Should we market Old Masters like this?
September 24 2012
Video: Sotheby's
A reader writes:
Just wondering, would you advertise a $35-50 million picture in this way?
And this is the voice of their Contemporary Art front man, Tobias Meyer…. Regardless of what we think about it, I guess it speaks of the core of what Sotheby’s believe most of such millionaire Contemporary Art buyers really look for in a work of art – to enter into another dimension (of space rather than time. Meyer makes that clear – but still, the space needn’t be new). Perhaps this could be a new marketing approach for your Old Masters in order to attract those millionaire buyers? Most serious unfinished/preparatory works do this quite well. Titian, Rembrandt, Turner, Ribera all have this memorising quality. Similar to Rothko, their misty brush work becomes our hallucinogen.
I might not use Tobias Meyer's choice of words. But I certainly think auctioneers and dealers should have a go at taking Old Masters out of their comfort zone.