Zilkens' News Blog

Zilkens' News Blog 31 2025

At the end of July, Europe is at least at the height of its summer sluggishness. There are hardly any exhibition openings left. Those intended to attract tourists opened long ago. Galleries often close for at least 14 days to enjoy the summer and use the time to recover from near-sales. Strength is needed in these times, when economic disruptions are no longer passing by the art market unscathed.

After a round of golf on his home turf in Scotland, the wild man in Washington has agreed on tariffs with the EU Commission. Steel and aluminium from Europe will remain subject to a 50% surcharge. This will make it difficult to compete with Indian and Chinese suppliers, who generally offer poorer quality. The rest will be subject to a 15% surcharge, and there is also an obligation to purchase billions worth of energy and arms from the USA. What does Europe get in return? Nothing! Not even a promise that it will now be possible to plan for a year on this basis. The imagery from Scotland was equally devastating: one standing with legs apart, vulgar and ranting, the other demure, legs closed, sitting on the edge of her chair. Merkel's legacy in Europe.

In search of topics, I visited my new acquaintance from ChatGPT again: ‘If you like, I can also write a condensed, critical blog post – in Zilkens' style, focusing on one or more of these topics. Just let me know 😊’ But I didn't let her know; instead, I'm happily writing it myself.

The ranks of German and Austrian galleries participating in Art Basel in Miami are shrinking significantly. Some fairs are taking a break, and one wonders how the artists will cope with this phase. Those who have galleries can hope that good gallery work will ensure that their works find their way into collections – public and private.

It's astonishing that no compliance- and EU-tender-obsessed administrative hack (apparently there are female versions of these now) has yet come up with the idea that museum acquisitions must be put out to tender because the price exceeds x. Just imagine that and apply it to a city that is making a name for itself worldwide due to the exponential increase in the number of administrative staff and a simultaneous reduction in efficiency by a factor of x, because it no longer wants playgrounds, but play and adventure areas, because this is supposedly less discriminatory and prevents teenagers from taking buckets away from toddlers. So the competence lies in a central office! One wonders what kind of competence, but the main thing is that it's in a central office. – The museums in Cologne are currently going through a painful experience because they dared to bypass the central building management department to repair broken windows and other minor problems. This in turn upsets the audit office because the city's rules stipulate otherwise. However, the rules do not seem reasonable, let alone citizen-oriented, let alone bureaucracy-free. Imagine, then, that such a central office is now responsible for the acquisition of important items for museum collections. The museum management and all museum staff have determined that a very specific group of works or a key work by a particular artist is missing. There is only one of these items. Regardless, it is put out to tender by an agency with no expertise in the field: the result is a merry-go-round of trading, because the whole thing becomes public and no one has anything to give away. A rapid change of ownership may be organised across borders, which can lead to a massive increase in the price of the object. It is perhaps better to leave the purchasing to the experts in the museums – even if they rarely follow market developments in detail.

A large group of figures by Jaume Plensa has just been erected in the centre of Salzburg, symbolising the five continents, among other things. In Haus Mödrath in Kerpen near Cologne, a selection of works by Friedrich Kunath is being shown alongside Walter Dahn, and the next exhibition opens on 1 August at the Vialla Minima in Cologne.

The last issue also mentioned a new information service from Weltkunst. Unfortunately, I got the name wrong – the correct name is ‘Weltkunst Insider’. We apologise for the mistake.

Recently, there has been an increase in damage to works of art by visitors to museums. Somehow, it seems that education in respect and consideration is declining.

The Museum of East Asian Art in Stockholm is closed for renovation – probably until 2026 – but its collections can be viewed online. They are not as good as the originals, but at least they are available. The museum of the same name in Cologne is open, but not many people visit it, even though it is the only independent museum of its kind in Germany – and, with the exception of a few highlights, its collections cannot be found online.

Last but not least, an association with the unwieldy name ‘Support Artists in Exile Cologne e.V.’ will be founded in Cologne in the coming weeks. Its goal is to provide artists who cannot live and work in their home countries with a three-month studio scholarship, which will culminate in an exhibition. The association will cover the costs of the studio, exhibition and materials. We support the project and would be delighted to hear from anyone who would like to help us implement it as a member of the association. Please contact me directly at zilkens@zilkensfineart.com. A high-calibre jury will select the recipients of the scholarship.

We hope you have a wonderful week and enjoy the summer weather.

Stephan Zilkens and the team at Zilkens Fine Art Insurance Broker GmbH in Solothurn and Cologne