Art, boredom and cynicism

One curator told me that he doesn’t attend openings anymore because he is bored. Another curator said he sees his job more and more as being a clerk. An art manager told me that she is exhausted because of complaining artists and demanding collectors. More and more artists feel cynical about the art market and the roles collectors, gallery owners and curators play. Recent news of art sales certainly doesn’t help:

Andy Warhol’s ‘Double Elvis’ sold for 37 million US dollar;

Roy Lichtenstein’s ‘Sleeping Girl’ sold for almost 45 million US dollar;

Mark Rothko’s ‘Orange, Red, Yellow’ sold for 86,9 million US dollar;

and Edvard Munch’s ‘Scream’ sold for 119,9 million US dollar.

We go into art because we feel passionate about it, but as soon as it becomes a career – since when has art become a career path? – boredom and cynicism lurk around dark corners. If originality, creativity, vision, and consistency are only market(ing) assets, passion goes out of the window very quickly.