tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post7741317836759471609..comments2023-06-13T08:29:39.914+00:00Comments on MAKING A MARK: Contemporary Art as a Hedge FundUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-70874031837946063302008-09-20T14:28:00.000+00:002008-09-20T14:28:00.000+00:00Well the other thing is that most artist progress ...Well the other thing is that most artist progress and evolve (as they get oldr) which becomes evident in their body of work. He's been making sharks and other things in formaldehyde since (was it) the 70's????<BR/> <BR/>Most contemporary art bewilders me. I do understand that my viewing the peice and my reactions are an intrgal part<BR/> of what the artist may be doing...think flag fences and gates in central park NYC.<BR/><BR/>Give me Delaroche's Execution of Lady Jane Gray any day<BR/>(it's probably my all time favorite painting and those of you in London are so lucky!!! I saw it at there in the late 80's and it made my knees so weak I had to sit down. <BR/><BR/>Forgive any typos please these comment are from my iPhone and it's sense of spelling and autocorrects don't agree with mine or my intentions.<BR/>CindyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-35818582827381756772008-09-20T09:10:00.000+00:002008-09-20T09:10:00.000+00:00actually, spurred on by your blog I have just been...actually, spurred on by your blog I have just been reading up on Damien H, apparently he has begun to paint, by himself, with his own hands. So maybe I should reserve judgment, I shall be interested to see what he does...perhaps after all I am just a bit envious...and now I must get to work and stop reading blogs!Sarahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14193935968877679533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-61044277860577614492008-09-20T09:03:00.000+00:002008-09-20T09:03:00.000+00:00Rants by people I know are allowed on this particu...Rants by people I know are allowed on this particular topic! :)Making A Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13509483023337008890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-24442821440904689892008-09-20T08:57:00.000+00:002008-09-20T08:57:00.000+00:00Well I think Damien is a very cunning chap, he is ...Well I think Damien is a very cunning chap, he is building a brand new very expensive "art" factory in Stroud, Gloucestershire and the roof apparently is covered in photo voltaics(might have spelt that wrong) which gladdens my heart that not only is he saving the planet by making his own electricity, he is getting it for free, sensible as well as cunning. (I will drop the sarky tone now) Wouldnt it be a fine thing if he decided to spread his wealth around a bit, maybe offering to put photo voltaics on lots of roofs of lesser, and poorer mortals, and perhaps start up some burseries for poor but good artists, anything really. I suppose he is " investing in people" after all he employs a few in his factories making his "art". (oh no there I go again) Actually if I am honest I kind of admire him and his cunningness but I also hate the fact that it is called art because I dont think it is...but then what is art? Is it art because the artist says it is, or the "art world"says it is, or is it art because someone has scratched around in their soul and pulled out something that can sit in its own right and cut you to the core, bring tears to your eyes and leave you breathless (vanGogh is one who does that for me)<BR/>Sorry this has turned into a rant, dont publish it Katherine, I dont mind!.<BR/>As ever your blog is interesting and thought (or rant) provoking!Sarahhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14193935968877679533noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-30425200807566547482008-09-20T08:45:00.000+00:002008-09-20T08:45:00.000+00:00Thanks Felicity.You've reminded me of the word I h...Thanks Felicity.<BR/><BR/>You've reminded me of the word I had in my head when I sat down to write the post yesterday. I too think it's obscene.<BR/><BR/>I read a comment by Nick Leeson yesterday. he's the bloke who did some foolish deals and gave Barings bank a huge liability which caused the bank to collapse<BR/><BR/>He then went to jail for six years in Singapore. <BR/><BR/>As he said yesterday in this article <A HREF="http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2008/sep/19/banking.creditcrunch" REL="nofollow">Escape of the bankrupt</A> the architects of what has happened are morally bankrupt - but unlikely to be pursued as he was.<BR/><BR/>Also - as he points out, the UK banking system is technically insolvent since <I>"the value of outstanding mortgages and loans stands at £256bn while the value of deposits is only £160bn. "</I><BR/><BR/>As somebody who's a qualified accountant who trained and qualified in the days when a Finance Director's other name was the "Abominable No Man", I know where I'm pointing my finger. What on earth were the accountants, auditors ad regulators doing all these years? What happened to the scrutiny and regulation of transactions, risk and off balance sheet deals?Making A Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13509483023337008890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-35446969301052619362008-09-20T08:06:00.000+00:002008-09-20T08:06:00.000+00:00I think Mongoose's comment is revealing in how Hir...I think Mongoose's comment is revealing in how Hirst fools the art world, as she says she knows it's brilliant - as if that is how it is meant to be regarded - and yet she doesn't like it. I don't think the art world works with the same checks and balances that the financial world does either. Hedge fund managers may have wrecked the system but they themselves became extremely rich and losing their jobs made no difference - they have more money than they need for the rest of their lives. (Some, not all, of course.) I read that hotels in places like Mauritius are full of these people and new companies that cater for the unusual and extravagant needs of super-rich are booming.<BR/><BR/>Hirst is supposedly making profound comments on death but he really has nothing interesting to say and to have more of those pickled sharks waiting in the conveyor belt just says it all IMHO. He is a safe choice for people with money who need to impress and haven't got a clue! ;) Personally I think it's obscene when there are MILLIONS of people TODAY without a toilet to use, and MILLIONS of people TODAY either hungry or starving to death. It's so easy to ignore it and imagine that modern art is actually important!Felicity Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11145205761346733464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-18880511459752703142008-09-20T07:46:00.000+00:002008-09-20T07:46:00.000+00:00I don't think his art is at all brilliant.Damien H...I don't think his art is at all brilliant.<BR/><BR/>Damien Hirst has always struck me as being rather like a used car salesman or a magician - the art is in the marketing rather than in what's being produced. A significant amount of his art has been appropriated anyway (read his wikipedia article). All he's done is done it bigger - with diamonds and gold. It's not what I call art. He is however rather good at fooling a lot of people that it is. Like I said - what does that remind you of...........<BR/><BR/>Give me <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banksy" REL="nofollow">Banksy</A> anyday! Somebody who delivers his art in the public domain, comments in a satirical way on the social mores - and who doesn't even try to sell his art or publicise who he is. <BR/><BR/>I really like Banksy :) - not least because one of his most famous pieces is in the street just around the corner from where I go to get my car parking permit! :)Making A Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13509483023337008890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-51012963348678535212008-09-20T04:26:00.000+00:002008-09-20T04:26:00.000+00:00I think the contemporary art market is overvalued ...I think the contemporary art market is overvalued and will correct (eventually) just like the real estate market did in the states. <BR/><BR/>There was an article (I think it was the NY Times) about how several of the auction houses paint very close attention to Hirst's auction to gauge the probable impact of the volatile stock market on art. <BR/><BR/>Although it's probably sacrilege to say, I don't really understand Hirst's work and it certainly illustrates what I used to joke about that "contemporary art" (ala Hirst et al) is really French for "I can't draw." <BR/><BR/>I know his stuff is brilliant, but dead calves with golden hooves in formaldehyde just isn't my idea of art.<BR/><BR/>CindyAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-71554595758577651652008-09-19T19:59:00.000+00:002008-09-19T19:59:00.000+00:00Thank you for your succinct assessment. It is int...Thank you for your succinct assessment. It is interesting (and scary) to see similar events happening within the financial markets throughout the world. I live in New Zealand and there are so many parallels with what is happening in the UK and US (albeit on a smaller scale). It truly is a global market now and it will be interesting to watch how the high-end contemporary art sales continue to go as there is risk in hyped-up over-valuing - it can't be sustained.Melissa Muirheadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09256688160287908846noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-52369448350703260052008-09-19T17:16:00.000+00:002008-09-19T17:16:00.000+00:00A Harry Enfield character, selling art in a shop c...A Harry Enfield character, selling art in a shop called Modern W*nk, springs to mind! Saatchi is the one who created the monster, Hirst probably can't be blamed for taking the opportunity to part the fools from their money!Felicity Gracehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11145205761346733464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-4983926884558782462008-09-19T16:53:00.000+00:002008-09-19T16:53:00.000+00:00Well said, the world of gazillion dollar art sales...Well said, the world of gazillion dollar art sales has nothing to do with art and everything to do with greed, vanity, you name it, all those lovely attributes that plague the "human condition".<BR/>I think in the real world things like Damiens calf are good for a laugh and a half, nothing more.Don McNultyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12325800471172369503noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-71278796872750259672008-09-19T15:54:00.000+00:002008-09-19T15:54:00.000+00:00These people are not interested in how good the ar...These people are not interested in how good the art is, but only its value. They treat art as a commodity.<BR/><BR/>Damien Hirst is just a good publicitist. His art is mass produced and really no more valuable than a print that you can buy on the high street.bvpainterhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14804331299617862772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-41389535887049183702008-09-19T15:16:00.000+00:002008-09-19T15:16:00.000+00:00Thanks Sheona - much appreciated.Note that I've ad...Thanks Sheona - much appreciated.<BR/><BR/>Note that I've added in a couple of links to definitions and switched one paragraph around since I published in the the hope this reads a bit more clearly for people.<BR/><BR/>I suddenly realised I hadn't explained what <A HREF="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hedge_fund" REL="nofollow">a hedge fund</A> is!Making A Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13509483023337008890noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20645140.post-85374928265049126952008-09-19T14:57:00.000+00:002008-09-19T14:57:00.000+00:00The current economic shock waves are still splashi...The current economic shock waves are still splashing furiously. Just wish I was able to describe it all as wisely and accurately as you have done. Thank you for another grand post.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02291653794232344859noreply@blogger.com