«neglect of the nouveau riche, collect art, is absurd. The rich have always bought up pieces of art », - writes the correspondent of the British The Times Ben McIntyre (Ben Macintyre).

recently in the newspaper The Times published an article where the author asks the question: at what point Russia has become a major force in the market of art? Was this at a time when, in May this year, Roman Abramovich has spent 60 million pounds for the purchase of two paintings by Francis Bacon and Freud Lyutsiana? Or earlier, in 2004, with the purchase of Victor Vekselberg collection of Faberge eggs? Or perhaps the turning point was the event that took place in September 2007? Then, Sotheby's withdrew the auction of a collection of Rostropovich and Vishnevskaya, after an agreement was reached with the Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov to buy the entire assembly entirely.

However, most monitoring may have noticed that it happened at a time when, in May last year, Christie's in New York, without fanfare, simply added to the list of Russian Ruble currencies displayed on the scoreboard during the bidding.

Russian billionaires are now behaving in the market about the same as a century ago, the American tycoons. With unlimited resources and limited taste, they cause a wide range of reactions - from reverent awe, and admiration to the snobbery and envy.

If two years ago, the share of Russian buyers accounted for about 3 per cent of works of the Impressionists, bought at auctions, but now it is 40 percent. Last year at Sotheby's has sold works of Russian art in the total amount of $ 180 million that the 22 times the total in 2000.

New Russian collector has appeared as a result of rapid economic development in the previous 9 years, his condition is based on raw materials and energy resources and little sensitive to the financial crisis. At the same time, the weakness of the dollar has spurred its purchasing activity. He believes in himself, loves all the striking and, in the eyes of some, hopelessly vulgaren.

For many in the world of art, new tycoons buying Picasso meters - this is simply barbarians, with the money, collecting art, only a desire to follow the latest fashion trends. Describing the opening of the Salon of Fine Arts in Moscow last week, a British newspaper hardly concealed disgust, referring to the new Russian art buyers with their «flaunt wives vested in Gucci and diamonds, which are the seed of a number with a sense of duty». With the same disdain and written about Roman Abramovich buying paintings by Bacon and Freud on the latest bid. Together with the three yachts, two submarines and the football club «Chelsea», Abramovich also «acquired» new girlfriend - Daryu ( «Dashu») Zhukov, who recently announced the opening of a new gallery for contemporary art in Moscow. In the British press writes about it with some disdain as a 25-year-old «secular lioness», the daughter of Russian oil and banking magnate. A girl studying in London for a doctor-homeopath - but this is not the same as, for example, Peggy Guggenheim.

However, with the same neglect experienced at one time and the new American collectors of the last century, but it is their first steps in collecting laid the foundation for the greatest private collections of Art - Frick, Mellon, Rockefeller and Harriman.

The new money from New York, have flocked to the art market in the early twentieth century, makes the horror on the cultural community «Old World», saw them speculators accumulating treasures. Henry James in his novel «The challenge» (The Outcry - can also be translated to English as «auction»), published in 1911, depicts a fictitious character - American billionaire Brekenridzha Bendaera who buys a work of art with the help of a big checkbook and some insight . It is believed that the prototype of the character became an American Henry Frick.

Thus, the artistic passions and extravagance of new wealthy Americans a hundred years ago, suffered the same scorn, which is showered on the West by Russian oligarchs who buy at the Moscow Salon inlaid diamond jewelry made of meteorite, which 800 thousand years.

In the meantime, is often forgotten that the shift of center of gravity of the art market in Russia is just another proof that great art has great wealth. This is a definite step forward compared to the purchase of football club - a new stage of self-determination for the people that have only their own lives.

This situation is unlikely to be somewhere more obvious and expected, than in Russia, where the tradition of collecting works of art has deep roots. For example, Catherine the Great, we are obliged to most of the Hermitage collection. In the early twentieth century, this tradition continued, new collectors from the merchant environment - enough to remember Ivan Morozov and Sergei Shchukin, meeting in Russia on an unprecedented quality collection of French impressionists and post.

Then the Revolution interrupted this activity, have led many collectors to escape, while their collections were nationalized. At the same time in American and European collections have been sold, many masterpieces in exchange for hard currency.

In general, the restrictions imposed Soviet rule, not allowed to develop a private gathering, and this activity was transferred to the illegal position. Even after the fall of the Soviet Union, a new generation of collectors obsessed with the idea of the return of Russian Art to the Motherland (eg, Vekselberg).

What would have been the motivation of new Russian collectors (patriotism, investment in art or self), they make an important case for the arts itself. Investing in art, they once again confirm the notion that art has the supernatural power to overcome time, tastes and economic cycles. In the end, it is much more important than yachts, investment funds and even football.

If «Chelsea» hardly has a chance to become publicly available in the foreseeable future, the possibility that Abramovich put Bacon or Freud, it seems very real, because what is the point to buy the work of this level, if you do not want them show. While the art market break china, Russian contemporary art is located in the prime, in the opinion of journalist The Times. Obviously, the emergence of the market as a major force with a sign bidder must revive Russia's artistic environment similar to how this happened so far in history.

Today, we are exposed taunt the news that a Russian oligarch bought a picture of Bacon, but one day, when we come to the Abramovich (or more depending on the further development of the romantic history of the gallery Ms. Dasa beetles) in the Moscow, just as today we visit the Tate Gallery in London or the Frick in New York, and was surprised that country's financial and industrial system, profit-making units and give beauty to many.

Source: www.sgallery.net , www.timesonline.co.uk