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🌟 Rising Artist

🤔 What you need to know: Born in the Netherlands in 1993, Cheraine Collette has honed her lens on the eternal tango between nature and humanity. Her work—a playful blend of photography and digital artistry—whispers the tales of untouched wildlife and human advancement. With her recent piece, "Spotless Elegance," Cheraine drives home a narrative of elegance and rarity, painting a scene where a vintage Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing 1955 shares the stage with the endangered leopard, Panthera Pardus Tulliana.

✅ Recent career milestone: With a sprinkle of her creative magic and a resounding "voila," Cheraine clinched 1st place in the Advertising Category at the Siena International Creative Photo Awards 2023 with "Spotless Elegance." This piece, part of her 'Limitless' series, harmoniously strings together the human ingenuity embodied in the classic Mercedes-Benz and the raw elegance of the leopard. This recent accolade is one of over 200 awards and mentions earned in a short span since 2019, garnering resounding applause from the global art community for her poignant narratives told through the lens.

😍 Why I Like It: Cheraine's work isn’t just a feast for the eyes; it’s a conversation starter, a gentle nudge to reflect on the harmony between man-made marvels and natural wonders. "Spotless Elegance" goes beyond the ‘oh, that’s pretty’ reaction, beckoning viewers to delve into a deeper discourse about conservation and co-existence. Cheraine’s ability to distill complex narratives into a single frame, while stirring a sense of awe and reflection, is nothing short of magic. Through her lens, she invites us not just to see, but to look—look at the world around, look within, and hopefully, look ahead.

🧐 Collector's Corner

🔍 Collector Close-Up: Denise and Gary Gardner have emerged as notable figures in the realm of art collecting, with a milestone reached in 2021 when Denise was elected as the chairman of the board of trustees at the Art Institute of Chicago, marking her as the first Black woman to lead a major museum's board in the United States. However, their passion for art is not newfound as they have been active collectors for over a decade.

💎Key Artists in the Collection:

• Kerry James Marshall: Renowned for his narrative portrayals addressing the lack of African Americans in the historical and cultural mainstream.

• Charles Gaines: Celebrated for his gridwork and numbering systems, often engaging politics, philosophy, and the broader society.

• Frank Bowling: Known for his abstract expressionism and color field painting, Bowling's works often explore geometric patterns.

• Rashid Johnson: Notable for his diverse artistic output, including sculpture, painting, and video, often addressing themes of African American identity and history.

• Firelei Baez: Renowned for her intricate works exploring identity, migration, and the interconnectedness of the diasporic experience.

• Sanford Biggers: Celebrated for his multidisciplinary works that engage with themes of identity, American history, and the broader human experience.

• Genevieve Gaignard: Known for her photographic self-portraits, videos, and installations exploring race, femininity, and class.

• Bethany Collins: Her works often delve into the intersectionality of language, race, and national history.

• Candida Alvarez: Celebrated for her vibrantly colored abstract paintings and mixed media works.

• Lorna Simpson: Renowned for her photography and multimedia works exploring identity, gender, race, and history.

• Lynette Yiadom-Boakye: Known for her portrait paintings of fictitious subjects.

• Samuel Levi Jones: Celebrated for his deconstructed law book artworks addressing power dynamics and authority.

• Dawoud Bey: Renowned for his photography capturing the essence and diversity of American society.

• Leonardo Drew: Notable for his dynamically textured sculptures and installations.

• Carrie Mae Weems: Known for her powerful photography and videos addressing family relationships, cultural identity, sexism, class, political systems, and the consequences of power.

• Igshaan Adams: Recognized for his woven works exploring identity and belonging, with a major survey held at the Art Institute in 2022.

💭 Your Questions Answered

Securing a discount in the art-buying realm can be as elusive as an artist's fleeting muse, yet it's a common dance between buyer and seller. This week's question is:

When is it O.K. to ask for a discount?

In the primary market, galleries often anticipate that buyers might ask for a discount, likely having incorporated a small amount of flexibility into the asking price. Yet, as the artist gains popularity, the discount often diminishes, if it doesn't disappear altogether. After all, with a queue of collectors waiting behind you, ready to acquire that coveted painting, asking for a markdown might earn you a polite scoff.

Now, if a renowned artist is the talk of the town, the asking price suddenly seems reasonable, especially compared to the fluctuating prices at auction houses. On average, a gallery might offer you a 10 percent discount, a generosity that might increase if you're a patron of their program.

The situation becomes more complex when venturing into the realm of buying secondary works privately. There's no fixed formula here; due diligence on pricing is your ally. A mix of factors, from market freshness, historical prices, to the painting’s condition and the artist’s color palette choices, converge to determine the "correct" price. And timing plays a crucial role. A seller eager to gather funds for a new venture might find your lower offer suddenly appealing - cash remains a powerful motivator in the art dealing domain!

The desire for a discount is natural, regardless of the scenario. But remember, the initial price might already be a bargain, or the artwork could soar in value before you can say “Banksy”. So, don't fixate on the price tag - examine the artwork, resonate with its essence, and think long-term.

🔗 Market Stories

• Whispers through the gallery halls reveal that Art Basel is making power moves! With the ever-glam Hayley Romer stepping into her glitzy role as Chief Growth Officer and digital maven Craig Hepburn tuning up the pixels as Chief Digital Officer, we're all eyes and ears.

• Hear ye, hear ye! The dazzling FAB Paris art fair is strutting its stuff back to the Grand Palais Ephémère. This November, expect showstoppers from the closets of fashion titans like Hubert de Givenchy and Karl Lagerfeld. Talk about fashion meets art realness!

• Seoul's art market might have that global glitz, but the latest Art Week seemed a tad lukewarm. Gallerists whispered about slow sales. Is the Asian art fair having its bubble moment? 💸

• Amrita Sher-Gil, our Indian art superstar (think Frida Kahlo vibes), just made auction history. Her iconic "The Story Teller" went for a jaw-dropping $7.44 million! Cha-ching!

• New York's legendary Foxy Production said their emotional goodbyes after 20 iconic years. Sterling Ruby and Sara Cwynar owe a bit of their stardom to this iconic space! Meanwhile, Hauser & Wirth is jazzing things up in Basel, and the Goodman Gallery is strutting down New York's Upper East Side. New spaces, new faces!

• Shakeup alert! Kim Sung-hee is now the art maestro at South Korea’s National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and Belinda Tate? She's the new queen bee at Indianapolis’s Newfields museum. Crowns adjusted and thrones claimed!

• Russia's State Hermitage Museum and Iran are exchanging some cultural love letters, while the Wildenstein family drama? Honey, that courtroom is more lit than a SoHo gallery opening!

• The talented David Adjaye's facing a storm, and Manhattan's playing hero by returning seven masterpieces by Egon Schiele. Justice for art, always! 💪

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