The numbers of sales of Russian art. Why are they all different?
ARTinvestment.RU   13 февраля 2020

AI gathered together the data of the analysts of the largest Russian art market from 2008 to 2019 and analyzes the reasons why they disagree among themselves

the situation with the analysis of the Russian art market, in fact, unique for Russia, as the BRICS countries (States with developing economies). On the one hand, four analytical companies track the momentum of its art market, with two of them — international. On the other, — methodology of calculation, the degree of detail and sample all the different analysts, which leads to a discrepancy of numbers in the original sources. This can lead to long-lasting consequences: not only media reports but also the scientific work of researchers of the art market will include different data. Meanwhile, today's collector and investor, looking for differences in the numbers experiencing rational caution.

For the convenience of researchers, we've combined all the official figures to a common base, indicating sources — use, but now understand the differences. Below we give a brief evaluation of the existing reports on the Russian art market and in the end will offer their own way out of the situation.

Foreign market

the First in chronological order for the market of Russian art came from Deloitte, dedicating the Deloitte report Art & Finance 2013 a whole section of Russia. As in subsequent years, the calculation of the market engaged a British company ArtTactic. Methodology the ArtTactic recorded only sales of "Russian auction" in five auctions — Sotheby's, Christie's, MacDougall's, Phillips and Bonhams. Auction days are mainly held in London, only Sotheby's and Christie's until the beginning of 2010-х had a parallel "Russian auctions" in new-Йорке (then they disbanded: Russian painting began to send to London, and decorative-прикладное art began to mix in lots of European authors). What was left out of the spotlight ArtTactic: the sale of Russian-born artists who "crossed" the line of international recognition and whose works were exhibited at the auction of modern art (Malevich, Kandinsky, Chagall, Lempicka, etc.). The company did not analyze the domestic and public market of Russia, because at that time the Russian auction house had the practice of publishing its results. Evaluation of the Russian market exclusively for foreign trading is still ongoing, while the markets of other countries — China, India, Nigeria — in reports Deloitte Art & Finance already include these internal auctions.

a Distinctive feature of the data Deloitte / ArtTactic is generating sales solely on the "hammer price" (without taking into account allowances buyer on average 22 %). Two other Analytics of the global art market — TEFAF and Art Basel — in the last five years include the reports the full amount paid for the artwork. Another important note: in the "Russian auction" is also historically sold the artists of other countries of the CIS (particularly Ukraine), and recently appear and were born after 1991 (the last not included in the "orbit of Russian art", adopted ARTinvestment.RU). ArtTactic points out in their report, however, does not separate artists from the neighboring countries of the Russian, combining them is presented in the figures.

the Second player, who undertook the analysis of the market for Russian art, media-ресурс Russian Art Culture, which provides informational support of "Russian auction" in London. The company has invited well-known British art-критик Simon Hewitt, who in 2014 released a report by market sales of Russianand Russian artists from 2008 to 2013. The report also did not address the internal market of Russia. Thus, in contrast to the Deloitte / ArtTactic, he showed information based solely on the London auction. Not wanting to do the conversion to US dollars about the courses in different years, Hewitt led all figures are in British pounds. Report the second time came in 2015, and after ceased to exist.

Domestic market

Information resource ARTinvestment.RU (more —AI) was the Creator of the first and the most complete database of auctions with the participation of Russian and Russian artists (more than 10 thousand names and more than 190 thousand of auction transactions). Unlike Western companies, AI monitors auction houses on the territory of 10 countries (instead of two at best), primarily for Russian domestic auctions. Of course, having a like base, as well as experts, AI began publishing its own report on the Russian art market. In 2013, he first released aggregate data on internal public auction. In its methodology of calculation of foreign market sales AI chose its own independent path: it is proposed to combine the results "Russians bid" to all artists orbit Russian art (i.e. those born in the Russian Empire or the Soviet Union before their disintegration) of the international auction of the cage. In the result of record sales of Russian art at international auctions began 2014 with a record $667 million (in 2019, the figure was $411 million). Analysts AI was first introduced a multiplier to estimate private sales market in Russia. For the international market as a whole, recall that it balances at the level of 40-48% of auction sales (public) and 60-52 % gallery and dealer trades (private). Assessment AI, the situation on the Russian market is much more biased towards the private sector: an average of 20 % to 80 % by 2015, and 30% to 70% from 2015 onwards.

InArt — the second Russian analytical company — released her first report in 2016 and since then publishes it annually. Unlike ARTinvestment.RU, InArt focuses on the sales of contemporary Russian artists (about 1,5 thousand names, of which the public sales of 520 artists). 2018 InArt bravely got involved in the study of private market sales, collecting information from the Russian galleries, and the largest domestic contemporary art fairs. Full InArt methodology is a trade secret, however the data obtained in the result of combining direct-маркетинга and multipliers are the only published figures on the market of contemporary Russian art, which must now be considered the official market.

a Brief summary of AI: it is possible that in subsequent global reports following the Deloitte / ArtTactic the Russian art market start to pay attention to the TEFAF, and Art Basel. Thus, the number of reports with different methodology and numerical volatility will increase to six. China, for example, solved this problem by controlling outbound information on domestic sales at the level of state intervention, art. In Russia, state control of the art market in the near future is impossible in General, and will slow the market in particular.

Therefore, in 2020, the AI is going to raise the issue at the international level on the development of a unifiedalgorithm in the assessment of the Russian art market: what artists have to enter into it, how cheated, and what the experts have to be involved. In any case, all players take their niches in terms of reports. This approach does not violate the competition, but will only increase the market. However, in our view, the methodology should have a common base. In this case, the Russian market will become more transparent from the point of view of both domestic and international collector and investor.

Denys Belkevych, AI