"Without politics and pornography": how geopolitics has changed the art business

The owners of their own galleries Marianna Sardarova and Polina Askeri told RBC how the art market is adapting to the geopolitical situation,how much do Russian artists cost and who is currently investing in contemporary art

After the start of the special operation in Ukraine, the Russian art market was cut off from international exhibitions and fairs. Leading galleries have lost the opportunity to represent domestic artists abroad due to logistical problems and sanctions against banks. More than half of collectors and about 20% of recognized authors, according to gallery owners, left the country. But interest in the works sold in art galleries began to show those who had not previously invested in art. For some, this was a way to save existing funds, for others, an attempt to master a new business area.

The owner of the Ruarts fund and gallery, Marianna Sardarova, and the founder of Art Online 24 and Askeri Gallery, Polina Askeri, told RBC who and how is investing in art now, what areas of creativity are most in demand among collectors, and what is the reason for the growing popularity of Russian artists.

What are Sardarova and Askeri known for?

Marianna Sardarova was born in Dagestan. Graduated from the Moscow State Institute of Petrochemistry and Gas Industry. Sardarova is the founder of the Ruarts Foundation and Gallery, collector, philanthropist. Her personal collection includes works of classical Russian art - from Arkhip Kuindzhi to Zinaida Serebryakova - and contemporary Western artists, including works by Keith Haring, Banksy, Tony Cragg, Santiago Calatrava, Jaume Plensa, Yayoi Kusama and others.

Marianna Sardarova (Photo: from personal archive)from personal archive)

Ruarts Gallery was founded by Sardarova in 2004. Among the artists working with Ruarts are Spencer Tunick, Kimiko Yoshida, Dmitry Aske, Sergey Borisov, Alexey Luka and Mikhail Rozanov. Over the years, Ruarts has implemented joint projects with galleries in the UK, Italy, France, Spain and other countries, and also participated in the programs of the Moscow International Biennale of Contemporary Art, in the Cosmoscow (RUSSIA), ARCO Madrid (Spain), Vienna Fair (Austria ) fairs , Art Beijing ( CHINA ), etc.

Polina Askeri  is a collector, gallery owner, founder of the Askeri Gallery in Moscow. Born in 1985 in Moscow. She graduated from the Moscow State University of Printing Arts with a degree in advertising and marketing and from the Theater Institute. Schukin. At the age of 18, she took the position of PR DIRECTOR of the ROSPOFilm film company, where she promoted the Russian films Men's Season: Velvet Revolution and Reel the Fishing Rods. For three years she lived in Paris and worked as a model in the Karin agency, collaborated with Roberto Cavalli, Dior, Levi's, Jitrois, cosmetic companies Feraud and L'Oreal and many other world brands.

Polina Askeri (Photo: from personal archive)from personal archive)

Askeri Gallery was founded by Askeri in 2016. The gallery is engaged in both the sale of art objects and the promotion of artists. The gallery is actively engaged in the development of the art market. Among the projects that Askeri Gallery is involved in is participation in the largest international fairs and exhibitions of contemporary art, as well as the promotion of artists both in Russia and abroad. Artists collaborating with Askeri Gallery include Kwan Yong Chan, Jay Yong Kim, Peter Opheim, Romain Froquet, Gleb Skubachevsky, Daniel Zakh, Maria Rudenko and Daria Kotlyarova.

"Art is the last rung in Maslow's pyramid"

— How have your sales changed since the beginning of the special operation? Do people still see art as an investment?

Marianna Sardarova : Those people who previously considered art an investment continue to adhere to this opinion. it is important to understand that contemporary artists are also an investment, albeit a high-risk one. I note that we have a whole galaxy of new collectors: young people who are just starting to collect collections and are not afraid to take risks. If we are talking about the old masters, whose works are kept in the Tretyakov Gallery or the Pushkin Museum, then they are still quoted. This is a status that people understand.

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Polina Askeri : To begin with, it is important to understand that not every person is ready to invest in art. This is the last step in the Maslow pyramid, that is, not one of the basic human needs. Therefore, people who come to us at Askeri Gallery with an inner understanding that they need art, as a rule, have already achieved certain heights in life. For them, this is the next natural stage of development.

As for the direct sales, they jumped strongly in February, when, with the start of the special operation, people were looking for profitable investment options. Many began to invest in art in order to preserve existing assets. There was a slight decline in the summer, but by September we found phenomenal buying activity. The circle of collectors has expanded significantly. Moreover, there were even stories when a work of art was bought in a clubbing.

Who is your target audience now? What percentage of Russians show interest in works of art? What is in the most demand?

Marianna Sardarova : Our target audience is young and successful people who have both the opportunity and the desire to acquire art objects. If we talk about gallery visitors, then 80% are young people from 16 to 35 years old, as a rule, with a good education. Even if they cannot afford to buy, they still strive to develop watchfulness. Most of our visitors are girls. This is partly due to Instagram (owned by Meta, whose activities are recognized as extremist and banned in Russia. -): the gallery space, designed by the Atrium architectural bureau back in 2003, is still one of the most photogenic in Moscow.

The average age of collectors is higher - it is 40-45 years. Although they are getting younger: there are buyers who are not even thirty. If you break it down by gender, in recent years there are 50/50 male and female collectors. This is again due to new economic opportunities and the emergence over the past 15 years of a large number of businesses run by women who show a genuine interest in art.

In terms of demand, paintings and sculpture are the most popular. Of course, photography is the closest art to the viewer. Less video art.

Polina Askeri : More and more Russians are beginning to get involved in art and collecting. Last year, the art market has a new young audience that chooses art at affordable prices, mostly interior. These people want to surround themselves with beauty, to harmonize the surrounding space. For them, art is primarily an emotional purchase. However, in addition to them, another interesting layer of buyers has appeared: these are collectors who treat art exclusively as an investment object. That is, they buy something that they have not seen in their eyes, simply knowing that this is a good investment.

 — How have prices for works of art changed? What factors are currently having a key impact on pricing?

Marianna Sardarova : Our prices have not changed. When there was a fluctuation of the ruble against a foreign currency, we fixed prices in rubles. Nevertheless, an individual artist may well have a price increase during the year. But this is not connected with geopolitics, but with the personal activity of the artist - this is the main pricing factor. If he has, let's say, two museum exhibitions a year, a foreign exposition and getting into five significant collections, it is obvious that his work will rise in price. And for someone in the same year, nothing happened and there is no reason to increase the cost of work.

Polina Askeri : The ongoing events have seriously affected the cost of foreign art in our market. After all, it is almost impossible to bring foreign artists to Russia now. Logistics has become much more complicated, as a result of which many market participants have raised prices by at least a third. As for Russian artists, the demand for those who meet the current demands of society has grown significantly. Among them is Daria Kotlyarova: her works were taken to the opening of the Lomonosov cluster, where President Vladimir Putin and Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin came. Of course, prices for her work rose by 10% at once.

"Projects put on hold"

 - What are the main aspects of the impact of sanctions on your business.

Marianna Sardarova : Probably, like all our colleagues: document flow and logistics.

Polina Askeri : The main problem that has arisen not only for Askeri Gallery, but for all representatives of the art environment in general, is closed borders. As a result, all the rest arise - difficulties with logistics, the inability to participate in international art fairs and exhibitions, the inability to work with foreign artists in full. As a gallery focused on international collaboration and dialogue, we certainly feel constrained right now. But I try to see it as a new challenge, which should eventually lead to a positive result.

 — Does the postulate “art outside of politics” persist, or has the geopolitical situation affected the demand for Russian artists and their willingness to interact with our market?

Marianna Sardarova : Everyone wants to work with Russia. But no one understands how. Projects have been put on hold. We physically have no way to communicate, except to send letters of support to each other. We mainly had ties with Europe. We were not told: "Russia no longer exists in our paradigm." No. Simply, conditionally, it has become more difficult to get a visa, for many months we have not been able to transfer money abroad. A terrible thing happened to the logistics: even if it is possible to transport works abroad, now it is so expensive that it is unprofitable for the gallery. Plus, we have contracts under which we report, pay taxes, and so on. How to do it now abroad? We do not have transparent and risk-free ways to get paid for sales.

Polina Askeri : Last year I was denied a visa to the usaWithout explaning the reason. Now I can't get to America. And although many American collectors are asked to come, bring works and jointly organize some exhibitions, this is physically impossible. The demand for Russian art remained both in the US and in Europe. But getting there is getting harder. Expenses for participation in international fairs have grown, tickets and accommodation have become very expensive. Financially organizing traveling exhibitions is now unprofitable. We have some support from the government, for which we are especially grateful to them. Now we are discussing with the Moscow Department of Entrepreneurship the possibility of participating in international exhibitions of our Gallery Association, for example, under the name Created in Moscow in Dubai or Shanghai. It is almost impossible to take the team out on your own, to take a stand, to bring and clear art through customs.

 — How is the work with foreign artists now? Are there any problems with the calculations? With the transport of works of art across the border?

Marianna Sardarova : We still have work on the commission. They are Kimiko Yoshida, Spencer Tunick, Corneli Tollens and Nobuyoshi Araki. Personally, we calmly communicate with them, we extended the contract with everyone. But how we will pay in the event of the purchase of their works, we do not yet understand. As for the EXPORT of works abroad, there are no legal problems when it comes to young authors. You get permission from the Ministry of Culture, a check, an agreement, a certificate - and that's it. As for more serious work, I'm not sure that now they will issue a permit for export.

Polina Askeri : I know that many artists of their colleagues refused to work with Russia and organize joint exhibitions. But our authors - and these are people from America, and from Spain, and from France - continue to work. Not a single artist refused to cooperate. The only thing we are thinking about right now is how to solve the problem of logistics in order to bring new works and organize exhibitions of them.

"It is unlikely that 50 collectors will collect Indian art"

 - In various areas over the past year, one way or another, there has been a question of opening new markets, finding new partners in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Are these markets promising for art? Do you see the potential to refocus on them?

Marianna Sardarova : In India and China, for example, there is an art market that is completely unknown to us, but has long been established. There are very expensive artists there that we know nothing about. I don't think our collectors are ready for such an investment. The same can be said about Latin America. Still, we are more Europeans. Despite the interest in artists from different countries, Russian collectors invest more in local artists. It is unlikely that 50 collectors will appear in Russia now, who will collect exclusively Indian art. If we talk about cultural exchange, then, of course, we need large international exhibitions and would attract a wide audience.

As for the entry of Russian galleries into these markets, the prospects are also ambiguous, but it's worth a try. We are thinking about bringing a number of Chinese artists to the gallery as part of an exchange. We have extensive experience working with Japanese and Korean authors, why not expand the geography. I am sure that the public in China, for example, will be interested in getting to know our authors.

Polina Askeri: If we look at the structure of the international art market in percentage terms, according to reports from UBS and Art Basel, then 43% is the United States, 20% is China, 17% is England. Further insignificant 7% - France, 2% - Germany, 2% - Switzerland, 1% - Spain, 8% - [fall] on the rest of the world. That is, the main sellers and buyers of art are Americans and Asians. The Chinese are certainly interested in Russian art. But working with them has its own peculiarities. They need to prove that you are not a one-day company, that your art is at least eternal. When we first came to China, a huge number of people became interested in our work. But sales were catastrophically small, we did not even recoup the cost of organizing a stand. But the second time the communication was more productive, they began to recognize us. Asians love brands. Besides, they have a strange perception of contemporary art. For example, for them, contemporary art is Alexander Deineka, the last century. As for India, I have been there only twice. And, frankly, I don’t know how ready and open this country is for such stories. I don't know of any strong international art fair that takes place in India. Although the first collector who bought NTF for several million dollars was an Indian.

“We have two rules: no politics and no pornography”

 — Do you feel any kind of censorship during the last year? Are there public or private lists of allowed or undesirable artists, art movements, themes and subjects?

Marianna Sardarova : We do not feel censorship on ourselves. From the very beginning, we had two basic rules: no politics and no pornography. Yes, many believe that art is irrelevant without politics, that it is the breath of modernity. That's the breath. You exhaled, and after a while this topic becomes an episode of history. We try to show what is relevant at all times: life, death, physicality and the inner world of the artist, let's say - eternal topics.

Polina Askeri : This is not entirely about censorship, but still there was an unpleasant moment. After the start of the special operation, one of the leading artists of the gallery, Gleb Skubachevsky, left us. After that, many collectors refused to buy his work for political reasons. The audience that has remained in Russia is very attentive to the choice of everything that surrounds them, including works of art. It is important for them not only how they look, but also who wrote them, what worldview and what position the artist has. In fact, such an attitude is very much in the style of modern art, where the personality of the author, his outlook on life and the concept of his works are one whole.

 — What new names, directions, formats were opened last year? What big deals have you completed?

Marianna Sardarova : I would call Diana Kapizova. We organized her exhibition as part of our grant. Now it is quite in demand.

At the Cosmoscow fair, we again had excellent sales of both already distinguished authors - Sergey Borisov and Mikhail Rozanov, and very young ones - Tosi Mlinarich and Sasha Raev from 01001011 Studio. At Blazar, we have sold over 50 works by Kir Esadov, which is certainly a record for the gallery.

Polina Askeri : In the last year, many artists have appeared who have become very popular in the restaurant environment. When we started interacting with the Coffeemania chain three years ago (the gallery supplies paintings for decorating the restaurants of the chain. -), many of my colleagues wondered why I needed this. However, throughout the world this is a historically accepted format of development that has existed, without exaggeration, for centuries. In Russia, it was last year that the restaurant business began to actively support contemporary young artists. They, too, are now struggling with a drop in attendance, coming up with some new concepts. Therefore, such a "cultural exchange" is in the hands of both us and the restaurants. It turns out a beautiful image story.

“We live here and now like Buddhists”

 In what direction will the situation develop in 2023? What are the main vectors you define for yourself?

Marianna Sardarova : Now the art market is in a difficult situation in terms of communication. It is difficult for us to understand who and where is located. Many artists have left. Only in our gallery three authors left. As for collectors, I would say that most of them left. And we don't know how long. Therefore, for the time being, we have decided to avoid long-term planning, focus on the domestic market and the search for new customers. No expectations. We live here and now like Buddhists.

Polina Askeri : Speaking about me personally, I am now preparing my own course of lectures. Negotiations are underway with several universities. In addition, this year we will open a new gallery space at Patriarch's Ponds. In March, we open an exhibition of Pavel Polyansky at MMOMA (Moscow Museum of Modern Art. -). Immediately after that, I'm going to an exhibition in Hong Kong, where negotiations with foreign galleries are planned. And towards the end of the year we will have new artists: Russian, American and Italian.

— In whom or what would you advise to invest now?

Marianna Sardarova : I would advise a Russian collector to invest in Russian artists. In particular, in street wave artists. This is a whole group of young authors who, through our efforts, have already found their fans and collectors, got into museum collections and are only becoming more popular.

Polina Askeri : We need to invest in those artists who are just starting to gain momentum, and not just buy blue chips. It is better to choose artists whose personal exhibitions are held in museums, whose works are already in foreign collectors. Personally, I always advise our clients to invest in the works of the world famous South Korean artist Kwan Yong Chan, whose works were shown at the Venice Biennale in 2022 and increased in price by 40% last year alone.