Podcast Summary: Slate Money – “Money Talks: You Should Buy Art”
Host: Felix Salmon
Guest: Bianca Bosker
Release Date: February 6, 2024
Episode Overview
This episode explores the economics, culture, and personal meaning of the art world, focusing particularly on emerging artists and the mysterious, sometimes intimidating art market. Author and journalist Bianca Bosker joins host Felix Salmon to discuss her immersive new book “Get the Picture,” which documents her firsthand experiences working in various corners of the art world—from galleries and artist studios to guarding the Guggenheim. The conversation moves beyond headline-grabbing auction numbers to examine why art matters, what it means to develop a personal eye for art, and how (and why) regular people should consider buying art directly from emerging artists.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Entering the Art World: Immersion and Motivation
[00:24–03:26]
- Bianca Bosker introduces her background: journalist, Atlantic contributor, author of “Cork Dork” and “Get the Picture.”
- She describes her immersive approach: “I ended up working at galleries selling art. I was helping artists in their studios. I was working as a security guard at the Guggenheim, and a lot more. But all of it is part of this journey to understand why does art matter and how do any of us engage with it more deeply.” [01:54–02:24, Bianca]
- She emphasizes focusing on the "up and coming side" of the art world rather than the blue-chip, headline-grabbing artists, arguing that the highest stakes and biggest financial insecurities are found among emerging artists.
2. The Economics (and Mythology) of the Art World
[03:17–10:14]
- Felix notes, “This is not the…fake Leonardo's selling for $400 million. This is not Larry Gagosian's private jet.” [03:17, Felix]
- Bosker reflects on the rarity of tangible financial success: most artists and gallerists aren't getting rich.
- The conversation highlights the discrepancy between art world mythology (genius rising to the top) and actual messy, competitive realities.
- Bosker talks about the opacity and secrecy in the art world, likening it to “mafia-like omertà” (oath of silence), which protects privilege, connections, and the image of the market as mysterious and elite.
“I got threats. I had, you know, people telling me that if I knew it was good for me, I would back away... The first rule of the art world is people, like, swear you to secrecy and then tell you something...utterly banal.” [07:11–07:58, Bosker & Felix]
3. Information Asymmetry and Institutional Influence
[08:00–13:54]
- Felix argues that information is power: “They make all their money…from information asymmetry.”
- Bianca describes the links between collectors, museums, and rising value—illustrating, with a real example, how a donor’s purchase for a museum directly inflates their private collection’s value.
- The two discuss how museums, particularly in the US, are dependent on wealthy board members, skewing public collections toward the tastes of the rich and often white male donors.
Memorable Quote:
“Collectors collect art and museums collect collectors.” [13:13, Felix]
4. Developing an “Eye” and Rethinking Expertise
[15:28–20:39]
- Bosker explores the idea of “developing an eye” in the art world—not just personal taste, but a cultivated awareness of context (school, provenance, who’s friends with whom, etc.).
- She discovers that connoisseurship now partly means understanding an artwork's context and social network, not just appreciating aesthetics.
- Becoming a studio assistant allowed her to “fan away that fog of context and look art in the eye and in the process, develop my own eye.”
“I think developing our eye gets us away from the necessity of outsourcing our opinion to the hive mind...to the tiny posse of people who have made it their job to sort of decide what’s important.” [19:52, Bianca]
- Felix and Bianca agree that real connection to art happens individually, through time and engagement.
5. Living with Art: The Slow Look
[20:39–25:39]
- Salmon references Bosker’s experience as a Guggenheim guard, where spending 40 minutes or more with one piece transformed her appreciation and revealed new details with each viewing.
- Bosker notes that most people only spend a few seconds with art. Her prolonged encounters fostered deeper, changing relationships with certain artworks.
“When I was working as a guard...I gradually started giving myself these looking exercises...to spend 40 minutes...staring at one artwork. And I had never done that before.... Each time I came to them, they changed, or I changed, but they weren't the same, and they just kept giving.” [22:13–25:39, Bianca]
6. Why Buy Art?
[25:39–28:51]
- Bosker advocates for buying art from emerging artists, not just for investment, but to directly support creators and develop personal visual literacy.
- She stresses that, contrary to perception, original art can be accessible: prints and works from up-and-coming artists are available for reasonable prices.
- The ability to trust your own taste is both empowering and a corrective to the winner-take-all market structure.
“Building your eye is one way to fight back against [the onslaught of images]. I think another argument for each of us building our visual literacy is that maybe in the process we can build a better art industry.” [27:00, Bianca]
7. How to Buy Art & Overcoming Intimidation
[28:51–33:17]
- Purchasing art should be about the journey, not finding a perfect answer; “taste is less a goal and more as a journey.” Mistakes are inevitable—and that’s okay.
- Felix raises the intimidating opacity of gallery pricing; he notes that galleries seldom display prices, making the environment feel exclusionary.
- Bosker acknowledges this: “It is strange to me that you could run a gallery and profess to want to show art that will change the world and yet...seek to discourage ‘ground level’ foot traffic from coming inside.” [32:38, Bianca]
- Listing prices and welcoming newcomers helps democratize the art community.
8. Gallery vs. Direct Purchase vs. Secondary Market
[33:32–39:20]
- Artworks purchased from galleries usually split proceeds 50-50 between artist and gallery.
- Galleries play a vital role in career-building and public exposure for artists.
- Buying directly from artists is great but may not always be feasible or best for the artist’s career.
- Secondary market (auctions, resale): Artists generally receive zero direct proceeds from these sales, though secondary market success can bolster an artist’s reputation and primary market prices.
- The art world is nervous about market volatility even below high-end, “investment grade” price points (noted by Julia Halperin’s $500,000 threshold); yet, as Bosker and Salmon point out, many successful artists continue selling regardless of secondary market fluctuations.
9. The Best Reason to Buy Art
[42:29–45:05]
- Bosker emphasizes that enjoyment and the lived experience with art are the best reasons to collect—transforming a home and consciousness, day by day.
“There’s this term in the art world that gets thrown around rather dismissively of couch art.... But it’s a damn beautiful thing, right? This idea that you’re looking at this piece day in, day out, and it’s seeping into your consciousness.” [44:15, Bianca]
- Living with art isn’t about perfectly curated gallery walls but about being surrounded by dynamic, personally meaningful objects—even if it’s a “weird ceramic sculpture of a guy jacking off with his hand in a bag of Cheetos.”
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
-
On developing an “eye”:
“Having an eye among connoisseurs in this day and age means having an eye for context, where context means sort of that web of names that surrounds a work.”
[16:25, Bianca] -
On art and money:
“There is this sort of unspoken agreement...that money’s not going to go away. They’re going to, you know, this artwork is going to appreciate in value...even though that may never be said.”
[41:33, Bianca] -
On visual literacy:
“We need to develop our visual literacy...not only to get more from art, but simply because not doing so...is essentially an existential threat in an era where we’re so bombarded with images.”
[26:30, Bianca]
Timestamps for Major Segments
- 00:24–03:26: Introduction to Bianca, immersion tactics, and first impressions of the art world
- 07:11–10:14: The opacity, secrets, and information-asymmetry in the art world
- 13:13–14:03: Relationship between collectors, museums, and the shaping of taste
- 15:28–17:06: The meaning and process of developing a personal “eye”
- 22:13–25:39: The transformation that comes from slow, intentional looking
- 25:39–28:51: Arguments for buying emerging art; developing visual independence
- 28:51–33:17: Navigating the intimidating gallery ecosystem and pricing secrecy
- 33:17–39:20: How to buy—galleries, direct, and secondary market impact on artists
- 42:29–45:05: Real joys of living with art and democratizing art appreciation
Takeaways for Listeners
- The art world is as much about power, privilege, and secrecy as it is about creative genius or investment potential.
- Most artists and gallerists are not rich; supporting emerging artists can have real impact.
- “Developing an eye” is both personal and empowering; spending time with art matters more than chasing expert consensus.
- Buying art isn’t just for the wealthy; prints and affordable works abound if you know where (and how) to look.
- Living with art day-to-day can bring joy, meaning, and even challenge—regardless of what the market says about its value.
- The most meaningful way to participate: trust your own taste, don’t be intimidated by art-world snobbery, and find work that resonates personally.
Recommended Action:
Take the leap—visit a gallery, ask about affordable works, and spend real time with what catches your eye. As Bianca Bosker says, “Buy art every day of the week. However, you can buy it.” [35:03, Bianca]