Matthew Slotover was interviewed by Reuters to preview the coming Frieze Fair in London two weeks from now. Reuters tries to gin up a little worry by connecting today’s crisis in Europe to the fair’s performance in the shell-shocked days after Lehman Brothers collapsed but Slotover wasn’t taking the bait. He says the fair seems stronger and might be the “highest quality fair ever:”
“The number of solo stands at fairs is often a bellwether because you have to think in advance to do those. Because we’ve got more of those than ever before, it’s a sign that people are taking it more and more seriously.”
In terms of business, Slotover said the art market tended to lag behind stocks and bonds, meaning most of the work on Frieze 2011 was done long before recent market volatility. “It (art) is something tangible and real, and in an age where people are losing faith in paper money, in currencies and in equities, it’s one of those assets that people feel, well, at least I’ve got this actual thing.” He said unlike stocks and property people do not tend to borrow money to buy art. “If you’ve still got cash after everything else, that’s when you buy art. Imagine if no one had borrowed money to buy property — there would have been no crash.”
