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Arts & Communication The rise and fall of global art worlds

that contemporary private museums often have a limited In an essay published in the Financial Times (2014)
lifespan as collectors are intent on shaping their personal entitled “The art world we deserve?,” contemporary
narratives within their own lifetime. This is because German collector Harald Falckenberg wrote that art
contemporary entrepreneurial collectors make their museums and institutions must balance financial and
fortunes earlier than their predecessors, thereby using their time constraints and are thus less inclined or able to build
newly created wealth to assemble large collections and in-depth permanent collections, instead shifting their focus
enhance their cultural credentials within elite international to temporary exhibition programs. Falckenberg argues that
art networks. Moreover, constructing their private art this is why there are so many private museums. Such an
museum allows them to craft their public persona while assessment represents more established models of cultural
maintaining control over their art collections. 1 benefaction and does not reflect the diversity of today’s new
This paper addresses two fundamental questions: (1) investor-collector. I would add that the stimulus for many
What is the role of the contemporary art collector and international collectors entering the art world is more closely
private museum and (2) How do their interactions with art aligned with the market rather than public institutions.
markets challenge established protocols and hierarchies Falckenberg expands further on private museums: “But
of the global art network? It does not seek to offer a that is a solution limited to only few collectors, personally
comprehensive assessment of public funding streams or and financially and the desire of so many collectors to
the complex international tax and legal structures available leave behind a monument of their long-term engagement
to wealthy individuals. 2 with art is a dream far beyond the reality of the current
art world”. When I asked Falckenberg if private museums
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1.1. Overview could maintain large collections of art beyond the founder’s
In 2023, the University of Amsterdam’s publication of lifetime and without substantial endowments, his response
Private Art Museum Report and Beyond the Global Boom: was clear: “Usually it is not for a long time. Private museums
st
Private Art Museums in the 21 Century that is led by Olav usually have a limited lifetime, unlike public museums”. 5
Velthuis provides a much-anticipated overview of the This paper reveals the different ways in which
current museum-building boom that has emerged since 21 -century collectors are building significant art
st
2000. The authors shed light on recent shifts by mapping collections, managing their cultural, art market, and global
expanding geographic regions that have embraced the reputations, and forming complex inter-relationships
private museum model. The Private Art Museum Report, between private and public while remaining financially
published by Larry’s List, suggests that there are currently solvent. My findings show that this can take place in one of
446 private contemporary art museums in the world. four ways: collectors may offer works from their collection
A significant number of these are in Germany (60), the at high-profile auction houses when facing economic
United States (59), South Korea (50), Greater China (30), challenges (for example, Liu Yiqian and Wang Wei, Long
and Italy (30). The University of Amsterdam’s research Museum); they may sell the art collection at auctions and
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asserts that 76 private museums have closed, with a close the museum or “museum-like space” (for example,
further 24 transitioning into the public sphere or being Thomas Olbricht, me Collector’s Room); or they may sell
overseen by independently operated art foundations, the collection and the museum-like space when long-term
thereby raising concerns regarding the long-term future plans are hindered (for example, Guy Ullens, The Ullens
of private museums. Moreover, the report notes that Center for Contemporary Art (UCCA)). Alternatively,
“financial issues” underpin 34.2% of the closures, followed independent collectors can play an important role on the
by “insufficient interest from the public,” which accounts global stage. The assessment of Harald Falckenberg, Budi
for 15.8% of the reasons given for closing museums. Other Tek, and Sultan Sooud Al Qassemi illustrates that more
reasons include difficulties with the building, legal issues, rigorous planning is needed if collectors are to distinguish
and a lack of government support, among others. These themselves in their quest to expand the cultural landscape
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observations support my earlier findings in The Private and ensure that their holdings can endure within or beyond
Collector’s Museum: Public Good Versus Public Gain their lifetimes while securing their financial positions.
(2019), in which I argued that “maintaining them [private
museums] and their holdings intact, indefinitely, continues 2. The present is the future
to be the biggest challenge facing many contemporary art
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collectors and benefactors”. This study shows that private 2.1. Private art collections and high-profile auction
houses: Long Museum, China
museums are largely defined by their founders’ personal
circumstances, wealth, and cultural visions and thus do not The Chinese collector couple Liu Yiqian and Wang
adhere to a single model of the private art museum. Wei has attracted international attention with their

Volume 3 Issue 2 (2025) 2 doi: 10.36922/ac.2880