Pandemic's Impact on Art Fairs: From Saturation to Digital Pivot

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced a radical reassessment of the art fair model, which was already showing signs of saturation with nearly 300 fairs globally by 2018. The 2020 UBS and Art Basel Global Art Market Report recorded a 5% decline in global art sales to $64.1 billion in 2019, with fair sales at $16.6 billion. The mid-year survey by Clare McAndrew for Art Basel and UBS, based on 795 galleries and 360 high-net-worth collectors, found 83% of galleries reported sales declines of 36-43% in the first half of 2020. Fair-generated revenue for galleries dropped from 46% to 16% of total turnover, while online sales rose from 10% to 37%. Cancellations included Art Basel Hong Kong, Basel, and Miami, miart, and FIAC Paris. Galleries like Hauser & Wirth, David Zwirner, and Massimo De Carlo shared online platforms with smaller galleries. Art Basel introduced tiered pricing with 8-9% fee reductions. The Art Market Confidence Index rose from +4.5% in February to +14.1% by September 2020. In Italy, the Forum dell’arte contemporanea italiana proposed reforming Art Bonus to include contemporary art. The fair model is shifting from marketplace to cultural happening, with curators playing a larger role. Hybrid online-offline formats are emerging, such as König Galerie and Thaddaeus Ropac offering physical extensions of digital booths. The article by Cristina Masturzo in Artribune Magazine #56 analyzes these trends.