Yuri Tyukhtin about the market and the crisis: "If the estimate is correct, then everything is fine for sale"
ARTinvestment.RU   19 апреля 2012

The head of the auction house "Sovkom" commented the crisis in the market of contemporary Russian art

Erik Bulatov Restructuring. 1989 Coloured pencil on paper. 17 x 34,5 Source: sovcom.ru

Erik Bulatov Perestroika. 1989 Coloured pencil on paper. 17 x 34,5 Source: sovcom.ru

Before the crisis, the auction house "Sovkom" spent even a specialized auction of contemporary Russian art, including art of the XXI century. On the specifics of work in this segment of the organizers know firsthand. Current acute situation in the market of contemporary art ARTinvestment.RU asked to comment on George Tyukhtin - the manager and the owner of the auction house "Sovkom».

ARTinvestment.RU: What, in your opinion, is the main cause of the crisis in the contemporary art market?

Tyukhtin Jury : The fact that several players in our market adequately overstated prices. Yes, they have successfully sold over ten years to two or three dozen clients. These buyers during that period was like how much to pay all grew with terrifying force. And we must not forget about the ambitions: "He already has? And we have something worse? Take! "Galleries sold their authors, and good, but about small and medium-sized customers have forgotten entirely. Why? I have many wealthy people to say: "Why do you do all this small things?" Say, it's easier to sell ten or twenty works and earn thousand percent per annum. And in general, a very condescending attitude towards our experiments.

The moment of truth. Time to cast away stones, while they collect. We have always had and put estimeyty of the objective situation: we need to sell right now and a hundred - two hundred lots. Galleries also say: "No, we can not sell our authors in three - five times cheaper." They want to save face. In my opinion, this objective violates the laws of the market. The professional market participant must be a market maker - to give quotes for the purchase and sale of all times, and the client must decide whether he needs at the moment of sale, or should wait until better times.

AI: "Sovkom" - one of the first houses, who decided to specialized in contemporary art auctions. Just before the crisis, in 2008, you double auctions, "Modern Art". The experience proved to be unsuccessful?

Y. T. : I think we just had a very positive experience. Both auctions were profitable. In addition, we've done two charity auction with the theater "Practice", there were mostly very young artists. And everything was fine, the sale was very good. Just three years ago it became clear that the crisis in the market for a long time and we must change the policies and approaches.

AI: If the experience was positive, then why "Sovkom" ceased to hold auction for contemporary art? On the last trading after nearly four years have passed.

Y. T. : Twice a year we do special sections in our seasonal auctions, and ten - fifteen lots sell well: we start in three - four times lower than that of the authors or the galleries that they are doing. But even we have lots of twenty-auction does not collect, so long as there are special strings.

AI: Maybe all of our problems in inaccessible prices? We need the same market segment to a thousand dollars? Which, by the way, the bottom plate of interest auction?

Y. T. : Many people do not want to work with a lot of one thousand dollars. Arguing with them will not, in all its principles. If I do an auction of one hundred and fifty lots and sell more than half a hour and a half we have seventy - eighty thousand dollars. It is clear that we are preparing for a long time, and bear the costs but this math I was quite happy. It is important that you come to the primary customers. So we will keep working in all price categories.

AI: It is believed that the domestic Russian market for contemporary art has stalled because the weight of previous buyers had gone abroad. Agree?

Y. T. : Then what prevents galleries put their authors in western auctions? They also raised. If you feel an auction support, understands that the work will buy, it will be happy to take. And if the dealers do not want to maintain market their artists, it is unlikely that someone will do the job for them. If you have someone professionally, you simply must track all secondary sales and give them support, otherwise your customers will not understand.

AI: By the way, who went overseas compatriots are buying Russian art out there?

Y. T. : And how are buying. All departing bought the cheapest real estate, have also something to hang on the walls. Only, in my view, the priorities have changed. After all, the Western market, it did not fail, and at the evening auctions a lot of familiar faces. Those who bought the Russian classics and Soviet art of the first half-century, would have ceased to buy it? Recall that the basic records on Feshin , Vereshchagin , Yuri Ivanovich Pimenov , Popkov , Laktionova made in the past two years. And there's more money than things. In my opinion, the sale of one of the Popkov in the United States has made the entire annual budget of the Russian contemporary art market in general. If , Kabakov , Weisberg to refer to modern art, the demand for these names very serious and unsold works in recent years to a decent auction, in principle, I do not recall. If the estimate is correct, then everything is fine is for sale. Public sale - the only objective criterion. Of course, we must not focus on one sale, and to lay down the statistics of the twenty - thirty sales. Then the risk of price manipulation will be small. It is theoretically possible, of course, spend money to pay commissions to auctions, but ninety-nine percent of dealers do not.

AI: Can the Arts Lottery breathe life into the contemporary art market?

Y. T. : Art Lottery in its old sense Now it will not work - no time and no longer the same people. Why not? Cash sweepstakes, and so we have plenty, the whole market is divided for a long time about it I do not say. I'm talking about the fact that thousands of interested persons who want to get a winning pattern, you can not collect. I very much want to be wrong, but in my opinion, this is reality.

AI: Is the "Sovkom" to support the market for contemporary art, at your own risk running a series of new contemporary art auction ? And what should I do to not get through contemporary art at auction?

Y. T. : Special auctions will not do, and in the best seasonal auctions are definitely going to make string out of ten - twenty lots, depending on the estimate and names. While all that is set in recent times, went well, with growth: , Sergei Shutov , Peter Belenok , Oksana Oksana Mas , Oleg Tselkov . For example, I once sold at Sotheby's is not the picture Batynkov , bought it for polestimeyta and try now to resell. He is a great artist, but now prices have put the other. Therefore, the secondary sales come to us.

AI: What do you think the impact on the Russian market, "reformatting" (folding classic commercial activities), the oldest of the three galleries - Gelman, Aidan and XL?

Y. T. : As long as I can see a brilliant PR move, everything is just about it and talk. So I think that all the moves correctly calculated: for A followed by B, etc. It's a pity if the XL will cease to exhibit in the West. They have ten years to five - six annual fairs have positioned Russia. Yes, their state was on hand to wear something and reward! But, as we have seen, this did not happen. I think that all they have, if not great, but at least good.

Questions by Vladimir Bogdanov, AI