ArtRank’s Aggressive Numbers

ArtRank’s formerly anonymous founder sat for a profile with The Guardian and gave them some numbers, including the aggressive claim that the then 24-year-old founder had increased the art fund he ran 17-fold in two years time:

“I’m not endorsing speculation,” Rivera insists. Still, fears that the market is out of control are unlikely to be calmed by his claim that his previous venture, a fund investing in both emerging and established artists, grew from $700,000 in 2011 to $12 million in 2013, partly by buying into the likes of Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly. Only too happy to put his side of the story, ArtRank’s 26-year-old founder pulls up at Hollywood’s 101 diner on a Ducati.

Rivera’s claims for his current business are equally bold at demand outpacing supply by a factor of 8:

For $3,500 a quarter, ArtRank’s clients get snappy – some might say brutal – investment advice based on information such as past sales, studio output, upcoming shows and posts on Instagram and Twitter. The service, which he says uses complex algorithms developed for investment banking, is limited to 10 subscribers at a time; when Rivera threw the list open in April, there were, he says, more than 80 applications.

Buy! Sell! Liquidate! How ArtRank is shaking up the art market (The Guardian)