THE SOUTH AFRICAN
ART TIMES
February 2009 • Issue 1 Vol 4 • Subscription RSA 180 p.a • February Print & Distrib. 7 000 copies • Full online version available at www.arttimes.co.za
Bumpy road ahead 2009 will be a trying year for the art world nevertheless local players remain optimistic, writes Mary Corrigall The art centres of New York and London are reeling in the wake of a financial recession. Galleries are closing, the survival and efficacy of public museums reliant on private funding are under threat and auction prices which dropped by 4,5 percent for the first time in six years are expected to sink much lower. The South African economy has been partly cushioned against the effects of the global credit crisis but the message hailing from all spheres of local industry is that 2009 will test the survival of many businesses. The local art world certainly won’t be impervious to the economic downturn, but which echelons of the industry will be the most aversely affected?
bit more and will be compelled to cancel actual projects.
Reliant on government rather than private funding for its running costs and acquisitions (albeit limited), our local museums should be able to weather the storm. However, most are reliant on private sponsors to bank roll major shows, such as Standard Bank’s sponsorship of Marlene Dumas’ Intimate Relations at Iziko South African National Gallery last year. In fact artists, art projects and programmes and award exhibitions are all dependent on the benevolence of corporate companies. Corporate buyers are also a life-line for many a Joburg gallery.
Fornoni is less hopeful about securing sponsorship for some of the bigger projects he had planned for the year. “We had two or three big projects that we are looking for sponsorship, which I think will be difficult to get.” The mood in art world is jittery, says Fornoni. “Everybody is quite concerned and panicked; it is going to be a tough year.” There is much talk abroad that the recession will be beneficial to the art world; that art will become less commodified. Some see the reverse happening, suggesting that with their backs up against the wall gallerists will prefer to invest in “money shows” rather than risky conceptual shows. For a new gallery like Resolution that is still trying to establish a reputation they can’t afford not to do concept shows, says Fornoni.
Standard Bank have cancelled their sponsorship of this year’s Cape Town Jazz Festival but will continue as planned with acquisitions for their collection, says Mandie van der Spuy, the banks’ art sponsorship manager. While Van der Spuy doesn’t foresee any other major alterations to their sponsorship programme she says that the bank’s sponsorship budgets will all be tightened. “The programmes will all remain in place but the budgets will be managed carefully and we will reduce spending where we can.” Van der Spuy predicts that smaller sponsors might feel the pinch a
Ricardo Fornoni, is the co-owner and curator at Resolution Gallery, a relatively new gallery located on Joburg’s ‘art strip’ along Jan Smuts Avenue. He is optimistic that his gallery will ride out an economic recession. “We are more flexible and because we are still small so our overheads are not as high as the more established galleries. There is a good chance that we will make it through this bad path if we keep the quality of our exhibitions high and keep developing new concepts.”
Michael Stevenson, owner of the Michael Stevenson gallery in Cape Town and partner in the Joburgbased Brodie/Stevenson, says that his business felt the effects of the economic recession since the end of last year. Continued on page 3
Not quite all doom and gloom, but always eternally cheerful, Still life with spring flowers by Alfred Neville Lewis (1895-1972) to be seen at the SWELCO’s Decorative & Fine Arts Auction, Cape Town. Auction takes place on Tuesday 24 February - Wednesday 25 February, 2009. See www.swelco.co.za for more details.