Managing Partner at Meem Gallery, Charles Pocock, observes in a recent interview with The Gulf News (‘Art is the new business trend’ by Fatma Salem) that in today’s volatile market, investors are looking at safer alternative investments beyond stocks, currency, gold, property and bonds. He sees considerable interest in art investment in arts with the construction of the Louvre and the Guggenheim.
This will prompt the dawn of a new era in art investment in the region, he feels. The building of the Louvre as well as the Guggenheim museums will help the region become a prime centre for contemporary art, patrons like him believe. The General Manager of the newly opened Opera gallery, Bertrand Epaud, is quite enthusiastic about Dubai’s art scene and is bullish about the prospects of the gallery.
He notes that Dubai Mall was chosen as the location for the enterprise after much research and adds. "If customers fail to come to us, it’s we who go to them. We are aware of how vital the client is. Since we’re the only gallery, which owns masterpieces in the country, we thought of taking e paintings by the likes of Renoir and Picasso (and) organize temporary exhibits in neighboring countries like Oman, Doha, and Beirut.
According to him, people there are not quite used to coming face-to-face with quality art works. You can't believe the immense thirst for art in this region. The demand in Oman clearly exceeded our expectations; we had over 2,000 visitors. Those temporary exhibits gained us a lot of recognition and exposure. It enhanced our database of new customers in the middle of the financial downturn.
He has been quoted as saying in The Gulf News story: "When it comes to buying contemporary art as well as emerging artists, we suggest holding on to the works of art for at least five to seven years to increase its value in the market."
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment