What the 2019 art market reports show and why we’re happy about it

The 2019 Hiscox Online Art Market Report and the Deloitte Art market report were just published and the landscape is looking good for Codex

As Codex continues its rapid growth, with over 75,000 items added to the Registry, we are excited about our trajectory. The excitement was amplified when we read this year’s art market reports and saw the growing synergy between what the market wants and what Codex offers.

In this article, we’re breaking down findings from the 2019 art market reports and look at how Codex is addressing some key issues.

“Provenance tracking and ownership-registry remains the most relevant user-case for blockchain in the art market at the moment.”

(Hiscox online art trade report 2019) Unsurprisingly, given blockchain technology’s transparent and immutable ledger system, tracking an artwork on the blockchain remains the best use case for the technology. This is our bread and butter. 84% of collectors (up from 45% in 2017) believe the technology will improve provenance tracking and traceability of artwork. This view is shared by wealth managers, 79% of whom agree. At Codex, collectors can register their items onto the Codex Registry (the Ethereum blockchain) and track their artwork to prove ownership, all while retaining privacy and anonymity.

To learn about how provenance tracking on the blockchain works, read our educational article, “How provenance is stored on the blockchain”.

“Online art buying three primary concerns: 1. Physical inspection, 2. seller’s reputation and 3. authenticity”

(Hiscox online art trade report 2019) As buying art online grows in popularity, buyers have understandable concerns about the legitimacy of pieces they buy sight unseen. Codex Records are created to address those concerns. A Codex Record is a unique, blockchain record that records provenance information about an item — including any photos, documents or files that may be associated with the asset.

Users who create a Codex Record for an item can upload photos and videos of the item onto the Record. The Records support nearly 100 file types, which allows the owner of the item to share a plethora of information about the item. Learn more on maintaining provenance on Codex Records here.

Codex’s consortium partners, Auction Mobility and LiveAuctioneers, are trusted entities that directly create Codex Records for items sold through the 5,000+ auction houses in their network. With tens of thousands of Records created by auction houses on Codex, users have access to see what information was added directly from reputable sources. Trusted users and institutions can also apply for a verified account, which helps to let other users see who uploaded information, allowing them to make an informed decision about the contents of a Record. Learn more about verified accounts and the importance of trustworthiness in this article.

“91% of users said when buying online it was important that relevant art is easy to find and navigate”

(Hiscox online art trade report 2019) No surprise, buyers want an online experience that is seamless and curated to their interests. We understand this and recently published search and browse features on Codex. The new search feature allows users to search the Registry by keyword, making it easy for collectors to find relevant items. Other search options include: Codex Record title/name, Artist, Auction House, Codex Record number, Verified name, Wallet address, Featured Collection.

Learn more about search and browse features on Codex in this article.

“This year more than any year since the report launched in 2011, wealth managers, art professionals, and collectors have consensus in the importance of art as one aspect of wealth management... 81% of collectors see art and collectibles as part of their overall wealth to be calculated”

(Deloitte & ArtTactic Art & Finance Report 2019) With a continued annual growth of art and collectibles as part of a diverse wealth portfolio, the practices and standards surrounding art and collectibles (A&C) is paramount. According to the Deloitte report, art has a stronger positive correlation with the price of gold than any other asset class examined, indicating investors’ perception of art as a value preserving asset class, not just an investment vehicle.

With this comes the need to protect, insure and document the assets that make up a sizable part of one’s wealth. Just as one would keep organized and thorough records of their assets, like real estate or fixed income, art should be managed with the same diligence. As one expert collector explains in this article, it’s crucial to document your collection in order to preserve its value. This allows the collector to insure, lend against, exhibit or sell their assets at maximum value. A sophisticated collector or investor will make sure their art and collectibles are properly insured or maintained, and we’ve made that incredibly easy on Codex. Learn about documenting your assets on Codex in this step by step guide.

“The majority of stakeholders agree that the current business practices needed to be modernized in the art market.”

(Deloitte & ArtTactic Art & Finance Report 2019) This point here is simple; many practices in the art market are antiquated. As the financialization of the art market grows, stakeholders want contemporary practices that parallel the sophistication of their investments. At Codex, we’re leveraging the industry’s foremost relevant way to document provenance, but in a way that is simple and easy for anyone to do.

“By focusing on the user experience and benefits to the customer journey, and taking a step back from the tech used, blockchain platforms stand a chance become more attractive and accessible.”

(Deloitte & ArtTactic Art & Finance Report 2019)We understand that disruption is not the way to make meaningful changes in the art market, so we designed simple solutions. Our Simple Login Accounts (so easy we had to put it in the name) are designed for collectors who are not tech savvy or have any blockchain experience. We recognize that the complexity of blockchain platforms the largest deterrent in adoption of the technology, so we created a way for users to never interact with the blockchain. Simple Login users can login with their email or google/facebook/microsoft accounts and navigate the platform with ease.

“Blockchain technology could create a new market for digital art using its ledger technology and smart contracts to ensure authenticity, ownership and provenance.”

(Hiscox online art trade report 2019) Not only is Codex used by collectors to register the provenance information of their physical items, but it is a great tool for digital art. Digital artists register their digital works as Codex Records, which creates provable scarcity and authenticity. It allows artists to prove that a digital work is the original and not a copy, which increases the value of digital assets. The Featured Collections platform is made up of primarily digital artists who upload and ‘tokenize” their art on Codex Records, and sell them on digital marketplaces like OpenSea.

Learn about Featured Collections here, apply for a collection here.

Have you read through the latest art market reports? Share some interesting findings or thoughts you had, comment down below!

Written by Corinne Moshy

About Codex

Codex is the leading decentralized asset registry for the $2 trillion arts & collectibles (“A&C”) ecosystem, which includes art, fine wine, collectible cars, antiques, decorative arts, coins, watches, jewelry, and more. Codex will be adopted by the Codex Consortium, a group of major stakeholders in the A&C space who facilitate over $6 Billion in sales to millions of bidders across tens of thousands of auctions from 5,000 auction houses in over 50 countries.

To learn more about Codex initiatives, visit our white paper. To inquire about partnerships and developing dApps using the Codex Protocol, please contact us via Telegram or Twitter