To put it mildly,

The moment Hanks saw the picture pushed by Professor Sakai, the picture did not live up to his expectations after hearing the name "Wu Guanzhong" in his heart.

It can even be said that he felt quite disappointed.

It's like the boss of the company announcing a dinner invitation, you think it's a three-star Michelin menu, only to find that it suddenly becomes a KFC burger.

It's not that it can't be eaten, and it doesn't even taste bad.

It's just that the gap with what Hanks wants to see is indeed a bit big.

What Mars Gallery needs is a miracle, a trendsetter who attracts high-end art trends from all over the world, the next Andy Warhol or Picasso.

If anyone can create a genre of art that shocked the world like Pop Art, then the big boss Mars III is really willing to kneel down and kiss the artist's ass without hesitation.

Even with Professor Sakai's current artistic status and fame, the probability of achieving this goal is less than 10%.

Plainly

Mars Gallery sent Hanks in the hope of using tens of millions of dollars in signing costs, tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars in marketing costs, to fight for a miracle with a success rate of less than one-tenth of them.

Of course, the old-school painters like Kazunari Sakai are not like the avant-garde artists who are completely like building a castle on floating sand and playing with various concepts.

He has a subtle painting technique as a solid foundation for the value of his works.

Over the past five years, the prices of Sakai's artworks have been on a steady and upward trend, and collectors are confident.

As long as Uncle Sakai doesn't work hard like Kanye, it will be difficult for the price of the work to suddenly collapse and smash his hands.

After signing Sakai Issei, there is a high probability that Maas Gallery will not lose money.

Master Sakai suggested that Hanks change his target, and the work in front of him was much worse than Professor Sakai's painting.

It's not even a replacement.

"Who drew it? Any inside information? ”

Hanks blinked, smiled helplessly, and said, "If you can give me a name that Taylor Swift sounds like thunder, then Mars Gallery will be happy to work with her." ”

Hanks was joking, not kidding.

Art hype, or speculation, or speculation.

The work is not good, if the creator himself has an article to dig up, he can also sell it at a price.

For example, the works of celebrity dignitaries, students of Picasso, or students of Leonardo da Vinci's students with accurate documentation.

Anyway, if there is a selling point that can hit the collectors, it can be sold for a price.

The paintings of the German mustache are more sensitive, but they have always been bought, and the paintings of celebrities like Churchill may have a special sale every few years, and there are quite a lot of them in the art market.

France's Lisson Gallery started by partnering with rock star John Lennon and selling art from his wife, Yoko Ohno.

Mars Gallery's business direction is not too much about the works of trendy stars, but it will not turn down such an opportunity.

"It's a little too good for a star, isn't it? Amateur painters don't have the skills. ”

In the face of Hanks's obvious disappointment, Professor Sakai still looked like an understatement.

"But if it's the work of a mature professional painter, it's obvious that the painting is ...... It's not bad, it's just not good enough. Hanks told the truth, "This painting has no value for the viewer to go crazy, and there is no reason for the Mars Gallery to sign it." ”

What is the specific value of a work of art,

Outsiders who are not engaged in the art industry and do not have contact with art investment related fields are often incomprehensible or even unreasonable.

The works created by Leonardo da Vinci, Monet, Picasso, and Mondrian can be sold at sky-high prices, and people can easily accept them, because they are indeed well painted.

The intense emotions and outstanding techniques in the picture can be easily felt by the viewer.

But why did Duchamp send a urinal to the exhibition to be hailed as the greatest artwork of the century?

Why did a Dadaist artist sell for hundreds of thousands of pounds by just clicking on a blank piece of paper, and it was displayed in the pavilion next to Van Gogh's works by the National Gallery of the Netherlands?

Even now, in 2021, NFT digital artworks have been sold for tens of millions of dollars per pixel, some people use tin cans to fill poop, and collectors rush to buy them?

The reason for this is certainly not that Duchamp's urinal has any special function when urinating, or that the dots on the paper are extraordinarily round.

In the eyes of professionals in the gallery industry, these artworks are not the same category at all.

Even though they are all called works of art, the difference between them is huge.

There is a very simple and direct criterion for judging the value of artworks in the industry: classical art emphasizes technique, modern art emphasizes form, and avant-garde art emphasizes concept.

Classical art does not specifically refer to the two philosophies of art classicism and neoclassicism, but generally refers to the works of all painters who pursue artistic techniques.

That is, the traditional painting artwork in the impression of ordinary people.

They seek to impress the audience with the beauty of the work itself.

Impressionism, Post-Impressionism, Aestheticism, Realism, Symbolism...... All schools of art before the 20th century, including traditional Chinese painting, are included in this category.

The most significant difference between classical art and modern art and avant-garde art is that the "focus" of appreciation is not on the work itself.

"Judging from the traditional perspective of connoisseurship of classical art, judging from the photographs, I think this painting itself may not be qualified, and it can be called a master in your mouth."

Hanks zoomed in on the photo, looked at it inch by inch with a falcon-like gaze, and said, "From the part I can see, I can't see any flowers that can be interpreted in terms of artistic concepts." ”

In traditional painting, the value is all reflected in the canvas and paper.

A good technique is a twesome one with a bad technique, and an emotionally rich work is more valuable than a painting with a pale and empty emotion.

When people appreciate paintings, they are appreciating the brushwork and skills that the painters have poured into their works.

It's expensive, too.

However, in the modern and avant-garde art genres, more emphasis has shifted to interpretation beyond the work.

For example, Duchamp named the urinal "The Fountain", which was a satire on Ingres' famous nude painting "The Fountain".

"Why is the naked body of a beautiful girl art, but Lao Tzu's urinal is not art!"

He hopes to use it to arouse the audience's thinking that art can be an artist who is not confined to perfect brushwork and advanced techniques.

The focus is on society's thinking about aesthetics, not on that urinal.

Like poop in a tin can, the value lies in what critics can interpret as a "ruthless critique of consumerism" rather than in the can.

There is no difference between these two artistic concepts, and both can sell for sky-high prices at certain moments, and hundreds of millions of dollars are just waiting for leisure.

But the former price is more stable and more able to stand the test of time.

Excellent technique and fiery emotions are always as rare and precious as shining gold.

Ever since the Neolithic people began collecting beautiful stones and shells, the urge to treasure beautiful objects has been hidden in the genes of human beings.

Ingres's "Spring" has not needed to be interpreted, no art has been required, not even an illiterate farmer to know that it is a great painting.

Whether in 1856, 1956 or 2156, as long as the social structure of human beings has not changed, the extremely high aesthetic value contained in it is common, and it can be sold very expensive.

But the in the tin can is a work of art when the tuyere comes, and it is after the tuyere passes and loses attention.

To put it more simply,

From the perspective of investment,

Classical art is like gold, and avant-garde art is similar to virtual currencies that can make people rich overnight, and the ability to resist risks is different.

Traditional painters such as Uncle Sakai are popular, and in the eyes of gallerists, painters with excellent techniques are always high-quality assets that can increase in value steadily.

In Hanks's eyes, the technique of this painting is too inferior.

"So, you don't want to sign this painter?"

Uncle Sakai didn't seem to be in a hurry to sell Gu Weijing, but just asked casually.

"It's not that I don't want to sign."

That's not what Hanks meant.

The painting in front of me also has a sparkle point.

"It's a bit of a picture...... A bit of Lang Shining's meaning, this style of painting itself is very distinctive, and with this alone, Mars Gallery is a little interested in this painter. The level of technique is also enough to participate in some small art exhibitions. ”

The hunter agent eats the bowl of rice of appreciating artworks and judging the level of artists.

The eyes are very poisonous.

Today, driven by Gagosian and other top galleries, the art industry is much more prosperous than it was in the days of Van Gogh or even Picasso.

The ingredient of the bubble inflated is present.

But the objective fact is that even after adjusting for inflation, the average price of high-end art goods has increased dozens of times in the past half century.

In 1940, buying a painting of Monet in Europe was the cost of a Beetle, which was already very expensive at that time. Now he may have to hold the funds in his hand that can exchange half a dozen Rolls-Royce, so that he will be eligible to consider a great painter of Monet's magnitude, and it must be a very unpopular work.

Tens of billions of dollars a year circulate around the field, pushing many professional hunter agents like Hanks to look around for gifted painters with red eyes.

Maxima is not common, but there are more Boles who have enough art appreciation ability.

As long as you don't stay in a place that is too poor and remote, the probability of not meeting a talent like Van Gogh is much less.

Ordinary works, as long as he casually sweeps, he can understand the art genre, composition design, emotional expression, symbolism and metaphor.

The painting style of East and West has always been a pearl in the field of fine arts in the past, and Lang Shining's paintings are also very large in the world, and they also belong to the "Chinese paintings that foreigners can understand".

Hanks knows that.

It's just a sketch on the screen.

He still saw that there was Lang Shining's shadow in the picture, which in itself was a good selling point.

"Again, this painting is not bad, it's just not good enough."

"In the field of classical art, what Mars Gallery wants to see is a beautiful technique that is so outstanding that it makes people shiver goosebumps, the kind of true masterwork."

Hank scratched his head, looked at Kazunari Sakai on the side and said, "Professor, you know what I mean, if you are Sophie Marceau, this painting may only be regarded as a cheerleader when I was in school, beautiful as jasper in a small family, but not enough to flatter and kill all beings." ”

The fat uncle, who weighs about two and a half Sophie Marceau, knows that this guy is patting his ass, but he is still licked and laughs.

"Indeed, this technique is still a little green, not mature enough, and it still needs time to precipitate."

"Heh, how can it be so easy to settle down." Hanks shook his head slightly, indicating that he did not agree with Professor Sakai's opinion: "Most professional painters have almost the same level of art style and technique, and if they can be improved, they will have improved a long time ago. ”

"Are you going to sign or not?" Kazunari Sakai asked.

Hanks touched his chin and looked at Uncle Sakai.

The agent suddenly showed a somewhat sly smile: "If Mr. Sakai needs Mars Gallery to sign him, I will be happy to help you." ”

His implication is simple.

Mars Gallery can sign him, but for the sake of Professor Sakai's face, it can be regarded as a favor for Uncle Sakai.

And so it would have been.

It is natural for a peerless beauty like Sophie Marceau to be the heroine, but there are cheerleaders with beautiful eyebrows everywhere, and it is difficult to show her face in a big production by relying on her appearance.

If you still want to mix a third or fourth female with lines, either it's daddy, or it's godfather.

Judging by this photo alone,

Hanks estimates that the painter's painting level can only be regarded as the level of the middle and lower reaches of the 193 represented artists of the Mars Gallery, which is better than the level of some creators of avant-garde painting who do not need techniques in the first place.

It belongs to the kind of chicken ribs that can be signed and not signed.

But the art style is very eye-catching.

On the whole,

In fact, Hanks wanted to sign it in his heart.

Anyway, there are many works of this level with the endorsement of Mars Gallery, but if they are sold for a few thousand dollars, there will always be people who are interested, which can be regarded as filling the low-end market for the urban middle class.

But well,

He's not an idiot either, and he can tell that this guy seems to have some intimate personal relationship with Uncle Sakai, and it's stupid not to do a personal favor by the way.

Hanks thought it was just a matter of pushing the boat with the flow.

Who knows, Professor Kazunari Sakai actually refused.

"No, I can introduce this painter to you, but it's not that I owe you a favor, it's that you owe me a favor."

Uncle Sakai shook his head and said with a serious face: "I'm not begging you to sign someone's house, it's you begging me to sign someone's house, this matter must be made clear." ”

Then I won't sign it!

When these words came to his lips, Hanks still came to his senses, and he didn't dare to speak to the artist Professor Sakai in such an impulsive tone.

"Oh...... Well, I'll go back and think about it. ”

He changed his tone to a more euphemistic one, and the implication of his rejection was already obvious.

Hanks was unhappy.

Lao Tzu is also dignified, okay!

Although he is a professional licking dog, he licks all big artists with enough weight.

Hanks flatters in front of Uncle Sakai.

For the vast majority of middle-level painters, the other party licked him carefully.

No matter how downtrod Mars Gallery is, it is also a top first-line gallery, the kind of first-line gallery that can make the outstanding art students of the four major international art academies faint with excitement after receiving a cooperation offer.

It's not a shame to beg Sakai to sign, and it's not a shame to ask for a sign for such a little painter who has no origin!

Wait a minute?

Hanks suddenly thought of a possibility.

He raised his head and stared at Uncle Sakai for a few seconds, and the expression on his face suddenly switched to a smiling mode again.

And it's more sincere and brilliant.

"Professor Sakai, isn't it going well for Ai and Tokyo Gallery to work together? If that's the case, Mars Gallery is very, no, extremely interested in working with such a young genius. Millions of dollars in liquidated damages, we will be honored to pay for you. ”

"She's not even eighteen years old, this technique is really amazing."

Hanks's tone was slightly hesitant in the midst of enthusiasm.

"But I haven't heard that Miss Sakai has ever set foot in the field of Chinese painting."

If you are interested in painting, you can take a look at the comparison between Ingres and Duchamp's "Fountain", which should be one of the most important sets of contrasts in modern art. A painting of a young girl holding a jar of flesh, a urinal. Ingres's "Spring" can't be released, you can check it on the Internet for yourself. Interpretations of Duchamp's springs are everywhere, so if you are interested, you can learn about them.

(End of chapter)