Archive for January, 2010

And never the twain shall meet…Investors and collectors»

Investors and collectors are different species. Which one of these are you?

For some time they had become interchangeable, the collector and investor in art, but as the market fragmented (when it was expected to consolidate), their domains have become exclusive of each other. The current environment is seen as buoyant for the collector as good quality works have returned to the market. For the investor, though, things look just a little grim, particularly since Forbes India’s damaging story on an art fund by Osian’s head Neville Tuli, it turns out, was artificially inflated before it bombed.

Here, then, are the differences between a collector and an investor. Read it with a pinch of salt.

COLLECTOR

# Is interested in particular works by an artist, or specific works of art.

# Would prefer the value of collected art to increase.

# Should the value of a painting or an artist move up, it’s fortuitous, a talking point in a group.

# Collecting is focused purely or loosely on a genre, period, medium, theme or specific artist(s).

# May occasionally sell works to enhance the perceived or academic value of a collection, or to turn around ill-chosen works.
# The collector is a constant visitor at galleries, artists’ openings, art fairs, talks and seminars.

# Collectors come as couples, are often women and only sometimes men. Institutions collect as well.

# Will invariably talk about art on social occasions — it’s a passion.

# Will likely beg, borrow or steal to buy a work they especially like.

# Collateral? “Well, I have this house…”

# If investments in art don’t rise, you won’t be entirely unhappy — there’s the art, at least, that you’d rather have.

# Unlikely to invest in an art fund: “I’d rather have the art.”

# Most likely to say: “Wow! That’s a treat. How much will it cost me?”

# Least likely to say: “I have too much art, I must get rid of some of it.”

# Will you look at that Souza!”

INVESTOR
# Has little or no interest in either an artist or specific works of art.

# Would definitely want the value of art in which he is invested to increase.

# The value of art must definitely move up, but it’s hardly a talking point.

# Collecting is driven purely by an index that factors in hedging of risks.

# Will definitely sell works as soon as the value is realised, as per a chalked-out strategy.

# The investor is rarely sighted at art events other than at talkathons about investment and value.

# Investors are more likely to be men (and sometimes women) from the financial world. Prefer institutional investing.

# Will never talk about art on social occasions — it’s just an investment.

# Will likely organise institutional funding for any purchase.

# The collateral is the art.

# If investments don’t rise, you’ll be anxious – owning the art is poor consolation and a reminder of your failure.

# Likely to invest in an art fund: “provided there is a guarantee of at least the principal and interest”.

# Most likely to say: “I don’t care who painted it, tell me how much it will fetch me three years from now.”

# Least likely to say: “I have too much money, I could buy art with some of it.”

# “Souza who?”

26
Jan

Diverse styles, unique expressions

   Posted by: admin    in Art News Updates

There hasn’t been anything of its sort in Chennai in nearly three decades. National Art Week, which concludes today, saw senior Indian  artists from across the country come together and four iconic cultural institutions — Lalit Kala Akademi, Kalakshetra, Cholamandal Artists’ Village and DakshinaChitra — join hands in a unique celebration of art.

“It was an attempt by the Lalit Kala Akademi to unite the different cultural and art institutions in the city,” said Rm. Palaniappan, regional secretary of the Lalit Kala Akademi. “Generally, we all tend to function separately, but this time everyone accepted the proposal without hesitation.”

From January 18 onwards, camps in print-making, sculpture, painting and ceramics were conducted at the four institutions, with the artists of each visiting one another at the different locations and interacting with young, up-and-coming artistes of the city as well.

“Most of us work in the isolation of our studios, so this sort of opportunity to interact not only with artists in our own field but from others too was fantastic,” says Manisha Bhattacharya from New Delhi, who participated in the ceramic camp at Lalit Kala. “To suddenly be part of camps with artists I had grown up idolising, such as K. Laxma Goud or Dakshinamoorthy, was an honour.”

For Akhilesh, the renowned indian  painter from Bhopal, it was almost like an “exchange programme.” “It was a chance to see, discuss our personal ways of looking at art, and learn from the way others work,” says the senior artist who was part of the painting camp conducted at DakshinaChitra. “I was particularly keen to look at the work of young artists in the city, and visited the group at Lalit Kala. What was interesting was the independence of their identity and the diversity of their expression, in spite of working together.”

This year also saw the Lalit Kala Akademi’s private collection of artworks from five years of camps and workshops in the region on display at their premises. The exhibition, concluding today, features a gorgeous collection of paintings, ceramics, sculptures and graphics in a variety of styles reflective of different regional schools and the artists’ own personal visions. A brilliant mix of colours, textures and media, this collection truly serves as a compendium of creativity for the region.

Looking ahead, Lalit Kala Akademi hopes to make National Art Week an annual event, not only in Chennai but in other cities as well, as a nationwide celebration of art and creativity. “In addition, we want to extend the format to include the city’s art galleries and the corporations that support art, and add symposiums, curated exhibitions and retrospectives of senior artists to the roster of events,” says Palaniappan.27MPART2_27678f