First published on June 3, 2021
The major New York auctions were held in May, so it was a big month on the auction calendar. And the news was good. Artist Market Values (“AMVs”) held steady and there are no signs of a softening market – or a correction – in the near term. The market tracked to form:
- Index indicators – The AAA 100, AAA Blue-Chip 35 and AAA Conceptual 32 behaved slightly differently, with the AAA 100 holding; the AAA Blue-Chip 35 bumping up a point; and the AAA Conceptual 32 dipping two points. All within the norm.
- Bellwether Artist Indicators – These four highly traded blue-chip artists stayed within established AMV ranges.
We expect more of the same in June with the big end-of-month London auctions, followed in early July by the usual summer auction hibernation.
Index Indicators – Observations
- The art market in May. Near-term stability is a good sign.
- A flattening out of the AAA 100 and AAA Blue-Chip 35 is not a bad thing. Consistency and some incremental growth mean staying power.
- AAA Conceptual 32 decrease was no surprise. Conceptual artists have slightly underperformed and we do not see this changing any time soon.
![](https://www.artauctionanalytics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Art-Index-Comparison-Blog-7-1024x537.png)
Bellwether Artists – Observations
- Consistency into June conveys sustainability. That any changes to AMVs through May were modest indicates that the market will maintainable its stride going into the fall auctions.
- Nothing is amiss. Nothing right now suggests stormy weather ahead.
- Despite a slight dip, Kusama’s AMV is remains at the high end of her range. A dip of this sort should come as no surprise because blue-chip artists tend to revert to normal. We do expect her AMV to remain at the higher end of her range.
![](https://www.artauctionanalytics.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Bellwether-artists-Blog-7-1024x555.png)
Our next art market update will be in early July to wrap up the 1st Half of 2021. In the meantime, we have a bunch of indexes available. Just ask; if it is not in our stable, we could develop one for you.
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