After the recent post war and contemporary sales at Christies the auction house posted an interview on its website with Francis Outred, the international director of post war and contemporary art. Keep in mind this is a promotional interview developed for Christie's website, and that it is most likely published in order to encourage consignments, especially of quality property and art. Even so, there certainly are interesting comments to be gained from reading the full interview. Just keep in mind the purpose of the interview.Within the "in-house"interview Outred states Looking back at the first six months of the year, the general trend is that the volumes are lower than they have been in the past two years, but that sold rates are consistent if not higher, and we are still seeing strong prices. This signifies a healthy and active market. Some artists have seen the price of their works soften compared to the last two years, but any movement is very small in the context of the general rise in value and interest of this category over the last decade. As the year has passed, collectors have found more clarity with regards to their own financial situation and they have become more willing to re-engage in the market. The international sales have also seen a number of completely new buyers engaging in the market, adding to a deepening, global pool of collectors.
When asked What are you expecting for the second half of the year? Outred responded It is difficult to predict as so much depends on the art that we are offering at our auctions but certainly consignors are approaching us with a renewed confidence having seen six months of consistently healthy results, and we are seeing a deep, continuous demand in the market. In the next six months, we look forward to auctions in London during Frieze Week in October, in New York, Milan and Amsterdam in November and in Paris in December, and these will give us further transparency with regards the market.
To read the full interview, click HERE.
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