Shock of the new

Many look on art as an investment. But what if the artworks are inherently unstable?

Art collectors are spending huge sums on colour photographs and videos that will fade away over the next 50 years. . .

Scientists from Basle University say that thousands of photographic images and other media will deteriorate, losing their integrity as art objects . . . They say that they want to warn public and private collectors that the instability of the photographic materials will eventually cause the imagery to disappear altogether. The situation is particularly serious because an increasing numbers of artists are choosing to work with colour photography and digital media. . .

Claudio Cesar, an American collector, is setting up an international organisation dedicated to finding a long-term solution to conserving digital artworks. He said that institutions were burying their heads in the sand over the issue. “Priceless photographic images are fading and deteriorating. Most museums have spent so many dollars in conservation and storage. Public money is going to be wasted. It is unthinkable that one of the most important art movements of our time has so little permanence . . . Colour photographs experience significant cyan dye-fading within 25 to 30 years. Unlike with a Rembrandt oil painting or an Italian fresco, there is nothing a conservator can do.”

He owns two images by Serrano, who is also collected by Charles Saatchi. Each print is now valued at $250,000 . . . “I can see the deterioration. These are just 12 years old. The yellow is deteriorating and going grey. It is in perfect storage conditions. I stand to lose millions of dollars”. . .

Experts say that storage in controlled environments will only slow the rate of deterioration. Ultimately, the stored photographs will deteriorate as much as exposed works. . .

The problem is relatively recent because colour photography was previously looked down on by most artists.

Posted by David on June 27, 2003 7:15 PM