Navigating the art market can often feel like walking through a maze that, by design, only a select few have a map to. Magnus Resch – art market economist, Yale professor, serial entrepreneur, and best-selling author of six books on the art market, including the recently published How to become a successful artist (2021) – aims to change that.
Driven by a singular goal of making the marketplace more transparent, accessible, and democratic, Resch’s work sits at the intersection of art, technology, and business.
In his research, Resch realized that a fundamental problem limiting the growth of the art market today is the lack of new collectors. “Eighty thousand people go to Art Basel in Miami, but only about 500 buy art,” he said. “What about the other 79,500 who just go there? I’d say half of them have the funds to buy a piece of art, but that’s not the case. Something keeps them away. These are boundaries artificially created by the existing art world. I would like to change that.
Drawing on his vast experience of studying, collecting data and lecturing on the art market, Resch is acutely aware of the most common questions that new collectors constantly ask and the obstacles that prevent amateurs from art of becoming art collectors. He posits that most potential collectors do not acquire art simply because of the overwhelming size of the market and a lack of access to information. This commercial exclusivity, according to him, harms the art market as a whole. “If we don’t have collectors, we don’t have a market,” he explained.
Inspired by this lack of accessible information, Resch’s latest MagnusClass course, “How to Start an Art Collection,” is an invaluable toolkit for new and budding collectors. Broken down into nine main lectures, each with three to seven lessons that last an average of nine minutes each, Resch’s class highlights fundamental aspects of the art market that collectors should know, offering key insights into art fairs. art, auction houses, galleries, artists, art advisers, etc.
In the course, he answers questions that many collectors are often too afraid to ask: “Is art a good investment? “Am I paying too much?” “Which galleries should I trust? Rather than telling students exactly what to do – which artists to buy, which galleries to go to, etc. – Resch provides the essential tools to empower collectors to navigate the art market independently.
By breaking down key art market factors into tiered categories, potential collectors can easily make informed judgments when beginning to acquire artwork. Resch noted that these categorisations are not intended to distinguish between good and bad artists, galleries, advisors, etc., but rather aim to offer an overview and framework of the different layers of the art market so that collectors can better understand what they are. buy, who they buy from and who they ask for advice.
Resch’s own journey as a collector started early – he bought his first work at a small auction at just 16 and has been growing his collection ever since. “Art can really enrich your life,” he reflected, “not only because you have something cool to put on top of your sofa, but it also enriches your social life.” He advises his students to engage in what he calls “responsible collecting,” explaining that collectors support an entire community of artists by collecting works of art.
Wegeler explained that before taking Resch’s course, collecting art was daunting. “I never knew where to start, what to buy and if I was paying too much,” he said. “The art world can be confusing and intimidating to a foreigner. Magnus’ course took away that fear because he explains how the art market works – for people who don’t have much time and no experience. Watching his class made me feel more confident when buying art.
In response to this glowing affirmation, Resch succinctly stated, “That’s why I do what I do.”
