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Research reports

Read the research. See how artistic value takes shape.

In-depth readings on collecting, markets and cultural participation

Showing 21 of 21 readings

2026 U.S. Art Market ReportRESEARCH READING / 01
Markets & finance · 6 min read

Reading the U.S. art market: recovery, samples and collecting decisions

Sales value and sold volume can move in different directions. Read methods, major collections, women artists and macro views before comparing sale proposals and preparing a handover.

  • Value recovered while sold volume declined in the specified New York auction sample.
  • Auction records, bank payments and economic views have different scopes.
Bank of America × ArtTactic · 2026Explore the reading
Impressionist, Modern, Post-War & Contemporary Art — Auction Guarantee Analysis, 2016 H1–2026 H1RESEARCH READING / 02
Markets & finance · 5 min read

Who takes the risk before the bidding starts? Auction guarantees explained

A seller may have a minimum financial commitment before bidding begins. This report traces guarantees across sellers, auction houses and outside backers, asking what rising sales reveal about competition.

  • Guaranteed hammer value reached about $1.78 billion in H1 2026, up 93.5% year on year.
  • Third-party guarantees accounted for 98.2% of guaranteed value, a funding share rather than a return.
ArtTacticExplore the reading
Art Market Confidence Survey — September 2026RESEARCH READING / 03
Markets & finance · 5 min read

Does greater confidence mean the art market is doing better?

Think of confidence as a thermometer for sentiment: it describes what respondents believe, not a promise about the future. Compare auctions, the primary market, price segments and artists’ short- and long-term standing.

  • Overall confidence rose from 43 to 56, crossing the threshold of 50.
  • Auction confidence was 78 and primary-market confidence 51; recovery differed by segment.
ArtTacticExplore the reading
Museum and Public Funding — Decrease in Public Funding? A Worldwide Answer from MuseumsRESEARCH READING / 04
Museums & institutions · 5 min read

Museums and public funding: why stable budgets can still mean less capacity

This global study asks who finances the expanding responsibilities of museums. The reading separates samples, funding definitions, regional contexts, alternative income, labour and governance, connecting financial strategies to public purpose.

  • Flat nominal budgets can conceal inflation, energy costs and added responsibilities.
  • The 59 national responses and 119 museum cases are different samples, not a global census.
IRAPFM · UQAM · ICOM-IMREC project · 2025Explore the reading
The Intelligence Report: The Year Ahead 2026RESEARCH READING / 05
Markets & finance · 5 min read

Artnet Year Ahead 2026: who participates in the auction recovery?

Annual auction growth does not mean every artist, region or price band recovered. This report combines data with changing sales channels: major works attract competition while some transactions move behind closed doors.

  • Fine-art auctions reached $11.7 billion, up 13.3% but below 2021.
  • High-value works and major collections drove an uneven recovery.
Artnet Intelligence Report · March 2026Explore the reading
Global Art Market Outlook 2026RESEARCH READING / 06
Markets & finance · 8 min read

Global art market outlook 2026: where might recovery take hold?

Optimism returned at the start of 2026, unevenly across prices, generations and regions. This guide distinguishes expert sentiment from resale evidence and asks what would substantiate a recovery.

  • 51% of surveyed experts expected an increase, a direction rather than a growth rate.
  • Confidence favoured the high and entry-level tiers; primary and young contemporary markets remained more cautious.
ArtTactic · January 2026Explore the reading
RawFacts Auction Review · H1 2026RESEARCH READING / 07
Markets & finance · 8 min read

H1 2026 auctions: a strong rebound, but how broad?

Auction value at three houses rose 69.8% while sold lots increased just 4.6%. This reading separates exceptional supply from everyday activity through collections, cities, categories and online-only sales.

  • The $6.77 billion total includes buyer’s premium and excludes cars; it is not the whole global art market.
  • Single-owner collections account for 32% of value; value far outpaced lot growth.
ArtTactic · H1 2026Explore the reading
Art & Finance Report 2025 · 9th editionRESEARCH READING / 08
Markets & finance · 6 min read

Art and wealth: from ownership to stewardship

This extensive report connects art with family wealth and cultural responsibility. Eight thematic chapters explain the gap between growing needs and the capacity to deliver specialist services.

  • Protection, succession and family dialogue increasingly shape art services.
  • Rising demand coexists with fewer providers, exposing an expertise gap.
Deloitte Private × ArtTactic · 2025Explore the reading
China Art Market Report 2026RESEARCH READING / 09
Markets & finance · 5 min read

China 2026: the changes beneath a steadier headline

Near-flat Hong Kong auction totals conceal very different category trajectories. This annual update examines changes in online activity, high-end supply and the balance between markets.

  • Hong Kong all-category sales fell 2.2% in 2025; individual art categories differed.
  • Online volume can grow while supply at the top contracts.
Mishcon de Reya × ArtTactic · 2026Explore the reading
2026 U.S. Art Market ReportRESEARCH READING / 10
Markets & finance · 5 min read

The U.S. rebound: recovery for whom?

The 2025 rebound combines important collections, stronger historical categories and greater concentration. Bank transaction data adds a different perspective on where buyers are located.

  • Sales value rose while volume and artist representation contracted.
  • Guarantees and single-owner collections increasingly shape outcomes.
Bank of America × ArtTactic · 2026Explore the reading
The Art Market Beyond $1 Million 2025RESEARCH READING / 11
Markets & finance · 5 min read

Beyond $1 million: what supports the rebound?

The upper end regained momentum in 2025. Beneath record prices, this study identifies the importance of the $1–10 million band, canonical works and new bidders.

  • Sales above $1 million grew 19.9% but remained below the historical average.
  • The $1–10 million band contributed roughly 55% of high-end value.
Sotheby’s Financial Services × ArtTactic · Spring 2026Explore the reading
China Art Market Report 2025RESEARCH READING / 12
Markets & finance · 5 min read

China 2025: structural change in a downturn

The inaugural report studies Modern and Contemporary auctions in 2015–2024, explaining how a stronger long-term regional position can coexist with a sharp annual downturn.

  • A rising decade-long share can coexist with falling annual sales.
  • High-value concentration contrasts with activity at accessible price points.
Mishcon de Reya × ArtTactic · 2025Explore the reading
Women Artists in the MarketRESEARCH READING / 13
Collecting & culture · 5 min read

Women artists: visibility grows, parity remains distant

Representation and sales shares are increasing unevenly. This reading connects price concentration, gallery networks, generations and museum support to examine both progress and its limits.

  • Women’s sales-value share rose from 6.2% to 13.8% between 2018 and 2024.
  • A small high-value tier and major gallery networks shape the totals.
Sotheby’s × ArtTactic · June 2025Explore the reading
A Century of SurrealismRESEARCH READING / 14
Collecting & culture · 5 min read

A century of Surrealism: how history reshapes a market

Centenary exhibitions and new scholarship renew attention to Surrealism. This reading links its history and classification to women artists, Latin America and market concentration.

  • The study uses a broad, cross-generational definition of Surrealism.
  • Women and Latin American artists are important to reassessment.
Sotheby’s × ArtTactic · Autumn 2025Explore the reading
Hiscox Artist Top 100 · 2025 editionRESEARCH READING / 15
Markets & finance · 5 min read

New art cools: reading beyond the Top 100

Auction value for works made after 2000 fell while volume rose. Beyond rankings, the report separates recently made art, younger artists and speculative resale.

  • Works made after 2000 are not necessarily by emerging artists.
  • Sub-$50,000 activity contrasts with weakness in high-value and rapid resales.
Hiscox × ArtTactic · 2025Explore the reading
ArtTactic Deep Dive · Issue 1RESEARCH READING / 16
Markets & finance · 5 min read

The confidence cliff: generations see different markets

Experts in different age groups report sharply different confidence. This short study explores what an index measures and why a generational story needs careful interpretation.

  • Confidence combines six indicators; it is not a percentage of optimistic people.
  • Age differences may relate to experience and roles without proving causation.
ArtTactic Deep Dive · Issue 1 · September 2026Explore the reading
Supporting the Art EcosystemRESEARCH READING / 17
Ecosystem & careers · 5 min read

Supporting the art ecosystem: turning resources into public value

A gift is only the beginning. This study of regional museums examines the relationships and capacity required to receive, research and care for works over time.

  • Concentration and limited capacity can separate willing supporters from institutions.
  • Support includes objects, funding, expertise, networks and organisational capacity.
ArtTactic · Commissioned by Arts Council England · 2025Explore the reading
The SML Art Market Talent Report 2025RESEARCH READING / 18
Ecosystem & careers · 5 min read

Art-world talent: making a career sustainable

The art market depends on the people who keep organisations working. This talent study connects compensation, satisfaction and management to the sustainability of the ecosystem.

  • Rising pay does not necessarily offset costs, workload or expectations.
  • Region, organisation size and role matter when comparing compensation.
SML × ArtTactic · 2025Explore the reading
Art, AI and the Future of Creativity · Luxury Insights ReportRESEARCH READING / 19
Technology & creativity · 5 min read

Art, AI and creativity: how do we recognise value?

AI can enter image-making, design and client service without automatically establishing artistic value. Interviews and surveys examine human choices, intention and trust across art and luxury.

  • Administrative use, creative collaboration and recommendations raise different questions.
  • Artists’ choices, materials and context remain central to interpretation.
Cultural Comms × ArtTacticExplore the reading
The STELLA Report · Edition 01 — Women Collectors Shaping CultureRESEARCH READING / 20
Collecting culture · Patronage · 9 min read

How women collectors shape culture

A reading of collecting as cultural participation: whom collectors support, how relationships form, and what they want their collections to contribute.

  • Collecting can translate personal values into resources and sustained artist support.
  • Studios, networks and institutions extend influence beyond a purchase.
STELLA Alliance × ArtTacticExplore the reading
The Art Market Under $50,000 · 2026RESEARCH READING / 21
Market research · Starting a collection · 9 min read

How the art market under $50,000 works

Beyond headline auction prices: how collectors begin, how galleries operate, and why encounters in person still matter.

  • The $50,000 ceiling is much higher than the budgets most respondents commonly use.
  • Attraction, artist support and trust combine along a collecting journey.
Affordable Art Fair × ArtTacticExplore the reading