Will the New Interest in Quality at a Reasonable Price Help Close the Drawings Value Gap?

Bloomberg’s James Tarmy has a very good look at the market for drawings by Contemporary masters and predicts that today’s general trend toward looking for quality at a lower price point may paradoxically help close some of the value gap between works on paper and canvas:

The discrepancy in price between drawings and works in other mediums isn’t a new phenomenon, and in recent years the drawings market has seen significant gains, benefiting, in large part, from association with the rapid rise of 20th century paintings. Yet the values of drawings have notably lagged behind other mediums, so much so that the gaping divide between works on paper and works on canvas could signal significant room for growth. This is especially true in today’s cooling art market, as buyers look to segments beyond traditional trophy paintings.

“If the frenzy has slowed down, and people’s large wall space is filled up, there is an opportunity to look more at the intimacy and the small scale of works on paper,” said Abigail Asher, a partner in the art advisory firm Guggenheim Asher Associates. “Perhaps now will be a time that people are drawn to those things as a natural reaction to the robust, trophy-end of the market.”

Are Drawings the Best Deal in 20th Century Art?  (Bloomberg Business)