The Art Market: Champion of the Circular Economy?

Virtuous, sustainable, moderate (even frugal), ecologically responsible, collaborative and positive, the circular economy has everything going for it. Its operation in a loop banks on the extended life cycle of goods and materials: a long way from traditional economic models, where wealth creation is achieved primarily through the destruction of resources and the endless renewal of consumer goods. However, if there is one commodity that has been circulating in a closed circuit for a long time now, it is artworks. From the artist's studio to the first buyer, through private agreements between collectors and gallery owners and from one auction to the next, they pass constantly from hand to hand. Non-destructible by nature—with rare exceptions (we all remember that shredded Banksy)—and renewable through the very fact that artists are active, artworks are champions of sustainability. There is no need for a second life for these creations of the mind, which gain in value as time goes by, while their obsolescence is ultimately…