Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South
For the last two decades, the international auction houses Sotheby’s and Christie’s have been at the forefront of global art market expansion. Their world-wide footprints have enabled auction house specialists to engage with emerging artists and aspiring collectors, most notably in the developing ec...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-10-01
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| Series: | Arts |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/9/4/106 |
| _version_ | 1797550624070434816 |
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| author | Anita Archer |
| author_facet | Anita Archer |
| author_sort | Anita Archer |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | For the last two decades, the international auction houses Sotheby’s and Christie’s have been at the forefront of global art market expansion. Their world-wide footprints have enabled auction house specialists to engage with emerging artists and aspiring collectors, most notably in the developing economies of the Global South. By establishing their sales infrastructure in new locales ahead of the traditional mechanisms of primary market commercial galleries, the international auction houses have played a foundational role in the notional construction of new genres of art. However, branding alone is not sufficient to establish these new markets; the auction houses require a network of willing supporters to facilitate and drive marketplace supply and demand, be that trans-locational art market intermediaries, local governments, and/or regional auction businesses. This paper examines emerging art auction markets in three Global South case studies. It elucidates the strategic mechanisms and networks of international and regional art auction houses in the development of specific genres of contemporary art: Hong Kong and ‘Chinese contemporary art’, Singapore and ‘Southeast Asian art’, and Australia and ‘Aboriginal art’. Through examination and comparison of these three markets, this paper draws on research conducted over the past decade to reveal an integral role played by art auctions in the expansion of broader contemporary art world infrastructure in the Global South. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:32:56Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-defd6b62b17e4ecebcd8866fe05ae38a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-0752 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T15:32:56Z |
| publishDate | 2020-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Arts |
| spelling | doaj.art-defd6b62b17e4ecebcd8866fe05ae38a2023-11-20T17:32:59ZengMDPI AGArts2076-07522020-10-019410610.3390/arts9040106Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global SouthAnita Archer0Faculty of Arts, University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC 3010, AustraliaFor the last two decades, the international auction houses Sotheby’s and Christie’s have been at the forefront of global art market expansion. Their world-wide footprints have enabled auction house specialists to engage with emerging artists and aspiring collectors, most notably in the developing economies of the Global South. By establishing their sales infrastructure in new locales ahead of the traditional mechanisms of primary market commercial galleries, the international auction houses have played a foundational role in the notional construction of new genres of art. However, branding alone is not sufficient to establish these new markets; the auction houses require a network of willing supporters to facilitate and drive marketplace supply and demand, be that trans-locational art market intermediaries, local governments, and/or regional auction businesses. This paper examines emerging art auction markets in three Global South case studies. It elucidates the strategic mechanisms and networks of international and regional art auction houses in the development of specific genres of contemporary art: Hong Kong and ‘Chinese contemporary art’, Singapore and ‘Southeast Asian art’, and Australia and ‘Aboriginal art’. Through examination and comparison of these three markets, this paper draws on research conducted over the past decade to reveal an integral role played by art auctions in the expansion of broader contemporary art world infrastructure in the Global South.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/9/4/106art marketGlobal SouthauctionHong KongSingaporeaboriginal art |
| spellingShingle | Anita Archer Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South Arts art market Global South auction Hong Kong Singapore aboriginal art |
| title | Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South |
| title_full | Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South |
| title_fullStr | Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South |
| title_full_unstemmed | Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South |
| title_short | Materialising Markets: The Agency of Auctions in Emergent Art Genres in the Global South |
| title_sort | materialising markets the agency of auctions in emergent art genres in the global south |
| topic | art market Global South auction Hong Kong Singapore aboriginal art |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0752/9/4/106 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT anitaarcher materialisingmarketstheagencyofauctionsinemergentartgenresintheglobalsouth |