Antoni Tapiès (1923)

[29 Apr 2004]

 

The Barcelona Museum of Contemporary Art is hosting a major Antoni Tapiès’ retrospective until 9 May 2004, showing more than 200 works spanning all of the artist’s periods. At auctions, the Antoni Tapiès price index has made little headway in the past two years.

Born in Barcelona in 1923, Tapiès’ adolescence was scarred by his experiences in the Spanish Civil War and by his fragile health. He began studying law at university in Barcelona in 1944, but quickly abandoned this to embark on a series of self-portraits inspired by Picasso and Surrealism. From 1945, he spent more and more time painting and experimenting with new materials, turning towards abstraction and introducing collage to his works. His first solo exhibition was held at the Galerie Laietanes (Barcelona) in 1950. Tapiès then worked in Paris for a year, where he became interested in Marxist philosophy, met Braque and Picasso and discovered informal art with Dubuffet and Fautrier. He made an international name for himself in the 1950s with matter paintings. His works have been exhibited in retrospectives at all the major museums, including in Hanover (1962), Vienna (1968) and Paris (1973). The Antoni Tàpies Foundation was set up in Barcelona in 1984.
Strewn with cheap, elemental materials (dust, earth, mud, straw, wood, etc.), Tapiès’ canvasses go back to the origins of the creative process (hand and footprints, scratches, stains), featuring letters (most frequently A and T) and symbols (such as the cross, used from 1946 to create La croix de Papier Journal, a collage based on a newspaper deaths and obituaries column). The Catalan artist’s works refer to the drama of current events, the sacred and the human body

Artworks at auctions

While only 373rd in the Artprice rankings by total sales, Antoni TAPIES is all the same a familiar presence at auctions. Each year, 200-300 of his works change hands at public auction, 84% of these prints. Between 1997 and 2003, paintings accounted for just 11% of transactions but 83% of total sales. The artist’s record dates back to 1990 when Bois et marron troué, a panel more than three metres long from 1969, fetched FRF 4.3 million (EUR 655,531) at Loudmer (Paris). His large canvasses from 1950-1960 remain his most expensive pieces, with works from this period going for EUR 150,000-300,000.

Number of transactions 1997-2003weight by media category

However, 70% of paintings go under the hammer for less than EUR 70,000, while 50% of drawings and watercolours change hands for under EUR 10,000. No drawing has reached the EUR 100,000 threshold since 1991. In fact, some small drawings can still be picked up for less than EUR 2,000, such as Testimoni del Silenci (1970), which sold for EUR 2,000 in January 2004 at Ansorena (Madrid). Collectors with less than EUR 1,000 to spend will find prints offer the best opportunities, with almost three-quarters (100-150 a year) going for less than this figure.

The market places

Antoni Tapiès’ international reputation and wide choice of multiples mean that his works can be found in all markets: the USA, Sweden, the UK, France, Spain, Germany, etc.

Number of transactions 1997-2003/ weight by country

However, major works crop up only at UK and US sales. The best canvasses in recent years have been sold in London, such as Red Relief, 1958(GBP 360,000 on 25 June 2003), and Figure Landscape in Red (GBP 200,000 on 27 June 2001). The UK is market leader measured by value and accounted for 64% of sales of Tapiès’ works between 1997 and 2003.

Buy or sell

Lots sold at auctions

Overall, the Antoni Tapiès price index has made little headway in the past two years. After impressive gains in 1999 and 2000, the market quickly ran out of steam. Prices had been very steady between 1992 and 1999, but in 2000 collectors were suddenly gripped by a passion for the artist. Supply grew by 36% in the space of 12 months and demand followed suit, boosting prices by 65%. But buyers became choosier in the face of this volume of transactions, and the bought-in rate hit 40% in 2000. The market cooled off in 2001, after the bubble, with prices dipping but remaining well above 1999 levels. Tapiès’ price today is 18% above his 1992 level, but still below that of 1990.

Artprice Indexall media categories, base January 1997 = 100

The artist seems to have experienced a two-speed market over the past two years. In 2003, more paintings sold, and very attractive canvasses were rare and in constant demand, but prices slid. Artprice recorded a 6% drop in the price of these paintings between 2002 and 2003. Conversely, the supply of paper works shrank, stimulating prices. The print price index gained 26% in 2003, while the increase for drawings was 33%.