Dark Side of the Boom: The Excesses Of The Art Market In The 21st Century Paperback – March 15, 2018

Thoughtful presentation of the evolving twists and turns and curves in the recent years of the international art market. Adam's knowledge and clarity of presentation paints a complex picture of that reflects that state of the art world and it is off putting and distressing. If art is intended to uplift the human condition it is now becoming a commodity to impress others and profit from. A sad state of affairs that Adam does not provide much hope that light will shine on and from the Art market. Important read as it provides another insight into the pursuit of wealth via greed and devious deeds.

This was less than a book and more like somebody stitched together eight newspaper articles.The style is as follows: the author goes to an event, interviews people, gives you the story’s background via that of the interviewee’s and fills in a few gaps. The other thing that makes you feel you’re reading the paper is that the author seems to be in awe of the phenomena she decries and the larger-than-life personalities she interviews, to the point of often losing the ability to criticize them.Or perhaps it’s quite simply that she lives in this world. She is of it, she can’t really badmouth it too much.With all that said, there’s good info here about the goings on in the art world. Stuff I took away includes:• China has created immense demand for art by dint of offering tax incentives to developers who include a museum in their sundry developments.• The art world has cottoned on to this and can crank out this art in bulk. The supply to meet this new demand is pretty much “on tap.”• About half the art auctioned is Modern.• There’s been a crash in krazy expensive art (that was news to me)• The top end of the market is driven by the NUMBER of super-rich people, not their actual wealth.• “If you can borrow money against it, then it’s an asset” so art is an asset class.• The guy who owns Skorpios made his money in fertilizer, got royally rogered by an art dealer he trusted and came out on top regardless, by selling a Da Vinci to the Saudi prince who’s in the news.The chapters are all structured around a topic (example: “Authentication”) and they all introduce you to a bunch of characters you would not invite around to your house (and who would not come if you did.) The author is kind of in awe of how rich they all are or the fact that they descend from an artist whose oeuvre / name they live off of. You’re told how they got into some type of dispute and if the courts have resolved it yet. Chapter after chapter. Oh, and the price history of some painting is invariably traced, which is guaranteed to make the book age poorly. Or then again, perhaps not!One thing the book did convince me of is the following: if it’s money you’re looking to make from art, you’d better have the firepower to play all the angles. That includes the galleries, the museums, the authenticators and the auction houses. Oh, and the artists of course. If that’s something you cannot do, be aware that the guy you’re dealing with probably can!It was that type of book. A light read for the train, but nothing to write home about. 3.5 stars from me!

The topic is popular, and there are many writing on it. Adam demonstrates that she thoroughly understands the business. Where others might provide anecdote after anecdote, she provides a well-organized overview, with focused chapters covering different aspects of the art markets. My only quibble is with some glaring lapses in copy editing (I thought I had some examples, but I can't find them), but those more make you laugh at how they got through than become irritating.

Just started it and I will like it a lot BUT why doesn't she have a website with pictures by the artists. I have to keep my iPad next to me to google every artist to see what she is writing about!! She definitely needs to put up pictures somewhere because the book has NONE at all. This is a massive oversight by her or the publishers.This is a subject I am very interested in, (having been an art dealer for 30 years), and having to scramble to find representative pictures is making me nuts! I would give it FIVE stars if it had links to pictures!

A great read.

Georgina Adam carries you away on a trip to the world of the super rich. She’s an experienced writer, has a profound journalistic background and is amongst other occupations part of the advisory team for Talking Galleries. So yes, she really knows what she’s talking about as she knows the art world from all ends.She introduces us into a world that is not ours. A world where art is an asset class. The world of the top of the art market where greed reigns. This world should not be mistaken with the “real” art world. The reality that is ours so to say.She visits artists and the story develops towards the market experts, the auctioneers and the collectors informing about all sorts of tax avoidance, money laundering, law suits, free ports, forgery .... all the dark matter and based on journalistic facts.The book reads well. I've read the book through the night.

Read only if you’re interested in the shenanigans of highfliers in the contemporary art biz. Anyone in the middle or lower market stands to gain very little from this book except a dose of fascination with the world of wealthy art collectors.

Buena lectura para los que les interesa el mercado de Arte Contemporáneo Internacional. Adam el problema que tiene en este y su libro anterior es que habla prácticamente del mercado de arte al mas alto nivel olvidándose que existen otros mercados y otras tendencias. También en este libro quedan muchas preguntas hechas por la misma autora que quedan sin respuesta, mucho se debe a la parte legal y el tiempo nos dirá como terminaron todos estos juicios y seguramente Adam hará otro libro con todas estas respuestas.

Great overview/ intro- still reading this but makes for some very interesting reading for the lay man who wants a better insight into the cyclical nature and lack of transparency in the Art world

Very informative and up to date. As a professional artist since 1972, this book has given me a boost in enthusiasm to keep producing art. Well done Georgina

Informative summery of the most significant unethical events than happened in the 20/21st century. To pin the events down and elaborate on them, the author sites interviews, articles, books and studio visits. Some of of the events the author discussed have been produced in films/documentaries available on YouTube; for instance, The Black Box of the Art Business.

Essential reading for anyone working in the art world.