#Firstmoveronphotography

View all the photographs up for auction on 27 September here

The Hottest Art at the Moment

According to the British newspaper The Guardian, the investment bank Coutts in England showed in their recently issued "passion assets" index that photographs are the hottest collector's item at the moment. Of course, this is sweet music to the ears of our photo department and many other photo enthusiasts, also simply because photography deserves greater recognition as an art form and a craft than it has had thus far in Denmark. Few are able to master photography as an art form, and that art deserves a larger place not only in the museums' collections but also in people's living rooms and private art collections – alongside paintings and sculptures.

The Art of the Future

But photography is also an art form which is highly accessible – at least in the sense that we are all carrying a camera on us of one sort or the other. Ready and on standby for the next Insta shot, Snap or FB post. Therefore, the photograph and its aesthetics are an incredibly strong frame of reference for especially the youngest generations. Children are growing up with an unprecedented access to taking pictures – as soon as their thumbs come in contact with a smartphone.

For most young people photography will be the most natural way of expressing themselves – pencil and paper, not to mention canvas and brush, are not even part of the picture here. The photograph, therefore, has a great future potential – also for those who invest in photographic art. Photography is an integral part of young people's frame of reference and plays an important part in shaping and adding the finishing touches to their understanding of images.

Sotheby's is Also Riding the Wave

It is not just the investment bank Coutts who is pointing to the photograph as the IT-commodity on the future art market. Artnet News reports that the British auction house Sotheby's has also seen an increasing potential in the market of photography. For many years they have been auctioning off photographs, but never before has its auctions been solely focused on photo-based contemporary artwork. They have seen so much interest in this area that they will be holding their first auction dedicated to photo-based contemporary art at the end of September – the day after Bruun Rasmussen's auction of photo-based contemporary art takes place. So, we are happy that they have jumped on the wave as well – it is after all nice to finish before one of the world's greatest auction houses! #firstmover!!!

View and experience all the photographs in our beautiful rooms at the preview in Bredgade between 14 and 18 September.

The Best Selection of Danish Photo-based Contemporary Art Ever

At our auction, we can even boast of being able to present nothing less than one of the most impressive selections of Danish photo-based contemporary art we have ever had! And the front page of the catalogue is adorned by the artist Anette Harboe Flensburg's work "Room with a Bay Window 1". With its clear photographic influence, the painting brilliantly indicates that both contemporary art and photography are at the heart of the auction, but also that the photographic element is a strong reference in contemporary art at the moment.

The 28 photographs up for auction include a number of internationally renowned Danish artists such as Adam Jeppesen, Ebbe Stub Wittrup, Cathrine Raben Davidsen, Astrid Kruse Jensen, Trine Søndergaard and Nicolai Howalt. These artists represent the vanguard of Danish photo-based contemporary art – the new Nordic generation that is also being traded on the international art market.

In the Unreal Reality of Photography

Many of the selected artists work on the borders between reality – so closely linked to the photographic medium – and the dreamlike, unreal or fictional – the elements that one cannot simply catch with a quick click on an iPhone! In these works, the final photograph is the result of a long process that has required careful consideration, meticulousness and, not least, a great understanding of the possibilities and limitations of photography.

Up until the auction in Bredgade, Copenhagen, our Head of the photography department will regularly post articles about the artists and their artwork on the blog "An Eye for Photography". The blog is in Danish, but our newsletter comes in an English version, which you are welcome to subscribe to by e-mail via the “follow button” on the blog or follow “An Eye for Photography” on Instagram, where we also post articles and news items from the blog.

View and experience all the photographs in our beautiful rooms at the preview in Bredgade between 14 and 18 September.

The auction on contemporary photography is 27 September