The art market managed to tough it out in 2020

It’s been a difficult year, but the art market has held up surprisingly well, says Chris Carter

Triptych Inspired by the Oresteia of Aeschylus
Triptych Inspired by the Oresteia of Aeschylus fetched $85m
(Image credit: © Sotheby’s)

It’s been a tough year for auction houses. The “big three” – Christie’s, Sotheby’s and Phillips – suffered a combined 79% drop in revenue for the second quarter of 2020 compared with the same three months in 2019, according to art market analytics firm Pi-eX. Spring is usually a busy period on the art-market calendar, but the dearth was hardly surprising given the pandemic. The first wave saw art fairs and galleries around the world close, while hammers fell silent as auction sales retreated online. But therein lay the silver lining. Sotheby’s says its online sales grew “a staggering” 540% year-on-year in the seven months to August, while the average lot value at online sales has “more than doubled” to $20,000 compared with last year.

Two trends to watch

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Chris Carter
Wealth Editor, MoneyWeek

Chris Carter spent three glorious years reading English literature on the beautiful Welsh coast at Aberystwyth University. Graduating in 2005, he left for the University of York to specialise in Renaissance literature for his MA, before returning to his native Twickenham, in southwest London. He joined a Richmond-based recruitment company, where he worked with several clients, including the Queen’s bank, Coutts, as well as the super luxury, Dorchester-owned Coworth Park country house hotel, near Ascot in Berkshire.

Then, in 2011, Chris joined MoneyWeek. Initially working as part of the website production team, Chris soon rose to the lofty heights of wealth editor, overseeing MoneyWeek’s Spending It lifestyle section. Chris travels the globe in pursuit of his work, soaking up the local culture and sampling the very finest in cuisine, hotels and resorts for the magazine’s discerning readership. He also enjoys writing his fortnightly page on collectables, delving into the fascinating world of auctions and art, classic cars, coins, watches, wine and whisky investing.

You can follow Chris on Instagram.