Market Reports
CAMERON M. SHAY
President
Graham Shay 1857
The American market is certainly improving. Good quality is always desirable, and that’s what clients are seeking out, along with unique pieces. Fresh materials that have perhaps been off the market for a long time and works of wonderful subject, quality and condition are always in demand. We’ve seen a real interest in people like Edward Hopper and N.C. Wyeth; their market is really incredibly strong and building. Another part of the market that seems to be always strong is Western American art. The strength in the economy, especially in the oil and gas market, supports that a great deal. My specialty is sculpture, and while paintings sometimes have more competition, many of our clients are discovering sculpture, and adding that to paintings collections. It’s a very accessible field, and growing.
There is an emphasis today on modern and contemporary works—the Philadelphia Museum of Art just hosted the brilliant Modern Times, and there’s definitely a great interest in that market. Obviously, the great names, O’keeffe and Hartley and Davis, are always popular, but Modern Times had lesser known names that stood right next to the giants.
Right now I’m interested in a painter— Kimber Smith—who was an American, but he was a bit of an expatriate and is better known in Europe than the states. Clients are often surprised by him, because he’s not well known and he died relatively young, but he’s a very fine abstract painter.
GRAHAM SHAY 1857
34 E. 67th Street, Floor 3
New York, NY 10065, (212) 535-5767 www.grahamshay.com