What is it that makes a p

[George Young]

Hello, Ted. I think you're right, that the artist's name is certainly
an important factor in what makes a painting valuable. In the auctions
I do I've seen this again and again. An unsigned painting or a painting
signed by an unknown artist or by a known but very lightly regarded
artist sells for almost nothing, while another of roughly equal quality
or eye appeal that happens to be by an artist with a track record for
high prices sells for much more. But other factors also enter in,
including size, condition, whether this is or isn't the subject the
artist is known for (eg a flower painting by an artist known mostly for
seascapes isn't going to sell for as much as a good flower painting by a
lower ranked artist who is known primarily for flower paintings),
provenance, grounds for authenticity or questions of sale -- and also
very important in the case of older paintings, whether or not the work
has been on the market recently. It often happens that a work by a high
ranking artist that has been on the market too recently will either not
sell or sell for less than a fresh painting by a lower ranking artist.
Everyone wants work that they think no one else has been offered -- I
think it's a throwback of some kind, the minotaur's demand for virgins
or whatever. Anyway, if it ain't fresh it ain't selling, despite
quality. Every now and then a great work by a little known or unknown
artist really takes off at auction and sellf for heaps of money -- but
it doesn't happen that often, and when it does the event is often
followed by a flood of inferior works by the same artist, driving down
prices again. Aesthetics and market value don't go hand in hand, but I
think there are areas where they overlap. I think at the very top of
the pile, the very greatest works of art also have the greatest market
value, but the further down you go the more chance there is for
divergence. Sorry to interject a crass material market consideration
into a discussion of value, but sometimes it's interesting to consider
other aspects of a philosophical question. Though I make my living in
the art market, and find it's a very tough way to make a living, I still
hope that most people look at and buy art because they like it and want
to look at it, not because they think they're going to make money on it.
In time, even dealers and collectors forget how much they paid for this
or that work, but they remember the feeling they got when they first saw
it and knew they wanted to have it.
All best
George Young
Young Fine Arts Online