โA witty journey through the wonderfully tumultuous world of art dealers and marketsโorganized in the style of a dictionary, complete with a glossary.โ โInterview
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Two questions are key to experiencing a work of art in a museum or exhibition: 1.) Do I like it? 2.) Whoโs it by? You need quite a few more questions if youโre in an auction room or dealerโs gallery, however. Youโll find yourself asking, How much is it worth? How much will it be worth in five or ten years? And finally, what will people think of me if they see it hanging on my wall?
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Breakfast at Sothebyโs is not only a guide to finding the answers to such questions, but also a glimpse into the rarely discussed financial side of the art world. Based on author Philip Hookโs thirty-five years of experience in the art market, the book explores various shades of artist (including -isms, Gericault, and suicides), subject and style (from abstract art and banality through surrealism and war), โwall-power,โ provenance, and market weather.
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Comic, revealing, piquant, splendid, and occasionally absurd, Breakfast at Sothebyโs is a book of pleasure and intelligent observation, as engaged with art as it is with the world that surrounds it.
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โA breezy, whimsical and often wry compendium, chock-full of hard-won wisdom about what makes someone spend millions of dollars to buy an artwork at auction.โ โThe New York Times
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โA winner. Readers will learn more about the modern art market in this simple book than in any college course.โ โKirkus Reviews (starred review