Art Galleries as an Important Component of the Art Market in Kyiv during the Years of 1990–2010

Abstract

The article focuses on the analysis of Kyiv Art Galleries during the period of Ukraine’s independence. Based on interviews with two renowned Kyiv gallerists Tetiana Savchenko (director of “Tryptykh Art” gallery) and Victor Khamatov (the founder of the “Soviart” center), we address problematic issues in galleries the art market in general. The art market is a holistic system that includes a number of components. Participants of the art market whose role is to implement works of art are as follow: an art dealer, who works directly with the artist and the buyer; a gallery owner, who keeps a special “shop”; and the auction house, which works with both individual pieces and collections at the top level. Galleries differ depending on their openness to the public. An Art Gallery serves as a moderator; is serves as an expert platform. The Gallery not only displays the contemporary state of art, emphasizing popular themes, trends and fashion trends, but also forms artistic tastes of the society, engaging it in a dialogue with all actors of the art market. There are three stages of Kyiv art galleries development, as it is observed by Viktor Khamatov. The first period (the late 1980s – early 1990s) is characterized as a stage of “uncontrolled formation of galleries.” The second period (the end of the 1990s) is “positioning and coordination of galleries in Ukraine.” At that time there were about 120 galleries that settled important tasks of institutional, cultural and creative development. The third period of the deployment of art galleries started in 2002 and continues to this day, resulting in “The transition to new technologies, exhibitions, information, management, creative opportunities, infrastructure development.” This leads to expansion of cooperation with foreign institutions and other cultural and artistic institutions. Kyiv plays an important role in the coordination of Ukrainian art galleries. Historical events in the country and political and economic changes in the society affect the development of modern Ukrainian art galleries. New conditions for the existence of national art provide further adaptation to international relations in the global art market.