Saturday, October 14, 2006

Art Top Ten


(image Bruce Nauman - Punch and Judy II Birth & Life & Sex & Death. 1985. Tempera and graphite on paper)

French fashion magnate François Pinault, also the owner of Christie's auction house, has been crowned the most powerful figure in the contemporary art world in 2006, according to the annual ranking by ArtReview magazine.

The list, in its fifth year, bases its rankings on commercial clout, intellectual influence and popularity.

The Top 10 are:

François Pinault.
Larry Gargosian.
Nicholas Serota – head of London’s Tate museums.
Glenn Lowry – director of New York’s Museum of Modern Art.
Sam Keller – director of the Art Basel event.
Eli Broad – U.S. collector.
Charles Saatchi.
Matthew Slotover & Amanda Sharp – directors of London’ s Frieze Art Fair.
Bruce Nauman – U.S. artist.
Jeff Koons – U.S. artist

Read more: www.cbc.ca/arts/story/2006/10/14/contemporary-art-list.html

5 comments:

Quitmoanez said...

What exactly are you trying to say here?

:)

Denis said...

Just thought that you artsy fartsy types might like to see who is controlling (and influence those who influence) your lives, that's all.

Lorne Roberts said...

hee hee.

i think this relates well to the earlier comment via bill mayberry about the "overvaluing" of american art. clement greenberg (critic) and the abstract expressionist painters of the 40-50's, etc, are a prime example of this. many of their contemporaries, who were ignored or scorned by the art world of their day (often thanks to greenberg's serious biases) could now be held up as more enduring.

i see this list as very american-centric. there's a billion people in china and also a billion in india. so i'd call this list "the most important art figures in the mostly white, mostly male, mostly euro-american art world."

i'm not disagreeing with the list per se--these ten are probably the 10 most important (as the list suggested) in economic terms, popular and critical terms within their narrow cultural milleu.

TheBlueMask said...

#11- Coutnage?

Anonymous said...

And while a legion of accredited art dignitaries held Paris, renegade Cezanne advanced in Aix. How many names on the list will stir recognition a century hence?