So, it appears that the art world is hot. So what? This is the type of news that really isn’t news and yet is “totally” the news.
I’m not even sure how “selling” art even became a respectable practice. It seems to run contrary to the whole “artistic” notion.
Someone creates something, and it’s a piece of their soul, or their experience, and then, they sell it… I don’t completely get it. It seems a bit strange that the main factor in, who would get it, is who is willing to pay the price.
Back in the day, it used to be hard to get some Native-Americans, or indigenous folks to even pose for a photo. The idea being, that a piece of you, perhaps even your soul would be caught. Wouldn’t the same be the case for something you crafted with your hands, mind, heart, etc? Or at least enough of you that you would want to rely on more than just market forces to separate the artist from their creation. I don’t know. But when I read the headline about the art world further distancing itself from reality, I was a bit torn and unsure how this recent irrational run up in art prices could be understood for what it was saying about our society, or world as a whole.
On one side, you would have to think that there are a lot more worthy investments, with social value where these funds can be spent. On the other hand, I like the idea that these millionaires and billionaires are buying essentially nothing with their money, rather than investing in more world-destroying businesses, or more harmful pursuits.
But still, one has to wonder, what could be the possible maximum value of some canvas, wood and pigment? Perhaps $10? The fact that someone would spend $40,000,000 on something worth $10 perhaps means that some type of formula for actual value, vs. paid value could be deduced which could then be used as a part of an overall “divorced-from-reality measure”… I don’t know, but it seems possible that such information could be useful and that once we cross some set threshold, say, $2,000,000,000 for something worth $10, and the factor of actual vs. paid worth exceeds 200,000,000:1, we could assuredly say, we have officially proven that life is truly an irrational dream… at least for those that understand the economics of such a purchase…
In several elements in today’s society, human irrationality has reached a zenith of absurdity which seems to indicate a new pressure point can now be palpated from which we may track post-modern cognitive frailty. Granted, it's difficult to draw vast parallels to society at large based upon the irrational exuberance of a few dozen individuals; however, I believe we live in a world where everything means something... especially when it warrants front page attention and sums of money that could solve a great many social ills.
Certainly we cannot separate ourselves completely from these individuals who engage in such practices. They are humans, not at all unlike us. What it really shows is that a human who is elevated so far beyond rationality by a complete and total absorption in a token economy, is capable of any type of extreme act. Whether that individual is “we” or someone else.
The thesis is that anyone could fall victim to this psychological deficit if they become too far removed from reality and the essential meaning of life, and the subsequent pursuit of sustenance, shelter, love, security and propagation of either ideas, or life itself.
The evidence? This year an Andy Warhol painting sold for more than $71 million. A Matisse sold for $33.6 million and a limestone lion (the guennol lioness) sculpture that measures 3 1/4” sold for $57 million.
One of the reasons cited for the “strength” of the art market is rising “global wealth”, which is another way of saying that folks in China, India, Russia and Africa are now raising their appendages, not quite so sheepishly at Sotheby's and Christie's, instead of Ebay and Overstock.com. For this, we can thank the same global factors that extend back 400 years.
Starting with the colonization of the world by the world powers, to this day, the emulation of European society has continued unabated. Undoubtedly aristocracy, nobility, royalty, has existed in some form in all of the worlds cultures, but the standard, the benchmark, the hallmark of the most rarified forms of abstracted engagement in trade and commodities, has always rested in European and Middle Eastern/Asian society. The values taught by these cultures and their dogma keepers (universities) have continued to set the rules, certify individuals as well as mold and shape the opinions of the rising third world upper crust, into hybrid hunters and gatherers of a new clique-ish sort.
These new rich world groups have proven themselves to be all too eager to purchase the false gods from their masters. They perhaps read a bit too much into the fine print of their art appreciation text books. Or perhaps had a few too many glasses of champagne at some penthouse soiree's. But from my view, admittedly from far, far below, it appears that they seem to think they can purchase status, prestige and legitimacy through these investments. Perhaps the strangest thing is, that within the groups they circulate, it is absolutely true that status, prestige and legitimacy can be purchased. Such intangible elements have been on sale for the past (aforementioned) 400 years, if you believe what has been taught in school, and continually re-freshed in all forms of media.
It’s but another humbling development in the evolution of our wonderful world.
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