Is Art a good investment?

Is art a good investment?

Yes, indeed! Especially that kind of art that makes you wonder and inspires you to pause, because you can't get over it. That kind of art is a good investment.

Is art always a good investment financially?

Here things can get blurred!

Well, no! The law of the market pravails. 
Far from all art belongs to the catagory of investment friendly art. 

It is a fact that - annually - 3.000 professional painters and an unknown number of hobby artists produces art every day with an annual amount of 50 pieces, which makes it plausible that numbers of art pieces in total reach 200.000 annually. This is off course only in Denmark. This number includes paintings, sculptures, art photography, graphic editions and the like. 

Claiming that all pieces of art are potentially master pieces, that would be false. 

If taking a level-headedor cynical approach to this issue, we start with cutting of 80% off the works. Hobby artists and a fair amount of professional artists produce works that are pretty trivial. We have 40.000 works left which is fair to treat as art works of a good quality.   

Even 40.000 works can not be expected to match the status as investment friendly art. Roughly put, we keep cutting 80% off the amount of works landing on a reduced number of 8000 pieces of works. This number covers a decreased number of artists bringing very specific qualities with them throughout their carrier. 

At last we might probably cut down the amount of art works with 80% again. By that we reach an amount of 1.600 art works annually and with that a decreased number of artists corresponding with 30 contemporary Danish artists. 
It is within a pool of 30, that gold is found!

Basic premises for long term artistic success

What must we include in our discoveries in order to find pieces of art with the right qualities and preconditions?

More or less obvious factors are vital in order for the artist to succeed in becoming a good investment: 

1. Talent (20%)
   Without talent for creating art, it won't work. An extra layer must exist in the work of a great talent. 
2. Hard worker and technical skilled (determined 80%)
   The old myth about that the artist must seek motivation and inspiration at the café is not true. The opposite is true. The greatest artists work hard and with high intensity - every single day they are willing to equip for the needed techniques in allignment with the artistic direction and expression. For a comparison, it takes a lot of practice in daily life for a violinist to perform during a concert. Not only the violinist must be outstanding, but the execution itself must have a quality which is personal and artistic.  
3. Personality - as in expression and in the medium.
   A star can always be recognized for the unique expression. It is actually the very first thing which the artist gets famous for. If an artist despite all look alike other artists in content and choice of medium, it will most likely end up as being ordinary art. In general it does not work only trying to keep up within arts, however new tendencies can ignite new ways of thinking and execution of new interpretations and formations of new directions. 
4. It helps a lot if one can feel the artist as being a part of society. If the artist has a clear mission with the art, the artist stands out from the artistic crowd, and that points in the direction of a great artistic carrier. 
5. It is crucial for the artist to have connection to a reputable gallery which in a professional manor can marketing the artist through exhibitions, art fairs, being a mentor and take care for practicalities around communicating about the artist and the art works. The talented gallerist is on the same time skilled at spotting a promising artist by the above mentioned premises while having the ability to communicate about the artist and the works to a art interested audience.  
6. Despite of that it can be good to listen to "judges of taste" - these being art collectors, curators, press, art institutions and museums, which for a shorter or longer amount of time like to invest in art with personality. 

Facts:

Some of us seek out the next good investment. This takes insight, gut feeling, timing, luck and patience, because investments may only turn out as giving a pay-off 30-40 years later - who has time to wait for that? 

As an example Rembrandt was the greatest and best paid artist in Holland when he was halfway in his carrier. However, the interest for his work decreased by the end of his carrier, and the prices declined. "The Nightwatch" (1642) which is an art work that the Rijks museum is based upon, was at the year of 1715 significantly cropped as well as changed to fit the walls of the town hall. It was hanging there until 1885 until it was finally acknowledged as one of the worlds greatest master pieces. It can be claimed that this is grotesque but it is no matter a fact. Luckily it is protected at this point in time, so that the next generations can enjoy the master piece. 

With that said, it is also a fact that when considering a piece of art, we think about the decorative element.

It is rarely seen that the most negative, cruel, anxious, provocative, religious or political art works reaches stardom - even though it is not impossible. 

When economy is tight, art does not sell the most. It can come to a point where artists makes works which is adjusted to meet the demand. By doing this there is a huge potential that the artist will become deluted and diminish over time. On the other hand there is a potential of making "good" investment deals in hard times, because the prices of art most likely stabilize until the economic storm has subsided. 

Luckily we meet exceptions on all levels. And if one can find works made by technical skilled artists, who are magnificent performers and who can adjust as well as differ from the time we live in and although adding some inner beauty; then one has landed in a good place when searching for a good investment.

Allegation

Now, my allegation is that the consequence of above mentioned reasons, with the huge sum of art being made, the majority of art might not be a good investment financially. Despite that, art in all shades can be enjoyed and lived for with great passion by each individual. 

But should one decrease the risk of spending money on relatively worthless art, one can seek out a good advice at the best Danish galleries in order to find valuable art. Here there is a high level of security. Looking ahead, only time can show whether it was a good investment financially. 

In the meantime, you should decorate your home and your work environment with art in a style that gifts you with the most vitamines artistically, so you stay fascinated - day by day - year after year. 

Thorkild NB Nielsen

Galleri NB