HUAS75018 - The Business of Art

Course Description

In this course we examine the global art market in the form it has acquired within the past thirty years. Our aim is to understand how art, as a global industry, functions. We will discuss the sourcing of objects for the art market. We will identify the major entities in today's art market - dealers, auctions houses, collectors, fairs, critics - and compare their respective interests and power. We will examine the degree of oversight that characterizes the art market. We will ask how the supply and demand of art may be manipulated and who benefits from an artist's market success.

Note: this course is solely focused on art as a business and will not address the ways in which to best understand art.