Art Market Monitor

Global Coverage ~ Unique Analysis

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

Market Researchers Seem to Miss the Public’s Enduring Interest in Old Masters

January 16, 2015 by Marion Maneker

Giovanni Battista Moroni
Giovanni Battista Moroni

The theme of making Old Master paintings relevant to museum goers pops up again in the BBC’s report on Frederick Wiseman’s documentary about London’s National Gallery. Here Betsy Wieseman and Charles Saumarez Smith explain the process:

While very little has changed in terms of how artworks are presented within the gallery space, […] traditional institutions are currently at a crossroads in terms of how they present Old Master works of art and make them relevant to contemporary audiences.

“A lot of energy is being put into supporting programmes of events to coincide with exhibitions, as well as high-quality audio guides and promotion via interactive social media campaigns,” she says.

“The way you make Old Master paintings relevant is to find a good hook in terms of explaining the social and historical context, which is fascinating when told in the right way.”

The Royal Academy’s current survey of works by 16th Century Italian portraitist Giovanni Battista Moroni has been an unexpected hit of 2014, despite relatively few people being familiar with his work.

“When we were planning the Rembrandt exhibition, the market researchers told us that people aren’t interested in seeing brown and grey paintings by a dead white man. But that hasn’t proven to be the case,” says Smith.

Making a spectacle of the Old Masters (BBC News)

More from Art Market Monitor

  • Philip Hoffman on Pent-Up Demand for ArtPhilip Hoffman on Pent-Up Demand for Art
  • New Zealand Gets Its MastersNew Zealand Gets Its Masters
  • Art Funds Chasing Each Other's Tails?Art Funds Chasing Each Other's Tails?
  • Sotheby’s Imp-Mod Sale Suggests a Picky MarketSotheby’s Imp-Mod Sale Suggests a Picky Market
  • Qi Baishi Continues a Roll with $2.3m sale for 5 ScrollsQi Baishi Continues a Roll with $2.3m sale for 5 Scrolls
  • Old Master Dealers Gather Amid Gossip and Finger-Pointing on FakesOld Master Dealers Gather Amid Gossip and Finger-Pointing on Fakes

Filed Under: General

About Marion Maneker

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

Top Posts

  • Keith Haring’s 1989 Retrospect Comes to Sotheby’s London Prints Sale
  • Tony Podesta's Secret Art Buying
  • David Hockney's $20m Pacific Coast Highway & Santa Monica
  • Roy Lichtenstein’s Top Ten Auction Prices
  • Four of Picasso's Women Valued at $28m Come to Christie's from Rose-Walters Collection
  • Basquiat's Last Girlfriend
  • How to Chant Like an Auctioneer
  • Sotheby's Pulls in a $9m David Hockney for November
  • Sotheby's Announces $25m Rothko for November Sale
  • Norman Rockwell's Not Gay. But Is He a Great Artist?
  • 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