Wonder

Research Outline

Prepared for Arabella L. | Delivered November 1, 2019

Large Scale Sculpture Market

Goals

Gain an understanding of the market for large scale sculptures, as well as case studies of sculpture  artists who have been successful in different markets

Early Findings

While private collectors in the past tended to favor smaller household size art, private collectors are beginning to have larger apartments or live in former industrial buildings, making it more likely they’ll invest in large scale sculptures.  
Many private collectors have also built large private museums for which they may buy large scale sculpture.
For example, Indonesian-Chinese collector Budi Tek purchased an old airplane hangar, turning it into a private gallery in which he houses many large scale artworks.
 Financial investment groups are also buying large scale art, with some companies starting mutual funds for art and sculptures.
The format for these art based mutual fund companies is to invest customers' money into art they wouldn’t purchase themselves, often due to storage or price limitations, that are likely to increase in value and have a strong ROI.
The art based mutual fund trend has increased the sale of both art as a whole and sculptures, as it increases overall spending power.  
It’s also noted that most art purchases are likely to be made by the super rich, with private sculpture purchases likely driven by a small group of exceptionally wealthy collectors who purchase items that are represented by high-profile galleries.  
Art collecting as a whole has begun to expand in economies that have seen increased economic liberalization, such as India, China, and Eastern Europe. 