Alighiero Boetti (1940-1994)

Italy’s art market, the world’s sixth-largest behind Switzerland, posted 40,000 transactions and total sales of $212M in 2021, according to a recent Artprice report.

One of the top connoisseurs of post-war Italian art, former auctioneer Ben Brown has founded two galleries, in London and Hong Kong, where contemporary art reigns supreme.

Across the Alps in Italy, modern and contemporary art dealers are penalized by an oppressive bureaucracy and a rigid tax system. But above all, they rail against the prejudices of the political class, which considers them a niche sector for the elite without recognizing their primordial cultural role.

To mark the publication of his autobiography, we talked to the artistic director of London’s Serpentine Galleries about his work, the role artists play in his life and his views on the current art market model.

The world's sixth-largest market ahead of Switzerland, Italy recorded a total turnover of $212 million for 40,000 transactions in 2021, according to an Artprice report. Its major artists - Fontana, Morandi, Schifano, Boetti, Severini, Burri - have regained their place in national auctions.

Astrid Ullens de Schooten Whettnall was born into a family that entertained the doctor and writer Georges Duhamel, soprano Elisabeth Schwarzkopf and conductor Herbert von Karajan. A contemporary art and photography collector, she created the Fondation A Stichting 10 years ago.