TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Gagosian Senior Director Nick Simunovic has shared his insights on Taiwan's art market and the role that art plays in conflicts between countries.
The gallery participated in Taipei Dangdai 2023, which ended May 14 at Taipei Nangang Exhibition Hall. It was the third time the gallery took part, but the first time after the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020.
Gagosian presented works by new, emerging, and established artists, including Anna Weyant, Yayoi Kusama, and Damien Hirst. Simunovic told Taiwan News that they received a strong response from visitors and sold the majority of the centerpieces.
He has led Gagosian's operations in Asia since 2007 and opened its Hong Kong branch in 2011. He said Taiwan's art market was stable despite the pandemic and praised Taiwanese collectors for their sophistication and diversity. He also noted that Asian and Western buyers had different purchasing habits.
Nick Simunovic. (Gagosian photo)
“Art collectors in Taiwan are very well-informed and sophisticated. They have been acquiring contemporary, impressionist, and cutting edge artworks for many years.”
Simunovic added that art collectors generally make a purchasing decision based on a PDF format catalog. However, he did not think that online platforms such as the metaverse or WeChat would replace physical art fairs.
"There is no substitute for actually seeing the work in person. (Art dealing) is still a very high-touch business that requires a lot of personal interaction," Simunovic said.
He observed that Asian collectors tended to have longer conversations about artworks before making an offer, while Western collectors acted more quickly. "Ninety percent of the business in Basel Switzerland is done on the first day," he said.
"In Taiwan, the phenomenon of collecting is not going away and there is more and more interest in collecting as a lifestyle choice." He suggested artists try to build as many bridges as possible and called for the government and business support to help artists go abroad.
"In this very complicated moment, art is one of the few things that countries can agree upon as being important. Culture has a very important role to play in terms of helping to cement ties between countries rather than to drive them further apart," Simunovic said.
Taipei Dangdai highlights. (Taiwan News, Lyla Liu video)