New Tate film series 2. Unlock Art: Browsing the International Art Market

Film still from Unlock Art: Browsing the International Art Market, Unlock Art © Tate Films

Just released is the the second film in the Unlock Art series, Browsing the International Art Market. This month’s presenter is actress and comedienne Sally Phillips, who has starred in Crackanory, Miranda and Smack The Pony. Phillips reminds us of the age-old relationship between art and money, citing examples from history dating as far back as the Ancient Egyptians (King Tutankhamun was a big collector of ceramics), The Italian Renaissance princes such as the Medicis, and the profligate Charles I, whose extravagances led to his beheading and his entire collection sold off in 1649. She traces the global phenomenon that is art market today, which has managed to resist the economic slowdown – there are currently over 200 art fairs internationally, and last year Frieze Art Fair in London attracted over 60,000 visitors alone.

Like the previous film in the series, a light and entertaining presenting style is combined with novel examples to provide succinct and thought-provoking content. Phillips makes the point that in today’s age, now that anything can be art, anything can be bought and sold as art. Two notable sales in recent art fairs were Der Letze Drech (the last dirt), literally a pile of dirt and debris by Hans Schabus, which sold for €17,000 at Art Basel in 2007, and Roman Ondak’s performance piece, Good Feelings in Good Times (2003), which comprised the formation of a random queue, with the rights to enact the piece acquired by Tate. Key in appreciating the value of these pieces were the conceptual ideas associated with them: Schabus’ piece was a memorial to the concept of the traditional artist’s studio, whilst Ondak’s piece was inspired by his experiences growing up in privation in Slovakia. With such intangible ideas as these, it is impossible to truly price the value of contemporary art.

Unlock Art is produced by Tate with the support of Le Méridien Hotels & Resorts. It aims to explore big ideas and concepts in the history of art, making art more accessible to a wider audience. In total eight films will be unveiled over eight months by eight presenters. Last month’s film Bringing Performance Art to Life was presented by the hugely talented comedian Frank Skinner, other presenters include new Doctor Who actor Peter Capaldi, and Alan Cumming.

Watch Browsing the International Art Market film at: www.lemeridien.com/filmseries