Buying for that someone who has everything!

Let's just say you have a cousin who has everything she wants.... well, maybe except that $81 million dollar Monet Haystack painting that was sold less than two weeks ago at Christie's auction house.  And clearly you don't have the budget that even come close to affording that insanely priced painting, what do you do?

If you have been following my blog for awhile, you know I love buying artist collabs utilitarian stuff. Here's a collection of art x stuff (much more affordable than the Monet Haystack) that you can afford to giveaway as Christmas gifts.  And who knows, they may go up in value 50 or 100 years from now!!  ;)

Flower Packable Tote Bag.  $26.  This is a tote bag by Herschel Supply co. and is a great bag on the go.  You can fold the tote bag to 6" x 8" and just stick it in your purse.  The bag is designed by Takahashi Murakami for Complexcon.  At $26, you can't really go wrong. 

Water Bottle.  $28. This water bottle is designed by Alex Katz for Art Production Fund.  It's a perfect water bottle for using at a gym.  Just because you are sweating doesn't mean you can't be stylish at the same time.

All You Need Is Love T-shirt.  $38.75.  This T-shirt, designed by Damien Hirst for RED few years ago, is still on point.  All profit from the sale of this t-shirt goes to RED that finances programs to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa.  Fashion never looked so good.

Come to think of it, this is a perfect outfit for your cousin's yoga class!  She can use the Murakami tote to carry her Katz water bottole and Hirst t-shirt to her gym.  Now if only I can find an artist designed yoga mat....





 

A stroll through the New SFMOMA

 
SFMOMA had not been opened for that long but it certainly had made plenty of headlines.  The new addition done by Snohetta, next to the iconic Mario Botta cylinder, is beautiful.  But how well does the new addition talks to the original building is whole another matter.

I visited the museum couple months ago.  I was very excited as I missed looking at modern art here in SF and was eager to have them back into my life.  Having another world class building in SF is equally exciting and I was looking forward to see how Snohetta gel the old space and new space together.  Furthermore, I was looking to see how the existing collection speaks to the Fisher collection.

As I approach the museum on 3rd street from Folsom street, I wasn't sure if I was suppose to into the building from the old entrance via Botta's building or there seem to be another entrance right on Howard Street.  I took a chance to walk into a gap on Howard Street hoping I do not have to backtrack to the original entrance by Botta on 3rd street.  As luck would have it, looks like there is an entrance on Howard street although I did have to climb few stairs up.

Right near the entrance there is a giant sculpture by Richard Serra that reminded me of the one I saw at Bilbao's Guggenheim Museum.  I was happy to finally see one here in San Francisco.  Getting a ticket was easy and I got an audio headset to help me understand the collection better.  Off I go.

I took an elevator all the way to the top and start going from top to bottom.  The Fisher collection in the new building was impressive.  It basically has who's who of modern art.... from Alexander Calder to Gerhard Richter, from Chuck Close to Andy Warhol.  However, I'm not seeing any of the paintings that were in the old Botta building.  With the incredible collection from Fisher, SFMOMA's modern art collection will be elevated to second best Modern Art collection in the world but where are old paintings???

Finally I came down in the new building far enough that now it is connecting to the old building.  There is a stark difference between the old and new building.  I would think they minimally refreshed the old building to make it look more cohesive with the new one.  Well, maybe they ran out of money because nothing was done.  A good addition will make you feel the two buildings came together as one.  This one, unfortunately feels like two separate buildings that desperately want to get away from each other.  There is a stark contrast between new part and old part.  And the old SFMOMA collection are all hiding in the Botta building.  I came to realization that essentially the Snohetta building is the Fisher wing of SFMOMA.  There is no flow between the collection which begs one to wonder why doesn't Fisher just open their own museum and call it a day?  Why do they want to be under the SFMOMA moniker and then essentially want nothing to do with the existing collection?  Just seem so odd to me.

Once I got down to the first floor, I saw the old Botta atrium was gone and Snohetta had built a brand new stair right in the middle.  I was aghast to say the least.  Not that I was a big fan of the old Botta building but by building a giant stairwell in the middle of the atrium, Snohetta had essentially killed off the Botta building.  The essence of the old Botta building is that atrium.  Which made me wonder why didn't they just torn down the old Botta building and start anew?  To me that would make much more sense and make the whole museum feel more cohesive.  My guess is money.

I have to say I was happy to see the new addition but sad to see how separate it is.  SFMOMA right now is in a no men's land.  The experience of viewing the collection as a whole is disjointed and the experience of walking through the old and new space is odd too.  I guess that's what happen when you want a highly valuable collection to join the museum....you are at their mercy.  According to SF Chronicle, SFMOMA won't be owning the collection down the line either.  It's all on loan from the Fisher Art Foundation.  Although the loan is 100 years long and can be renewed at 25 year increment after, makes you wonder are all those art loans from Fisher family worth it for SFMOMA to bend forward and backwards for them?

 

Buy art or not to buy art, that is the question

If you have followed me on this blog for the past few years, you know I have suggested you guys to pick up some limited edition artwork here and there.  While art, like stock, is never a sure thing, but I always feel if you buy a blue chip artist's work, most likely it will increase in value while give you joy daily.  Of course most of the blue chip artist starting prices typically is five to six figures and often they can command seven or even eight figure for masterpieces.  I certainly don't have the budget for those one off pieces so I go for limited edition that are published by museums and charities by these artists.

Today, I went back to see the pieces I have recommended in my blog and did a search on the internet to see what they fetch today.  Here's what I found:

On January 9, 2015 (so about year and a half ago), I recommended you guys to buy a limited edition Cindy Sherman tray from Sundance Institute.  The run is limited to 500 pieces and sold at an affordable $150 a pop.  Today, I found one on ebay sold on June 5, 2016 for $950!  I also found it at an art gallery asking $1750!!  Now how many asset classes out there command this kind of return?!

On September 22, 2014 (almost two years ago), I recommended you guys to buy a limited edition print by Takashi Murakami whom is probably most famous for his collaboration with Louis Vuitton.  This print was sold on Yoox.com and you have two options.  One is called Contemplating Dark Matter and the other is called Standing on the Bridge, Linking Space and Time.  The run was 125 pieces each at $585 a pop, which includes frame and matting plus shipping.  If any of you have custom frame a print before, you know how expensive it is!  A quick search yield someone on Ebay in Ireland selling theirs for $950.    

On December 23, 2012 (three and a half year ago), I recommended you guys to buy a limited edition Peter Doig print from Tate Modern called Two Faces and a Guitar.  The run is limited to 500 pieces and sold at £350 a pop.  Today it is being sold by an art gallery for £950.  A listing on German Ebay sold for €800.

 
On December 26, 2012, (three and a half year ago), I recommended you guys to buy a limited edition print by fame photographer Mario Testino.  I even give you a discount code to save you £250.  I recommended the Kate Moss print as I believe it would be the more valuable among the selection.  This print had a run of 175 pieces at £1200 a pop but with discount code, the price dropped to £950.  This is by no mean pocket change especially back in 2012; one pound was worth about 50-60% more than dollar.  Fast forward to January of 2015, one was sold for £7,500 at Phillips auction house.    

Although not everything I recommended had gone up in value yet.  Case and point, I recommended to buy Jeff Koon's Split Rocker plate for $475 on December 4, 2014.  Unfortunately the edition is still not sold out so until it does, the value will remain the same if not somewhat lower on the secondary market.

Buying art is not always about investment.  I always believe you have to love what you buy.  But I do think if you stick with blue chip artists' limited edition artwork, you are likely to rip the rewards few years (or a decade) from now. 




   

Limited Edition Art selection for those hard to buy for

Pascale Marthine Tayou, LOVER £3,000

Roy Lichtenstein, Landscape Mobile (Limoges) Contact for Pricing info

Selgascano, Pavilion Model I £96, Model II £96, Model III £96, Model IV £96

Sarah Morris, Big Ben 2012 (2011) $1,650

Sam Taylor-Johnson, Second Floor (2014) $8,400

Rachel Whiteread, Secondhand (2004) $1,100

Herzog & de Meuron, Tate Modern Brick £1,450

Yves Klein, Table Or Contact for Pricing info

 

Sou Fujimoto, Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2013 £55

Josef Albers, Homage to the Square Rug, $995

Jeff Koons, Split-Rocker Vase, $5,000

Wayne Thiebaud, Little Red Sukers, $8,500

Soccer Mom's revenge!

Michelle Grabner is a professor at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and one of the curators for 2014 Whitney Biennial.  End of last year, she had an exhibition at James Cohan Gallery. 

This is what Michelle said about her art: "These works were based on particular materials such as washcloths, blankets and window screens. As in Scarry's quote, the work evolved away from the particular toward the universal. Although the process of employing found material as a template continued, the material--a simple cotton weave blanket--now provided only a roving grid pattern that did not reveal itself as a specific item. Local color evidenced in the previous bodies of work gave way to full spectrum bands of radiating pastel color, again making a shift toward Scarry's "distributional." This relationship to beauty is also underscored in Plato's requirement that we move from eros to caritas, from the interest in the beauty of one person toward the beauty of all. "Being good, bearing knowledge and acting fairly" are classical virtues I would like to reinvestigate via abstraction within the contemporary discourse of painting. I am most concerned with metaphorically conveying beauty as compassionate and good-hearted, that which is very distinct from the sublime." 

Ken Johnson's, art critic at NY Times, reviewed Michelle Grabner exhibition and this is what he had to say about her art: "Nothing in all this is more interesting than the unexamined sociological background of the whole. If the show were a satire of the artist as a comfortably middle-class tenured professor and soccer mom, it would be funny and possibly illuminating, but it’s not."

In 2015, this is Michelle Grabner's rebuttal.

Ansel Adam on the cheap!

Since 2007, 20x200 has been selling gorgeous prints online.  Their motto is "It's Art for Everyone".  And they do mean every one.... whether you make 20k a year or 2M a year.  Every print they make, they make them in several different sizes.  In this case, The Tetons, Snake River by Ansel Adams, they have 8"x10", 11"x14", 16"x20", 20"x24", and 30"x40".  Each size has different editions.  For example, 11"x14" has 500 editions available whereas 30"x40" only has 10 editions available.  The starting price range from $24 to $1800.  So for price of a cheap dinner out ($24), you can buy an original limited edition print by Ansel Adams!  How awesome is that?! 

New Jeff Koon Balloon Dog!

If you have been following Jeff Koon's limited edition artwork, then surely you know of balloon dog plates that were published by MOCA back in 2002.  I remember seeing the dog plates in red and blue and didn't think much of them.  I believe they were asking $595 each.  Well, unfortunately for me, I did not stock up on those plates (more like I didn't get any).  Today, those balloon dog plates regularly sells for $16,000-$20,000.  Pretty good investment if you ask me!  MOCA together with Jeff Koons had decided to publish a different color balloon dog plate recently (all net proceeds will be dedicated to MOCA's endowment).  This time in yellow.  Unfortunately the price is no longer $595....Now it's a princely sum of $8,000.  I guess that's still a bargain considering red or blue dog plates routinely sells for $16,000 and up.  So for those readers with deep pockets, you may want to buy up these "cheap" plates since I'm sure once they are sold out, you will start to see them popping up at Christie's or Sotheby's for $16,000 and up.  One per customer per MOCA website.  Start to get your aunt Betty and nephew John calling MOCA.  LOL.   

Takashi Murakami + Vans = Love!

This past Saturday had been one of the busiest day for sneaker heads across US.  Apparently two collaborations decided to drop on the same date: Yeezy for Adidas and Takashi Murakami for Vans.  Naturally both were sold out instantly online and in stores.  I thought one can only get Murakami for Vans in stores so I had planned out which ones I would go to first.  But later I found out that they were also being sold online from various outlets!  Wish I had known!!!   

There were a total of 6 designs for women and men.  The shoes were unisex.  But basically they have two distinct patterns.  One is smiley flowers and the other is skulls.  The flower ones came in multi-color, blue, and silver on white.  The skull ones came in yellow, blue, and gold on white.  He also did three different skateboard decks: skulls, smiley flowers, and self portrait.  Additionally, there is three different t-shirts and three different toddler shoes.  Sounds like tons of stuff to buy!   

I found there were only three stores in SF bay area that had them.  And only the Berkeley store carried the skateboard decks.  I made the decision to go to the SF ones instead because the Berkeley one did not carry silver flower on white vans which is the one I wanted the most.  Although I would be very happy to settle for a pair of blue flower or multi-color flower.

I got to the store about 15 minutes before opening.  There were about 15 people in front of me so I was a bit nervous... thinking they may ran out of shoes.  Apparently some of those people were there to pick up their Yeezy shoes and not Murakami for Vans.  When I got into the store, they were sold out all the flower t-shirts (which I'm not sure I wanted one anyway) and self portrait t-shirt (only S left).    I was pretty sure I wasn't going to fit into the S so I let it pass.  They also sold out of multi-color flower vans.  I was able to get a pair of silver on white flower shoes in my size (woohoo) and a pair of blue flower shoes a half size bigger than I would normally wear (hurray).  Apparently that was the last pair of blue flower vans they have left. 

As I was leaving, I saw about another 10 people waiting in line.  I hope they get what they were looking for.  I did ended up trekking to Berkeley to see if they had anything left.  They were wiped clean and had only a pair of yellow skull vans (but a size too small for me) and a pair of blue skull vans (a size and a half too small for me).  I did see them put those two pair up the following day online which of course they were gone in a nano second.

I checked on Ebay and apparently that's where all the shoes went.  Although honestly they must have released very few pairs at each store as I checked for my size, there really isn't that many available.  The skateboard decks turned out to be the hottest item on Ebay as I expected they would be.  Most of them are selling for around $600 a deck at the low end (retailed for $80 each) and the most sought after multi-color flower ones are trending around $1000!   

Alex Katz for everyday use

Nope, Alex Katz can't be your daily personal slave!  But you can buy his collab stuff from Barney's New York.  Alex is collaborating with Art Production Fund and BNY to create a limited edition collection of houseware and clothing accessories.  The home goods range from candles to napkins.  And accessories rang from scarf to tote.  All proceeds go to Art Production Fund which is a non-profit organization dedicated to commissioning and producing ambitious public art projects, reaching new audiences and expanding awareness through contemporary art.  I am all for creating art and I can't think of a better way to purchase fabulous stuff while supporting this great organization! 

Calouste Gulbenkian Museum's Fabulous collection

Everyone has heard of small museums like Isabella Stewart Gardner museum in Boston or Frick Collection in NYC.  But not many people have heard of Calouste Gulbenkian Museum in the US.  If you ever go to Lisbon, it's a must stop.  This museum is basically a personal collection for Calouste.  He was born in Constantinople but live mostly in United Kingdom and France.  Towards the end of his life, he moved to Lisbon.  He made his money in oil and was a major shareholder of Royal Dutch/Shall company.

This museum is divided into eight different concentrations: Egypt, Greek, Coin, Middle East, Far East, 18th Century French Furniture, Western paintings range from quattrocento to impressionist, and Rene Lalique. 

The best part of the museum is probably the 18th century French furniture.  The collection here is as good as any large American museum.  There is a huge collection of French silver which is very rare as most French silver were melted down during wars in 18th century.  I would say their French silver collection is better than Metropolitan Museum in NYC or Waddesdon Manor in London.

Another highlight may be the large jewelry collection by Rene Lalique.  Most people when they hear Lalique they think of crystal vases.  But during Art Nouveau period, Rene Lalique was arguably the best jeweler during that time.  Two of the best examples of Rene Lalique jewelry is actually housed at this museum: Dragonfly Broach and Serpents Pectoral.  The pieces are actually quite large in person and they are absolutely exquisitely made.  Like all artwork, you have to see them in person to appreciate them; photos do not do them justice.

      

Walk all over Damien Hirst

These boots are made for walking and they are made for walking all over Damien Hirst's Beautiful saucy spit roast it'll all end in tears rug!!  Never mind about the art's long title....  But this limited editioned (7) rug will cost you a hefty $45,000 if you want to walk all over it.  While this is not a cheap rug by any means, but when was the last time one can purchase a Damien Hirst art work that is 6'6" wide and cost less than a million dollars?

Eat off a Calder!

Nope, you cannot eat off a Calder mobile or stabile.  That's why Calder foundation teamed up with Bernardaud to come up with limited edition porcelain plates to celebrate Calder.  These 3000 editioned plates comes in a pack of six and are priced at $550 per pack which is about $92 a plate.  I'm not sure if these will ever go up in value as Calder himself did not personally collaborate with Bernardaud.... But these plates do look beautiful and I think they look much better as wall decorations or as dinner service chargers than something you would eat off.  The designs on the plates will clash with any food you put on them so I don't recommend using them as dinner plates.  

Follow me!

Remember when you were younger, you probably had a pull toy that you pull to everywhere with you.  Well, one of my favorite artist Yoshitomo Nara designed a pull toy for your toddler to play with.  It's an adorable dog!  This dog is made of hardwood and is painted with none-toxic finish.  This 2 pound puppy is made in France and is friendly to everyone!  ;)

Cindy Sherman, the ever changing lady

Cindy Sherman is indeed the master of disguise.  This film director and photographer never seize to amaze me what she will come up with next.  She's a consummate solo artist who does everything herself; from doing her own makeup and hair to taking pictures.  What brought her fame is the Untitled Film Stills series she did in 1977-80.  This series consists of 69 black and white photographs of her in different roles and different settings. These photographs are reminiscent of American film noir in the 1940s-60s.  In 1995, MOMA purchased the whole lot in one swoop.  Today, you can have a slice of the Untitled Film Stills by going to Sundance Institute.  Cindy Sherman is releasing a limited edition (500) porcelain tray for an affordable ($150).  Her photographs from this series usually sell for $200,000 to over $2,000,000.  Buy it while you can because I predict this will sell out fast!  

Jeff Koons artwork on discount?

One of the most talked about artist in the world right now is Jeff Koons.  Whether he's breaking auction records or mounting exhibitions, his art is always highly sough after.  Regardless what you think of his work, it would have been tremendously profitable for you had you purchased his artwork early on.  Case and point: I wrote on this blog two years ago about his limited edition sculpture puppy.  Had I purchased the limited edition puppy vase when I wanted to back in 1998 for $1,600, I could easily sell it today at auction for about $13,000 today.  Well, MOMA is selling his limited edition Split Rocker plate for $475.  But if you purchase the plate on member appreciation day (December 11-15), you get an additional 20% off.  Now that's what I called a bargain!      

You can have what Reese Witherspoon has!

Have you seen that Vogue's 73 question interview of Reese Witherspoon?  If you have, no doubt you enjoyed the fabulous tour of her home.  In case you are wondering where she got that framed Mark Ryden print in her foyer titled Silence, well wonder no more!  You can get it at MOCA's website.  If you can recall, I also wrote about Mark on my May 21 post this year.  I guess if you want something in common with the Hollywood royalty, you might want to get a Mark Ryden print or two....;) 

A limited edition art from Takashi Murakami that won't break your bank

Yoox not only brings everyone gorgeously made clothes at a very reasonable price, but they also from time to time collaborate with artists to beautify one's environment.  Case and point:  The latest Yoox art collaboration is with Takashi Murakami who needs no introduction with fashion crowds.  After all, who can forget Louis Vuitton bags with printed flowers, pandas, and jellyfish eyes?  Takashi made two exclusive prints for Yoox this time around.  Typically his print editions are 300 but in this case, it is only 100!  Usually smaller the edition, higher the price a print commands.  However, in this case, these limited edition prints are only $585 each.  A similar size Murakami prints at 300 editions usually starts from $1000 and up unframed.  These smaller editioned prints are not only cheaper than the price he typically commands, but they are also framed.  I anticipate these prints will go very fast so get them while supplies last!

Rare Renaissance Manuscript by a female author

We all heard of William Shakespeare and Leonardo da Vinci, but how many of us heard of any names of female authors from Renaissance period? Or are women during that time even educated enough to write a manuscript?!  As anyone can imagine, majority of the population can barely read thus having a publish female author is extremely rare.  Luckily, Christie's recently found some manuscript by Catherine D'Amboise.  This is the third known prose work attributed to her.  In a world dominated by male writers during Renaissance, this manuscript is a rarity indeed. 

Buy Christmas art gift now?!

Is it too early to start buying Christmas gifts?  I don't think so!  LOL.  It's better to buy some now when things are marked down than to buy retail later on IMO.  For those who have modern art lover friends, here's a good solution for ya:

This red Damien Hirst t-shirt is 50% off and all the profit goes to Global fund (recipient of RED funds) that finances programs to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa.  Buying a t-shirt never felt so good or fashionable! 

No doubt you know Jeff Koons is having a retrospective at Whitney Museum in NYC.  Here's a t-shirt that will go very well with that exhibition!  Again, all the profit from the t-shirt goes to Global fund (recipient of RED funds) that finances programs to fight AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria in Africa.

Do you want to have something in common with Leonardo DiCaprio?

Even New York Times is writing an article on Mark Ryden.... That's when you know you have made it despite all those art world taste makers cringing at his kitsch paintings.  No matter, Hollywood celebrities are clamoring for his work; from Katy Perry to Amanda Seyfried to Leonardo DiCaprio.  Even the infamous Lady Gaga meat dress was inspired by one of his painting.  His new show, The Gay 90s, opened on May 3rd at Kohn Gallery in LA.  His regular paintings sale for 200k to over a million.  But you can have one of his limited edition print for much less than that.