In Episode 15 of the Art Market Podcast, Georgina and Tom are joined by Melanie Gerlis, art market correspondent for the Financial Times and author of such tomes as Art as an Investment? and The Art Fair Story.
Melanie makes the case that art is not a good investment, and they trace the whole "art as an asset class" idea back to Peter Wilson's Times Sotheby's index and its deliberate courting of Wall Street money.
They dig into the galleries that sell overvalued work to first-time buyers and what actually turns a rich person into a collector.
Next, they explore the strange new economics of art fairs, where the crowds increasingly come for the selfie rather than the sale.
Finally, Mel answers the big question: if the number of billionaires has tripled, why has the art market sat flat at around sixty billion for twenty years?
Enjoy! __________________________________________________________
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