What Makes Certain Artworks Highly Collectible?

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WHAT MAKES CERTAIN ARTWORKS HIGHLY COLLECTIBLE?

BLUE CHIP ARTWORKS AT [CONTAINER]

WHAT MAKES CERTAIN ARTWORKS HIGHLY COLLECTIBLE?

BLUE CHIP ARTWORKS AT [CONTAINER]

While artwork enriches collectors’ daily lives aesthetically and intellectually, artworks that meet certain criteria can also prove a wise investment vehicle.

Rarity of an artwork is a major factor in creating incentive to collect. Unique works of art made by artists who have already passed and whose works were largely collected by museums and private collectors during their lifetime are inherently rare, making access to those works something that might not come again and should be taken advantage of. But a more affordable niche of highly collectible yet rare works of art is the limited edition print. Designed, signed, and numbered by the artist, limited editions are highly collectible works, yet at a lower price point.

Camille Claudel was a woman sculptor ahead of her time, in the early 1900s in France. She ended up being institutionalized by her family for the last 30 years of her life, but before she was, she destroyed the majority of her works. Only 90 works survived, most of which are in museums throughout the world, including the J. Paul Getty Museum, The Met, Art Institute of Chicago, Rodin Museum in Paris, Museo Soumaya in Mexico City, and Musee Camille Claudel. Rarely are her works available to private collectors.

Reputation of the artist Sometimes an artist gains esteem due to heroic actions for the public good. Shepard Fairey became a beloved artist in 2008, when he created the iconic Obama Hope image. He later created a suite of images carried by women during the 2016 national women’s march, and he has contributed monumental murals throughout the world. Due to Fairey’s notoriety as an activist for positive social change, his work has become widely sought after, and he is ranked by the 2024 Hiscox top 100 report as one of the 6 most collectible contemporary artists at the lower end of the blue chip price range.

Museum Exhibition History, curatorial and scholarly research Has the artwork (or is it about to be), featured in prestigious museums, private collections, or exhibitions at prominent galleries? If the artist has passed on, is the artwork or edition included in their definitive catalog raisonne? Agnes Martin, for instance, has stellar exhibition history, from her sell-out exhibition at Betty Parsons Gallery in New York, to solo exhibitions at the top museums in the world, including the Stedjlick, Guggenheim, MoMA, Whitney, et al. Numerous monographs have been written about Martin’s work and her role in heralding the beginning of American minimalism.

Camille Claudel was honored in 2024 with her first nationally touring exhibition at the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Art Institute of Chicago. Alfred Jensen enjoyed two solo exhibitions of his works at the Guggenheim Museum, and Judy Chicago’s work is featured in its own permanent gallery in the Brooklyn

Museum, as well as recent retrospectives at The New Museum, Serpentine Galleries in London, and LUMA, Arles. Philip Guston’s works were recently the subject of an internationally acclaimed museum tour at Tate London, National Gallery of Art, and Boston Museum of Fine Arts. Ruscha and Baldessari are perennial museum stars.

Provenance of the artwork The trail of ownership from the artist through various owners to the present day helps establish the authenticity of the artwork as a bona fide creation of the respective artist. Provenance helps ensure the legality of ownership, protecting a collector from concerns of wartime theft or contested ownership. If notable collectors or institutions have owned the artwork, this provenance can enhance the value of particular works of art.

Historic significance Some artists and certain subject matter mark pivotal moments in history or shifts in human consciousness. Jeffrey Gibson made history as the first Indigenous artist to represent the US in the Venice Biennale. His artworks that reflect the strength and power of Indigenous culture are landmark works in his oeuvre. Robert Rauschenberg was a pioneer of artistic innovation, assembling print-based works on unexpected materials, featuring imagery that reflected the social issues of his day. Faith Ringgold, who died recently, blazed a trail as a highly successful Black woman artist who enjoyed a nationally touring museum retrospective during her lifetime. Ringgold’s work tells stories of her own and her ancestors’ lived experiences, laying bare truths often written out of history. Miriam Schapiro and Judy Chicago started the first Feminist Art Program in the United States, and Andres Serrano gained fame as the artist whose Piss Christ work became the center of senator Jesse Helmes’ war on art.

Perceived investment potential Throughout history, the artworld has marginalized women artists and artists of color. Artworks by these artists represent only a small fraction of museum collections, and museums are scurrying to rectify this inequity. Because their works were underrepresented in the mainstream, these artists’ prices did not accelerate at the same rate as those of their white male counterparts. As major museum curators stage exhibitions for these wildly talented and under valued artists such as Kerry James Marshal, Toyin Odutola, Virgil Ortiz, Judy Chicago, Jeanette Pasin Sloan, Alice Neel, Kara Walker, and Julie Mehretu, prices for their works will soar. But in the meantime, there is tremendous upside potential for private collectors who acquire their works.

Jeanette Pasin Sloan is an excellent case in point. Her early studio was her kitchen table after her children were asleep, where she painted reflections from her chrome toaster. Today, museums across the world are presenting exhibitions of works by artists like Pasin Sloan next to works by their more exposure-priviledged white male contemporaries such as (in Pasin Sloan’s case), Phillip Pearlstein. When this contrast is made, it is apparent that Pasin Sloan’s work is in most cases superior. Museums like the Metropolitan Museum of Art and others have already taken notice and added Pasin Sloan’s works to their collections.

Judy Chicago

Nine Fragments from the Delta of Venus, 2004 nine-color etching and aquatint print portfolio 17.75 x 17.75 x 1.5" box ed. 3/45

$28,000

Martin

Untitled, 1990

lithograph

13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500

$1800

Agnes

Judy Chicago

Through the Flower, 1991 serigraph on paper

34.63 x 34.13" framed ed. 57/100

$20500

Jim Dine
Fragile Boy, 2010
8 color lithograph hand coloring
56 x 40" framed ed. PP/12
$15,000

mixed media on panel

Judy Chicago
Peeling Back, 1974/2021
20.5 x 20.5" ed. Proof #2
$25,000

Odutola

A Lapse in Judgement, 2012 lithograph 14 x 11.13" paper ed. of 20 $13500

Toyin

Judy Chicago

Signing The Dinner Party, 2009-2012 lithograph 24 x 24" paper ed. 29/50

$7200

Judy Chicago

Yes, I am Black and Radiant from the Song of Songs, 1999 heliorelief and lithograph

25 x 42 x 1" framed ed. 1/30

$8000

Judy Chicago

Marie Antoinette 1973/2017, 1973/2017

four-color lithograph on cotton paper

x 28.25" framed ed. 16/20

$22,000

28.75
Giorgio Griffa
Canone Aureo 482, 2014
acrylic on linen
58 x 70"
$35000
Mario Schifano
Studio per K Sogno Di F.L.S., pencil watercolor on paper
38.75 x 27.25" framed
$29000

Bernd & Hilla Becher

Grain Elevators, 1978

gelatin silver prints, in ten parts

25 x 80" group framed unique

$150000

Howard Hodgkin Souvenir, 1981

screenprint on Arches aquarelle mould-made paper

52 x 62" framed ed. 68/100

$5500

Philip Guston Sky, 1980

lithograph, on HMP Koller transfer paper

29 x 38.75 x 2" framed ed. 36/50

$15,500

Philip Guston Rug, 1980

lithograph on Rives BFK paper

19.5 x 29" paper ed. 28/50

$14000

Philip Guston

Studio Forms, 1980

lithograph on Arches cover paper

36 x 46" framed ed. 75/100

$18,000

Judy Chicago

Mary Queen of Scots, 1973

lithograph

28 x 28" framed ed. 9/40

$25000

20.5 x 26.25" framed ed. 25/40

Judy Chicago Flashback, 1965
lithograph on paper
$40000

$12,500

Jim Dine
The Black and Red Heart, 2013 woodcut with hand drawing
63.75 x 47.5" paper ed. 21/30

Judy Chicago

Barney Place Setting Study, 1977 mixed media on paper mounted to panel

Natalie
24.5 x 36.5" framed
$165,000

This piece has been acquired, plaster

casting 2002

6.25 x 10.25 x 5.5" ed. 1/8

Camille Claudel
Chienne rongeant son os (Dog Gnawing Her Bone)
1893, posthumous
cast bronze on wood base
$80,000

Judy Chicago Into the Darkness, 2008 lithograph

26.5 x 26.5 x 1.5" framed ed. 36/50

$9900

Smith

Jaune Quick-to-See
Sky People, 2011 four-color lithograph
39 x 24.5" framed ed. 2/20
$18,500

Judy Chicago

The Crowning, 2010 lithograph 24 x 24" paper ed. PP 2/2

$7200

Christo and Jeanne-Claude Wrapped Bottle and Cans (project), 1958/2004 lithograph

20 x 17" framed ed. 5/200

$7000

Sol LeWitt Color Bands, 2000
linocut on Somerset Velvet paper
34 x 34 x 2" framed ed. 75
$7500
Claes Oldenburg Spoon Pier, 1975 etching and aquatint on paper
28 x 22" paper ed. 17/50
$7500
Agnes Martin Stedelijk Museum Portfolio, 1990 lithograph
13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500
$1800
Agnes Martin Stedelijk Museum Portfolio, 1990 lithograph
13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500
$1800
Agnes Martin Stedelijk Museum Portfolio, 1990 lithograph
13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500
$1800

$25,000

Jeffrey Gibson POWER! POWER! POWER!, 2020 woodblock and screenprint on paper
36 x 35.25 x 2" framed ed. 6/30
Hung Liu
Travelogue, 2004
oil on canvas
72 x 72"
$185,000
Miriam Schapiro Father and Daughter, 1997 mixed media femmage on canvas
72 x 60"
$200000

Camille Claudel

Rêve au coin du feu (Fireside Dream), 1905-1937 conceived 1899; bronze edition begun by Eugene Blot in 1905; finished in 1937

bronze and colored marble with functioning electric light

8.75 x 12.5 x 9.75" ed. of 65

$150,000

Hung Liu
Laundry Lady, 1995 oil on shaped canvas
72 x 38"
$225000

Serrano Piss Discus (Fluids Series), 1988 pigment print, back-mounted on dibond 34 x 24" framed ed. 10, 2 AP

$9500

Andres

Jose Bedia Almas del Naufragio , 1997 lithograph 26 x 36" unframed ed. 4/16

$2500

Jennifer Bartlett House, Dots, Hatches, 1999, 1999 screenprint on paper

38.25 x 38.25" paper ed. 150

$4000

$15000

Hung Liu
Mu Nu - Yellow River, 1997
color aquatint, spitbite aquatint and softground etching
25 x 36" paper ed. 5/35

Jacob Lawrence

Supermarket Flora, 1996

color screenprint on Rives BFK paper

30 x 22" paper ed. 24/108

$9500

Kara Walker Freedom, A Fable: A Curious Interpretation of the Wit of a Negress in Troubled Times, 1997 lithograph, laser-cut silhouettes

9.25 x 17” open ed. 4000

$10800

Louise Bourgeois Black Bed, 1997
softground etching, with drypoint and engraving on smooth wove paper
20.75 x 23.75" paper ed. 29/100
$20000
Kiki Smith Untitled, 1992 etching on rice paper
37.5 x 26.25" framed ed. 2/30
$3800
Agnes Martin Stedelijk Museum Portfolio, 1990 lithograph
13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500
$1800

Martin Stedelijk Museum Portfolio, 1990 lithograph

13.75 x 13.75" framed ed. 2500

Agnes
$1800

Judy Chicago

Through the Flower 2, 1973/2021 mixed media on glass with light box

$75,000

34 x 34 x 2" framed ed. AP

Andres Serrano

Red River 10: Art as Catalyst Alternative Museum Portfolio, 1992

screenprint

26 x 26" paper ed. 67/100

$1200

Jaune Quick-to-See Smith Coyote (Petroglyph), 2009 serigraph

29 x 22" framed ed. 45/50

$3700

Jaune Quick-to-See Smith Habitat Isn't Just for Wildlife, 2009 screenprint

37.25 x 28x 2" framed ed. 31/61

$1600

Judy Chicago
Return of the Butterfly, 2012
10-color lithograph
24 x 24" paper
$12500

Jaune Quick-to-See Smith Earth People, 2011

4-color lithograph

39 x 24.5 x 2" framed ed. 2/20

$18,500

John Baldessari

Three Moments, 1999

lithograph and silkscreen on Coventry Smooth paper

40 x 28" paper ed. PPI/60

$28,000

Ed Ruscha IF, 2000
lithograph on Arches Cover Buff 22 x 36" paper ed. PPI/ 75
$45,000

Claes Oldenburg

Geometric Mouse Pyramid as an Image of the Electoral System, Doubled, 1976

color lithograph on Arches Cover wove paper

40.5 x 31" framed ed. LP IMP2

$9000

40 x 31 x 2" framed ed. 43/90

Claes Oldenburg Picasso Cufflinks, 1974
13-color lithograph
$9000
Martin Puryear Dark Loop, 1982
woodcut on ivory Japanese paper
30 x 37 x 2" framed ed. RTP of 35
$9500

Robert Rauschenberg Centennial Poster, 1969 offset lithograph 39 x 29.5" paper ed. open $750

Robert Rauschenberg Last Turn-Your Turn, 1991 lithograph 28 x 28 x 2" framed ed. 200 $12500

Robert Rauschenberg

Choices & Responsibilities, The UN World Population Conference, 1994

four color lithograph

40.75 x 29" paper ed. 55/200

$9000

Robert Rauschenberg

Tribute 21: Theater, 1994 lithograph

41 x 27" paper ed. 44/50

$12000

Faith Ringgold

Coming to Jones Road Under a Blood Red Sky, 2004 serigraph on paper

35 x 45" paper ed. 38/50

$POR

Alice Neel Victoria and the Cat, 1981 lithograph and silkscreen
46 × 31" paper ed. 68/100
$12,500
Kara Walker Keys to the Coop, 1997 linocut on paper
46.25 x 60.5" paper ed. PP 40
$45000
Jeanette Pasin Sloan Diamonds II, 2023 oil on panel 24 x 24" unframed
$20,000
Jeanette Pasin Sloan Lunares II, 2024 oil on panel
21.5 x 21.5 x 2" framed
$9500
Shepard Fairey Dove Ripped, 2021 serigraph on wood
28 x 22" framed ed. 5/6
$3500

Shepard Fairey Wetland Powers, 2023 serigraph on wood

28 x 22" framed ed. 1/6

$3500

Jeffrey Gibson MIRROR IN THE SKY, 2023

screen print and collage on Arches archival paper

47.5 x 37.5 x 2" framed ed. 8/30

$34,000

Jeffrey Gibson Round Dancing, 2021 unique elk hide handmade drum with screenprint

25.75 x 25.75 x 4.5" framed ed. 12/24

$31,000

Shepard Fairey
Obama Hope, 2008 silkscreen on paper
34.5 x 22.5" framed ed. open
$2200
Shepard Fairey Cultivate Justice (Blue), 2021 silkscreen on wood panel
28 x 24 x 2" framed ed. 3/6
$3500
Shepard Fairey
Embrace Justice , 2018
silkscreen on wood panel
28 x 24" framed ed. 6/6
$3500
Shepard Fairey
Long Live the People, 2020 silkscreen on wood panel
28 x 24" framed ed. 3/6
$3500
Jeanette Pasin Sloan Cosmos, 2024 oil on panel
37.75 x 37.75 x 3" framed
$32000

$POR

Camille Claudel
L'Implorante (petit modèle), c. 1905-1907
sand cast bronze on bronze base
11 x 11 x 7" sculpture ed. 4

Camille Claudel

Abandon, 1905

model c. 1886-1888; reworked in 1905 for Blot edition (1905-1937)

sand cast bronze with brown patina and green nuances

17 x 16 x 7" sculpture ed. 13/25

$POR

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