Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

  • AMMpro
  • AMM Fantasy Collecting Game
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us

Those $10m Photos May Not Be Art—and Now There Are Doubts About the Truth of the Sales

December 12, 2014 by Marion Maneker

wg278_babcock_mill_1

Peter Lik is something of a Thomas Kinkade of photographers. But Folks in Lik’s native Australia are casting doubt on his claims to have sold the world’s most expensive photograph. Lik’s press release does offer an attorney who will confirm the private sale but, to date, there’s no independent confirmation of the private sale of three photographs totaling nearly $10m with the one priced at $6.5m. Here’s why the Sydney Morning Herald suggests we be skeptical of the sale:

The work was sold privately to an unknown buyer and no documentary proof beyond a press release of the sale appears to have been provided.

Lik’s work has been ignored by major public art galleries and dismissed by critics.

When his photos have gone up for public auction, they have not sold well. Australia’s most famous photographer Bill Henson sells for nowhere near Lik’s astronomical prices.

As art consultant David Hulme said in 2012: “If I was advising a client on a $1 million art purchase, I would be extremely wary of purchasing a Peter Lik photograph, however good it is. This is because Peter Lik’s photographs have no secondary market presence or value.” […]

It is not entirely impossible that Lik pocketed the millions of dollars he claims for Phantom. His sales staff are apparently very good at singing his praises and he has galleries in places like Las Vegas, where there is more money than sense.

Buyer beware: Treat Peter Lik photo sale with scepticism (Sydney Morning Herald)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Bidders Get Aggressive in New York’s Asia WeekBidders Get Aggressive in New York’s Asia Week
  • No One Ever Asks Gagosian Whether He’s Representing the Other Side in a TransactionNo One Ever Asks Gagosian Whether He’s Representing the Other Side in a Transaction
  • Nieuw GirlNieuw Girl
  • Is the Art Market a Bubble? One Collector’s View
  • Leslie Hindman Expands on Global Art ArbitrageLeslie Hindman Expands on Global Art Arbitrage
  • Design Struggles to ShineDesign Struggles to Shine

Filed Under: General

About Marion Maneker

LiveArt

Want to get Art Market Monitor‘s posts sent to you in our email? Sign up below by clicking on the Subscribe button.

  • About Us/ Contact
  • Podcast
  • AMMpro
  • Newsletter
  • FAQ

twitterfacebooksoundcloud
Privacy Policy
Terms & Conditions
California Privacy Rights
Do Not Sell My Personal Information
Advertise on Art Market Monitor
 

Loading Comments...