Artworld's 'New Normal' Accelerates Activist Patronage Amid Market Decline and Cultural Crises
In a letter to France Inter in May, novelist Michel Houellebecq observed that the COVID-19 pandemic has hastened existing trends within the art sector. According to the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report, the global art market shrank by 5% in 2019 and is now facing additional challenges due to the cancellation of art fairs. The Black Lives Matter movement has increased scrutiny on institutions such as the Guggenheim in New York and SFMoMA in San Francisco, sparking discussions on decolonization. Museums in London have issued a collective statement addressing sustainable reopening and racial equality. New activist patrons are emerging, exemplified by Maja Hoffman's LUMA Foundation and the Outset Contemporary Art Fund's £150,000 contribution to Edinburgh's Inverleith House. The UK's relaxation of lockdown measures has not returned things to the previous status quo.
Key facts
- Michel Houellebecq argued in May that the pandemic accelerates existing trends, not creates a new world.
- The global art market contracted by 5% in 2019, with sales volume rising but values falling.
- Black Lives Matter protests have led to accusations of racism at institutions like the Guggenheim and SFMoMA.
- London's national museums expressed concerns about reopening sustainably while addressing racial equality and social justice.
- Activist patrons like Maja Hoffman's LUMA Foundation and Francesca Von Habsburg's TBA21 fund cause-driven art projects.
- Outset Contemporary Art Fund provided £150,000 to reopen Edinburgh's Inverleith House as a 'Climate House'.
- Nicolas Berggruen's Berggruen Institute supports artist-fellows, including Anicka Yi for the 2020 Hyundai Tate Turbine Hall commission.
- Institutions face financial pressures, potentially increasing dependence on private patrons with activist agendas.
Entities
Artists
- Michel Houellebecq
- Anicka Yi
Institutions
- France Inter
- Art Basel
- UBS
- Guggenheim
- SFMoMA
- New Orleans Museum of Art
- British Museum
- LUMA Foundation
- TBA21
- Outset Contemporary Art Fund
- Arts Council Scotland
- Serpentine Galleries
- Berggruen Institute
- Hyundai
- Tate
Locations
- France
- UK
- New York
- San Francisco
- New Orleans
- London
- Edinburgh
- Scotland