Q & A – Page 2 – Adam Lindemann

I understand your reasoning on the de Kooning retrospective, but look at it this way… What MoMA does is more relevant to the thousands visiting from abroad than to the art professionals living in New York. I had a similar feeling when I visited the Istanbul Biennial. It looked like a well-curated academic exercise for curators, museum directors, art professionals visiting Istanbul, but what about the public living in Istanbul?

Thank you Mr. Kocabiyik, and your point is well taken. Indeed a complete de Kooning blockbuster will bring in lots of people from abroad, and sell lots of tickets, but for those who know the work, albeit imperfectly, it doesn’t provide an experience that enhances the viewer’s understanding of this artist in history, it merely delivers him as gospel. In visiting the Istanbul Biennial, thanks to your generosity, I also… Read more

Too Big, Too Late, Too Bad.

Thank you Mr. Monrow, Indeed the De Kooning show is big and not particularly timely, I assume “too bad” refers to the regret that those resources may have been put to better use, in which case we are in agreement. There’s a silent museum crisis happening in NY, one that people don’t want to talk about- but you’re a big guy, and you stay out late, all good in this… Read more

Mr. Lindemann, Last week I attended the kick-off dinner in Bel Air for Pacific Standard Time: Art in LA 1945-1980 (the collaboration of 60 museums from San Diego to Santa Barbara, for those on your site who are unfamiliar). Could you generally opine on this art scene and, more specifically, let me know which ONE LA artist you would add to your collection, if given the opportunity and, more importantly, why? As an aside, I enjoyed your “art meets hotel” repartee with Mr. Perry, but would suggest that not all Aman hotels grow tired. Next summer, instead of Il Pelicano, give the Amanjiwa a spin.

Thank you Laurey, I’m really happy Pacific Standard Time looks like a hit. LA artists, there are so many great ones. I guess you mean young-ish… The top painters in LA right now (excluding the old dudes) are Mark Bradford and Mark Grotjahn – those are the ones to covet at this point- if you want painting. Look them up, get what you can.There are a lot of artists coming… Read more

There are contemporary art hotels and there are contemporary design hotels… you are an expert on contemporary art and contemporary design, so when are you going to open a contemporary art + design hotel? Maybe, you don’t like art hotels and design hotels. What is your favorite hotel?

Dear Mr.Perry, Art+Design hotels are usually done on thin budgets. I can’t think of any done particularly well, though I liked the bar Julian Schnabel did for the Gramercy Park Hotel in NY. I love the Hotel Splendido in Portofino, and I’m a fan of the Ritz in Paris, but I’m totally over the Costes. I guess I like old hotels like the Pellicano in Porto Ercole. I don’t like… Read more

I appreciate your writings on the art market which are always full of invaluable insight. My question is the following: if you had an opportunity to buy a work you love and have been chasing for some years, the owner being willing to sell after saying no for a long time, but demanding a price that is about 40% above market price, would you go ahead or walk away, even if the artist’s dealer had advised you to walk away because of the price?

Dear Claude, If you always wanted it, and you have the money, buy it! If you are thinking in terms of investment, it all depends if this artist’s market is on the way up, or down, or nowhere. Often an artist’s best (most famous) works are never available on the market, and that market may be on the up and up, then, 40% could be a good deal. Typically the… Read more

What influence has your wife’s keen eye and gallery experience had on your collecting experience and purview of the art mise en scene?

What can I say? Yes and no – your eye is a function of what you see and what you know – or what another can teach you. Information is key to collecting, you can’t ever have enough. And if you marry an art dealer, think how much you save on commissions!… Read more

I’ve noticed the giant bear standing on the rock in front of what i was told was your house, beyond the useful landmark it provides me to find my lobster pots at night and a new tattoo idea for my forearm, I would like to know; Is Urs Fisher a genius or simply a constructed fallback from a selected few who find that good art is today as rare as a 14-pounder lobster? On a side note, Jeff Koons’ Lobster is a fantastic tribute to this beautiful marine invertebrate.

Dear Lobsterman, I too love lobster, though sadly it is high in cholesterol. Is Urs’ Bear a great work of art? What makes any work great I often wonder…the image and its effect on the viewer. Though the bear+lamp combo is a simple one, the image and its huge scale create a powerful effect on the viewer, whether they be an art aficionado like myself, or the fishermen and surfers… Read more

I wonder what your crystal ball would reveal for African American artists and their art in the coming years. As the art world turns, do you see African American artists gaining in terms of their place in our increasingly open global art market as well as here at home in the United States? What do you see going forward? Thank you for your commentary.

Well, that one has no good answer. but here goes… Women and minorities are grossly underrepresented in the Art World, historically it’s been a white, male world. If we look at the famous African-American artists of the second half of the 20th century we get few… Jean-Michel Basquiat, Martin Puryear, Kerry James Marshall and, of course, David Hammons. Today we have Wangechi Mutu, Kara Walker and Julie Mehretu, but we… Read more

What’s going to happen this fall in the art market? Time to sell or time to buy?

It hasn’t been a time to buy for a while now. Prices are strong for the good stuff, if you happen to have what someone else wants. Josh, you’ve been around this quite a while (bearing a strong resemblance to Willem de Kooning, even), and I read your BaerFaxt.com to keep myself informed all the time. Everything in life is cyclical, and the art market is no different. There are… Read more

How Much for the Basquiat?

Dear Christie’s Senior Vice President, Anchorage:
I have owned about 10 Basquiats in my life, and I had the pleasure of seeing a Michael Jackson concert with him in 1984, and watching him smoke a huge spliff. I don’t want to pull my Basquiat off the wall, however, I’ll never say never. Perhaps if you have a great one to trade we can talk turkey, until then, keep your speargun… Read more