The role of art in growing your wealth and viability of art as an investment were two of the session topics at the London Business School's recent art investment conference.
Keynote speaker Anna Dempster, an economist and senior lecturer at Soetheby's Institute of Art, said art as an asset class presented significant opportunities at a time when an estimated $2 trillion of artworks are currently held in private hands. But other panelists disagreed with the positioning of art as an asset class. "Art is an asset, not an asset class," said Luke Dugdale, director of the Royal Bank of Canada's British-based wealth management division. "If it were an asset class, the Financial Conduct Authority would regulate it and that would kill the art world. It's a market in which everyone can be an advisor."
The conference was wrapped up by self-confessed flipper Kenny Schachter. "An asset class generates a return on investment, whereas with art the dividend is visual," he said. "But if you buy art low and sell high you can make extraordinary money." Read more...
