The Shift - by Marta Gnyp (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

An updated edition of Marta Gnyp's widely acclaimed account of the global culture of art collectors

This new, updated edition of the widely acclaimed book on contemporary art and collectors takes the reader on a fascinating journey through the world of contemporary art. Author Marta Gnyp's updated introduction addresses significant art-world developments pertaining to collectors that have occurred since the first edition was published in 2016.

Analyzing the motives and behavior of internationally operating collectors, The Shift explains the popularity of contemporary art among the wealthy and discloses the unwritten rules, active networks and persistent myths of the rapidly expanding territory of art collecting. Collectors engage in ingenious ways with artists, galleries, museums, and auction houses while pursuing their passions and goals. Examining the attraction of collecting at large, its multifaceted social life, and the financial opportunities it seems to offer, The Shift also addresses how taste is formed and identifies possible radical shifts in the art system.

Marta Gnyp is a Dutch art historian at the University of Amsterdam and the author of You, Me and Art: Artists in the 21st Century.

Review Quotes

[The Shift] deals with a hotly debated topic -- the golden world of collectors. Titled The Shift: Art and the Rise to Power of Contemporary Collectors, Gnyp assembl[es] a step-by-step analysis, laying bare all the juicy details about what really goes on behind the scenes and legitimizes it with intimate interviews, personal accounts, and substantiated quantifiable data (and lots of it).--Arielle Bier "Zoo"

An excellent coverage of the main aspects of the contemporary art market...-- "Society for the History of Collecting"

Released in a time of great speculation on young artists, this book has given the most precise picture of how 2008 crisis affected A(r)tlantis. Among the many interesting data collected by Gnyp, there is one which is even impressive. Out of 216 private museums currently active in the world, 50 were built between the 60s and the 90s; 40 in the next decade; and 126 between 2006 and 2013. This is how economic inequality is changing the social values represented by public museums.--Stefano Pirovano "Conceptual Fine Arts"

The methodology the book summons is noteworthy. The Shift follows the discussions on the transformation and expansion of contemporary art collections by connecting them to the broader cultural domain, demonstrating how these collections are also responsible for shaping more prominent trends, from the configuration of artistic canons to the participation collectors and artists have in present societies.--João G. Rizek "Conceptual Fine Arts"