Sunday, May 28, 2006
Charity Begins In The Studio
This article describes the charity art auction mechanism. A wealthy person or established gallery decides to raise money for a worthy cause. They get status, publicity and the benefit of being seen as charitable. They call well-known artists who give work. The motivation of the artists is ambiguous, but whatever their intent, the actual charitable act originates in the studio of the artist. Some lesser known artists say, “it is the only way I could get my work in that gallery”. Others don't want to refuse a well-known collector or art organization or seem ungenerous.
There is the risk that the work will not be bid high — status lost. To prevent this status-disaster dealers come to these events to buy the work themselves to make sure the value of their stable is not depleted. Adding to the ego dance, the artists are often asked to “ask other artists” to contribute. What possible status benefit there would be to an artist who is asked second-hand is also unclear. Unless the higher status artist is asking a lower status artist who wants to be on good terms with the higher status artist. A lotta status goin' on.
The shoddy logic of commercial culture is also in high display. The artist can only deduct the cost of materials for their contribution — even if it is sold for tens of thousands. The collector gets the full charity benefit tax relief. In addition, the collector can, and often does, resell the work at market value. Neither artist, nor charity, gets a cut.
Not much charity in evidence.