Kobel's Art Weekly

Kobel's Art Weekly 46 2024

Art Cologne doesn't let anything throw it off course that easily, notes Christof Habres for Parnass: “How strongly were the US election results and the simultaneous collapse of the German traffic light coalition felt on opening day? Did it have an immediate impact on sentiment and sales? It would be an exaggeration to speak of a generally relaxed mood. But there were no signs of an inferior hangover either. It was more of a ‘business as usual’ in a difficult market environment.”

Georg Imdahl experienced a solid edition of the German market leader for the FAZ on 9 November: “Its director Daniel Hug does not currently see any effects of the American election and the German government crisis on the Cologne art fair, but no one would contradict the assessment of a Rhenish collector and financial expert that the buying mood - in principle in a 'boom-bass’ cycle - is currently to be classified as ‘in minor key’. Glamour may be the buzzword at other fairs, but Art Cologne aims to score points as the industry leader in Germany by being reliable within the scope of its possibilities. [...] Art Cologne is increasingly focusing on younger galleries, which is also noticeable in terms of numbers this time with 170 exhibitors from 24 countries in the ‘Neumarkt’ and ‘New Positions’ segments in Hall 11.2.”

Alexandra Wach Christiane Meixner recalls the tradition of the fair in the Tagesspiegel: “With so much nostalgia, one cannot help but think of the glory days of the longest-running modern and contemporary art fair in the eighties: an era that had yet to contend with global competition. However, as the leading art fair of the German art trade, Art Cologne continues to be indispensable and is defending its position with reliable quality, even if internationally renowned participants such as Hauser & Wirth or David Zwirner are once again absent.”

Kate Brown emphasises the strength of the marketplace at Artnet: “In spite of what has been a difficult few quarters, galleries, including Fuchs, were having positive experiences at Art Cologne, which saw a reliable turnout of Rhineland buyers, a consortium of collectors who have a strong and often intergenerational relationship with art.”

Christian Fricke draws an almost defamatory comparison in the Handelsblatt: “Whether this money is spent in Cologne, of all places, is open to doubt. Over the last decade, Art Cologne has become a regional fair. Unlike at the ‘Arco’ in Madrid, for example, English is only heard here in exceptional cases. Even when a cheerful Silvia Baltschun, director of the Sprüth Magers Gallery, spotted an American couple and a Roman collector. But Germany needs this regional fair. It is still the most important one for contemporary art and modernism, alongside Art Karlsruhe. And it is a showcase for the local trade. ‘We live in extremely difficult times,’ says Cologne gallery owner Anke Schmidt, deputy chair of the German Galleries and Art Dealers Association (BVDG). Never before have her colleagues had to make such an effort ‘to keep their galleries running’.”

Helga Meister's report for the Rheinische Post hard to comprehend on several levels: “Unaffected by political turbulence, Messe boss Daniel Hug is relying on the tried and tested with classics in Hall 11/1 and younger ones in Hall 11/2. There are promotional booths, which are rather weak except for Tomas Kleiner's, and collaborations between dealers sharing a stand. As always, nail artist Günther Uecker is a favourite. His 1967 self-portrait over-nailed with nails, priced at 680,000 euros, is considered by gallery owner Schwarzer to be ‘the best of the best’. The cooperating dealers Anders at QG from Brussels and Eduard Simoens from Knokke are sharing a nail picture from 2005 and want to get a whopping 1.65 million euros for it. That would be a price increase of 25 per cent.” Why and how a trade fair could or should address political developments of the last two days in its architecture or selection remains just as unexplained as the claim of a price increase from an unspecified starting level. And who are the “dealers Anders at QG from Brussels”? A minimum of editing would be appropriate even for a regional quasi-monopolist.

Boris Pofalla and Marcus Woeller also devote themselves to the young offer of the fair in the WeLT: “Young artists, young galleries, young collectors. The cult of youth in the art trade is expressed at almost every contemporary art fair with a separate section. Here, more or less highlighted, galleries that are not yet well established can present their usually also younger artistic positions, at reduced rates. [...] At Germany's oldest and most important art fair, Art Cologne, the section is called ‘Neumarkt’ in Cologne dialect. At the art fair, the section for galleries that are no older than 13 years is becoming increasingly popular. This may also be due to the lower rental prices: a square metre of exhibition space at the ‘Neumarkt’ costs 283 euros, compared to the 450 euros that galleries pay for a regular space. It was difficult to decide among the many applications, so they expanded the space, says fair director Daniel Hug.”

I was in Cologne for Artmagazine.

Freddy Langer visited the Paris Photo at the Grand Palais for the FAZ: “Downstairs, however, in the corridors, the arrangement turns into the confusion of a bazaar, which gets fuller with every hour of the day until it can only be navigated by pushing and shoving towards evening. The 195 galleries for the 1328 artists presented have come up with some unusual wall displays to ensure that the eye is drawn to their pictures. The sometimes sacred-looking presentations on the outer walls, on the other hand, ensure that the top works at the fair are not overlooked.” Aurélie Tanaqui summarises the fair in the Handelsblatt: “The traditional fair with 240 exhibitors from 34 countries invites collectors, museums, but also a large audience of amateurs. It is taking place at the Grand Palais until 10 November. This year, the well-known sectors will be resumed, but with a much richer programme, be it in the Principal, Editions, Prismes, Emergence or Digital sections. New to the 2024 edition is the Voices sector. Three international curators have chosen topics that concern them. Elena Navarro: Central and South America; Azu Nwagbogu: stock photos and the Latin American scene. Sonia Voss focused on Lithuania. In the main sector, 147 international galleries presented themselves in 32 solo shows, 19 duo shows, 88 group exhibitions and seven prism projects.”

Maragaret Carrigan the Paris fair is an opporutnity for a general market review at Artnet: “In the lower- and mid-market range, prices have remained fairly stable. That doesn't mean the photo sector has been immune from the recent downturn, but it has suffered less. Artnet's data shows that photography sales at auction are down just over 10 percent so far this year compared to last year. In contrast, there was a nearly 30 percent drop in art sales at auction in the first half of 2024 versus the same period in 2023. What has grown, according to Bourgeois as well as many dealers, is institutional interest in photography, especially for lesser known or historically marginalised artists, mirroring a larger trend within the art market.’

Art Basel is said to be planning to buy a daughter in Arabia, according to Daniel Cassady at Artnews: “That could soon change, if the rumours swirling in the art world are true. Numerous sources based in the US, Europe, and the Middle East told ARTnews that Art Basel is deep in negotiations to take over Abu Dhabi Art. The rough contours of the rumoured deal would see Art Basel receive a $20 million investment in exchange for operating the Abu Dhabi fair. [...] One source familiar with the deal told ARTnews that there's a lot of pressure within MCH for Art Basel's CEO Noah Horowitz to deliver big deals that could ease the financial pressure on the company.” This sounds like a similar model to that of Art Basel Cities, in which a city initially paid the Swiss to help it find sponsors.

Yemen's accession to the UN Convention against the illicit traffic in cultural artefacts is reported by Karen K. Ho at Artnews: “On October 7, the Republic of Yemen acceded to the UNIDROIT Convention, along with the compulsory declarations. The UNIDROIT Convention seeks to fight the illegal sale and purchase of cultural property by encouraging buyers to do their due diligence during the acquisition process. The country will now adopt mechanisms that facilitate the protection, claim, repatriation, and return of stolen and illegally exported cultural objects. The treaty will enter into effect for Yemen on next year on April 1.”

The auction of the first portrait of computer pioneer Alan Turing painted by an AI robot at Sotheby's made the news on German TV channel Tagesschau, where it was reported to have sold for the equivalent of €1.2 million.