Artfacts.Net

The author posits that the vast majority of people have little confidence about the "value" they should attribute to contemporary artworks. Many people are seduced into confusing worth with material production, with auction sales records, cult of celebrity, and endless gossip. People are unable to analyze the real activities of artists, their sales and exhibitions, from the unsubstantiated catchphrases of media speculation. This article aims to help clarify the basic mechanisms of the contemporary art market and to enhance understanding through the means of econometrics.