What is art really worth?

If art is a reflection of its society, in times to come Jeff Koons's will most likely depict a civilisation in which inflatable toy-like balloons will mark a subversive, sardonic high point

How much is Rs 640 crore worth in an easily understandable context? Let’s see, it’s a little less than half the sum of the Bofors scam that brought down a government and put defence procurements into cold storage. It is the amount the government sued Maggi for in damages, the figure International Finance Corporation invested in Mahindra Finance for disbursing medium and small size loans, the size of Gammon India’s water transmission project in Oman. It’s what the government hopes to invest for an airport in Ayodhya, what IPL spent on cricket players in 2018 (there were caps on its spend in 2019), and approximately equivalent to the budget of Manmohan Singh’s overseas trips spread over ten years as prime minister. Few billionaires have that kind of personal wealth (only 61 have claimed an income over Rs 100 crore in the financial year 2017-18.) Oh, and this week, someone spent Rs 640 crore on buying “a steel rabbit”.

Artist Jeff Koons’s Rabbit has been making international news ever since Robert Mnuchin decided to splurge $91.1 million on what many regard as the artist’s most significant work, though it might amuse the less-informed among art aficionados. Seriously, who would spend that kind of money on a large steel bunny? Yet, prices at the top of the art market have been scorching, with David Hockney’s painting of a swimmer in a pool (his most iconic theme) fetching a little loose change less than Koons as most expensive living artist a few months ago, and a Monet painting of a haystack (one of several) commanding $110.7 million recently. All of which boils down to that compelling question: How much is art really worth?

There is no way to gauge the true price of art, making it subjective and, therefore, prone to all the conceits that fuel its acquisition: wealth, of course, but also pride, ego, greed, competitiveness — and, perhaps, also the media, for the trophy must be claimed publicly, its patron hailed a cultural czar. Which is why from Jean-Michel Basquiat’s spiralling value courtesy a Japanese collector to a jaw-dropping Leonardo da Vinci that many claim is the world’s most expensive fake, the value of the art market has risen globally, with just America contributing nearly half the global $67 billion (or $30 billion, up from $12 billion in 2009) to the annual kitty. It also masks a disparity with a tiny percentage of transactions making up a large chunk of the market — ergo, eye-popping prices at the very top are directing its growth.

Photo: Reuters

Britain’s David Hockney has his admirers, even though the record $90.3 million for his most expensive painting can be off-putting for those who value aesthetics over value, but Koons, like Andy Warhol, could only have risen in America (and now China) where commerce seems to provide popular culture its basis. His art seems remarkably shorn of nuance. Several score assistants help him in his 16,000 sq ft New York workshop near the Hudson rail yard. If art is a reflection of its society, in times to come Koons’s will most likely depict a civilisation in which inflatable toy-like balloons will mark a subversive, sardonic high point. Yet, the frenzy that marks the installation of his works points to a herd conditioning rather than wit. Critics say Koons makes a masterful point about social degradation; they fail to point out what it says about banality and his audience.

One must presume Robert Mnuchin knew what he was spending on — he is, after all, a former banker and a well-known art dealer. His son is secretary of the treasury in the current US administration. Together, they represent the wealth and power of America. Whether that’s crass, high art or just investment — time, and money, will continue to inform us.

Kishore Singh is a Delhi-based writer and art critic. These views are personal and do not reflect those of the organisation with which he is associated