Title: 100 Secrets of the Art World Everything you always wanted to know about the arts but were afraid to ask
Author: Magnus Resch
Year: 2016
Back cover text:
What do major artists consider their best kept secret? What is regarded as confidential knowledge among the key players of the global art market?
In 100 Secrets of the Art World the most powerful international individuals share their insights with you. This indispensable guide to contemporary art contains exclusive anecdotes, advice and personal stories from artists, museum directors, gallerists, auction house insiders, collectors, and many more. Contributors include Jeff Koons, Zaha Hadid, Marina Abramovic, Olafur Eliasson and John Baldessari, as well as the directors and curators from the Centre Pompidou, the Guggenheim, the Metropolitan Museum, the Tate Modern and the Nationalgalerie. Thoughtful and sometimes critical entries make this informative publication an entertaining read for anyone interested in contemporary art.
My Review
Stars (1/5):
Writing:
Very entertaining and visual. Every night before going to sleep I just wanted to read a few secrets. However kept on reading. Lovely.
Does the book deliver (its title)?:
Yes.
Biggest take away/s:
- In reality, to experience art is to inhale society. To explore yourself, dream, and social relations.
- Juxtaposed extremities.
- In an ensconced way, art can be the expression of an often eccentric, offbeat, enlightened, and precious state of mind.
- Art is an object in space.
- Stop fetishizing and possessing art turn art into real and singular experiences.
- Value credibility.
- The intention of the collector has little to do with the quality of the artwork.
- Art is more present, more relevant, more valuable culturally and monetary right now than at any point in human history.
- In general, art is intrinsically pretty worthless (canvas and paint don’t cost much)
- By a successful art career, I do not mean making money but making work.
- The days of bargain hunts are gone.
- I try to create a moment of something >>off<< in every image.
- Whatever reason brings people into the art world, it is for a good reason. Art has a wonderful capacity for surviving everything, including speculators, snobs, and true aesthetes.
- Ask the art handlers because they can predict if a work is going to sell or not.
- We love art, but we don’t know exactly where this love is coming from.
- Duchamp was fighting a system that rewards some and ignores others.
- The art world is a bio-economy.
- Art gossip sites such as artforum.com
- Connecting people is a lost art.
- The art world now is a cultural industry.
- Andy Warhol explained that paintings are like stock and a dealer is like a broker. Art is an investment.
- You have the power to own it.
- Women are still second-rate citizens. Big institutions are led by only 24%. These women make 29% less than their male peers. While 60% of art school graduates are women, only 31% are represented by commercial galleries.
- Leave the darkness and enter the light.
- An art gallery is one of the nicest places to spend your time when you want to escape or be on your own.
Points of Improvement or Discussion:
Perhaps have more female contributors. Now they are about 35% of all contributors.
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