 pm
Banksy presumably moves in a mysterious way, though not nearly as mysterious as the appeal of one of Emin’s tents or a pickled shark.
And if Saatchi really was that devoted to the art he bought, why have masses of the stuff in a warehouse somewhere?
Why not have it on display in his homes and gallery?
October 20th, 2008 at 9:05 pm
I just realised it could all be a great conspiracy by Banksy…quite what for, nobody knows…..
October 20th, 2008 at 9:00 pm
And why stop there?
Clearly Mr Micawber failed to get his message across on the income and expenditure front…
October 20th, 2008 at 8:56 pm
It would be great if we could blame Saatchi and Tracy Emin for the credit fiasco. Actually, I’d just like to blame Harry Potter, annoying bastard…..
October 20th, 2008 at 8:22 pm
Nobody’s books sell well enough to feed his craving…
I suspect the gallery owners and auctioneers who have made a bomb out of the modern art racket are completely freaked.
It would be interesting to know just how many sales have been made with associated financing; buy this painting, shark in a tank, tent, whatever and we’ll lend you the money to do so.
I think I need to do some research on that one…
October 20th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
He’s known to pack a lot of turkeys into his art storage depot, but that could just be for Nigella. I suppose it wouldn’t matter if he became penniless, since her books sell so well.
October 20th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
Loaded with what?
October 20th, 2008 at 7:43 pm
‘who bought into the delusion’
As long as Saatchi stays loaded we can’t say it’s good news…..