Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2000/12/11

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Subject: Re: [Leica] What is fine art photography?
From: Doug Herr <merlin@flyingemu.com>
Date: 11 Dec 2000 15:07:52 -0800

On Mon, 11 December 2000, Martin Howard wrote:

> 
<SNIP>
> The list presented by Erwin ranked current photographers according to their
> auction sales.  Art, as an economic commodity, is fickle and subject to
> similar forces as the stock market.  However, art even more so, because
> there is little or no inherent value in what is being sold: stocks, at least
> somewhere, reflect the value of a company and not just confidence in it.
> 
> So, the list can just as easily be looked upon as "what consitutes good
> investment within photography in the world of art commerce today" as it can
> "what constitutes good and valuable fine art photography".  The absence of
> certain photographers from the list does not necessarily reflect whether the
> art community consideres their work fine art or not.
> 
> M.
> 

I agree, Martin.  Often what makes something valuable in the eye of the beholder is beyond logical explanation, for example fads, fashion, accepted notions of what is "stylish" or not, for example.

Sometimes "valuable" artwork is valuable only because the purchaser expects someone else a few years hence to find it more valuable (possibly for the same reasons).  It's like a pyramid scheme.

A good example are Ty Beanie Babies: a toy animal costing a few cents to make and distribute, having little inherent value aside from the pleasure it can give to a child, is more valuable on the secondary market if no child has ever touched it.  Certain models, because of their scarcity, command prices many times the original retail price simply because someone else is willing to pay as much or more for the toy.  There's a marketing genuis working for that company.

Another example is rare Leicas.  The market value may have little to do with the camera's picture-making capabilities.

IMHO the ranking on the auction list by itself means little about the "importance" or "value" of the image, or about the photographer.

Does any one remember the Pet Rocks of the 1970s?

Doug Herr
Sacramento
http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/telyt
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