The fact that Puerto Rican families have to stay longer at home has benefited some businesses that offer items for home care or to beautify their surroundings, such as works of art, according to gallery owner Silvia Villafañe.
At Galería Petrus -which operates Villafañe in San Juan- they experienced a positive 2020 in the sale of art pieces, despite the fact that the local art market has shrunk during the last decade. To face the Covid-19 pandemic, they moved to a virtual exhibition space.
“We have reinvented ourselves to digital exhibitions and in this time we have made 10 virtual exhibitions in which the artist is present. Exhibits are physically assembled in the gallery and then shown online or by appointment. Last year was very fruitful, sales were extraordinary. We have sold 50% more than in previous years ”, confirmed Villafañe, and pointed out that the works begin at $ 2,500.
The profile of its clients are people between 30 and 45 years old who follow the group of young artists Generación Reactiva and who have saved money by not being able to travel and invest it in works by Puerto Rican artists.
“Our clients are the new young collectors who like good art and want to buy paintings. That people spend a lot of time in their homes has been very beneficial for us, we even mount pictures on the walls in a virtual way, ”Villafañe explained.
Although some work of art is generally included in the remodeling of homes – such as paintings and sculptures – with the Covid-19 pandemic, muralism has also taken off.
“There is a ‘boom’ in short-term rental properties for pieces to cover the walls. There is a movement in mural art that permeates the walls and endures. The muralist creates art according to what the client requests, ”reported Yadira Torres, president of the Puerto Rico College of Interior Designers and Decorators (Coddi). “These private houses decorate and set them, it is a trend that has gained strength and they ask for these paintings on the terraces, corridors, rooms, stairs and rooms,” he explained.
For his part, the artist José Vega, known for his childhood character Remi and who during his free time paints in acrylic and watercolor, told EL VOCERO that this creative activity has paid off during the months of the pandemic.
“I started giving art classes to children and adults at the beginning of the ‘lockdown’ and I was selling lithographs and serigraphs (two art techniques). To my surprise then they began to ask me for paintings because when people spend a lot of time in the house decorate and change the paintings, “explained Vega, who with each sale contributes to his foundation, which helps centers that serve low-income children in countries like Guatemala, Ecuador, Paraguay and the Dominican Republic.
The paintings that he has sold the most are small and inexpensive, but the reception of his art has been so good during 2020 and the beginning of 2021, that very soon he will be exhibiting a collection of 40 x 40 size works.
“November and December were very good months for sales. I thought the sale would go down in January but it didn’t and now they are buying art as a gift for Valentine’s Day. People are looking for original pieces and colorful and positive images that help the spirit, with positive messages in moments of difficulty ”, Vega commented.
In addition, he explained that those who sponsor his work in painting, apart from enjoying it, do so as a way of collaborating with a cause in favor of poor children. 80% of his clients are mothers and grandmothers who follow his childhood character, although there are also fathers and young people interested in his art.
Technology as competition
The panorama has not been the same in all sectors of art. For the artist Carmelo Sobrino, art was already suffering a decline on the island due to technological changes, which he understands has worsened with the economic crisis.
“Before, the professional middle class had serigraphs or paintings by Puerto Rican artists, but this has been replaced on the walls by monitors, the space has been invaded by technology. For some time there has been a crisis in the sale of art, before there were more collectors ”, said Sobrino.
He opined that “now the middle class, due to Covid-19, has no budget to buy works. The market that buys paintings with high purchasing power is very small. If something is sold per month it is fabulous, “he said, and said that his clients buy works that average $ 5,000 to $ 6,000.
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