Artnet Magazine has a long article on happenings in the Art World in 2006 that’s worth a close read.

It’s interesting that Artnet would use the Abroise Vollard, Patron of the Avant-Garde” show at the Metropolitan (which I reviewed here) as an example of the ascendancy of the Art Dealer - that’s not at all what I see as 2006’s major development.  It may be true on the high end of the Art Market that the Art Dealer is controlling everything - but if anything, 2006 is the year of the Internet Artist - where some artists (one or two that I’ve interviewed here) are making a living largely using the Internet - developing a fan base.  I would say that online magazines, blogs if you will, like BoingBoing.net are crucial in that development of “Internet Artists”.  In fact, 2006 should really be named the year of the “Internet Artist”.

But I have noticed a very large number of excellent shows that have been running concurrently in New York City - almost as if we’ve reached a time where major shows will be constantly going on here - and in other places - because there’s so much art, so much to say and Art Exhibitions bring more visitors to Museums - let’s not forget that - which is driving all of this.

Charlie Finch thinks the most important development of 2006 was the complete takeover of the contemporary art market by hedge fund billionaires.  I think not!   I think there’s always someone using Art to build a fortune - it may seem like Soros or some other Hedge Fund manager is investing huge amounts to create investment havens - but I think as people look back at 2006, they won’t see hedge fund billionaires art owners as anything but a footnote to the developments of last year.   2006 was the year where artists became empowered.  Sure, it’s a different world for the art investor than the artist (strange - but I think it’s true).   I agree more with Ana Finel Honigman that one of 2006’s most exciting art events was the launch of Charles Saatchi’s “Your Gallery,” a MySpace-like website where emerging or simply unrepresented artists, often living far away from major art centers, can workshop, debate art issues, sell their art and flirt.   In fact, I wrote about “Your Gallery” about 4 months ago here.

Carlo McCormick thought the most important art event of 2006 in New York City was the Candle Building event I missed going to 3 weeks ago but did post about recently.  There’s a pretty good online video on YouTube that gives us a tour of what most of us missed.  I was actually there, right in front of the Candle Building - but missed the spot where everyone was standing on line for 2 hours to get in.  

Pedro Velez said 2006 showed that artists are embracing and re-shaping the art fair model by flocking to organize and show their work at parallel events, setting up independent tents “a la Courbet”.  I agree that there’s been a lot of Art Show Fairs going on that I have had nothing to do with - but I have seen one or two in NYC like Art 212, which I reviewed last September here. However, I disagree with Pablo on the legitimacy of Blogs - he thinks they’re worthless for art criticism - I think Pedro Velez is totally wet here - Blogs are the one of the counterbalances to the domination of Main Stream Media - and wealthy collectors who want to pump up the value of their own collections by making media write about them.  Blogs are under no one’s exclusive control - that’s what makes it so valuable.  If Pedro Velez does not like what he’s read - maybe he ought to look again.

On the other hand, I was totally unaware of what the Dia Art Foundation and The Drawing Center had done by closing in NYC - thanks to Jerry Saltz, I’m aware of it now. To quote Jerry Saltz:

“..Instead of renovating its tremendous 22nd Street Chelsea headquarters, or establishing another building, or even opening a temporary New York space, the Dia Art Foundation abandoned New York by shutting down all of its rotating Manhattan exhibition spaces. To ANYONE having ANYTHING to do with this reprehensible behavior, from the ex-director who in a very Bush-like move abandoned the institution after he shut it down, to all of the trustees, it is mind-boggling and heartbreaking that NOT ONE OF YOU openly protested or resigned over this negligent, irresponsible action.

The venerable Drawing Center, meanwhile, is this close to lost, having wasted years considering a misguided move to Ground Zero and supposedly continuing to mull a relocation to the South Street Seaport, where it would be little more than a tourist attraction. We all need to conduct a group intervention and tell the Drawing Center, “Snap out of it! Join the fray! Either move to Chelsea or near the New Museum on the Lower East Side, or even go to Brooklyn. Whatever you do, get your act together and start being important to New York again. As it is, you’re almost irrelevant!”

Again, I had no idea this was going on - and it’s another example of how fragmented the interests and loyalties are of people, in general.  We saw this in many areas, where the increasing micro fragmentation of audiences has created divided loyalties which can, in some cases, turn the trustees of a foundation, or the trustees of public institutions like Social Security- against it’s constituents.   That’s what has happened here.   The DIA Foundations has essentially found it’s interests, economically and politically departed from what Dia publicly stands for.

It’s happening everywhere - in all fields.  Perhaps 2007 will be a year of reexamination - of all of this.  Let’s hope so.