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Who are the art market's most profitable artists?


Rembrandt van Rijn is the most profitable Old Master of the year 2020, according to the latest edition of Artnet's 'Intelligence Report.' ― Picture courtesy of The Met via ETX Studio
Rembrandt van Rijn is the most profitable Old Master of the year 2020, according to the latest edition of Artnet’s ‘Intelligence Report.’ ― Picture courtesy of The Met via ETX Studio

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LONDON, March 26 ― The year 2020 was particularly difficult for the art market, between cancellations of major fairs and temporary closures of auction houses and galleries. But that didn’t stop some works from skyrocketing in price. Among the most profitable artists last year were Picasso, Zao Wou-Ki, Basquiat, Banksy and Matthew Wong.

Art sales reached US$10.1 billion (RM41.9 billion) in 2020. That’s a 23.7 per cent drop from the previous year, according to Artnet data. Despite these alarming figures, some artists have fared better than others.

This is particularly true of Rembrandt, who was the most popular of European Old Masters at auction last year. In total, his works generated more than US$21.5 million. The Dutch painter was followed by Italian artist Giovanni Battista Tiepolo and Flemish painter Peter Paul Rubens, whose paintings sold for US$18.9 million and US$18.8 million respectively.

And female artists?

In the Impressionist and Modern Art category, Pablo Picasso was the most popular with art collectors. Works by the Spanish painter sold for nearly US$248.3 million. Among them is “Les femmes d’Alger,” which was sold for US$29.2 million during Christie’s big four-city “relay” sale. Franco-Chinese artist Sanyu and Irish-British painter Francis Bacon came second and third in this category.

In postwar art, Zao Wou-Ki, David Hockney and Andy Warhol are among the top three. Two women are among the ten most profitable artists in 2020 in this category: Joan Mitchell and Yayoi Kusama. Their works were sold for more than US$139.3 million. This is less than the sales prices of works by painter and printmaker Zao Wou-Ki.

Banksy makes a splash

Jean-Michel Basquiat has risen to become the most profitable contemporary artist of 2020, ahead of Banksy and Yoshitomo Nara. The British street artist recently made headlines following the sale of “Game Changer,” a black and white work paying tribute to caregivers. It was sold for £16.75 million, setting a new record for Banksy.

Among ultra-contemporary artists, Matthew Wong took the lead. The paintings of the late Canadian painter sold for US$24.7 million. One of them, entitled “Shangri-La,” exceeded its estimate of US$700,000 to reach the unprecedented sum of US$4.47 million in October at Christie’s. 

For the latest edition of its Intelligence Report, Artnet also analyzed the nationalities of the most successful artists at auction in 2020. While Spain’s Pablo Picasso was the undisputed champion in all categories, collectors particularly appreciated works by Chinese artists. Americans and French followed. ― ETX Studio



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