Mapping the Art Market in Denmark

The purpose of this chapter is to study the size and development of the market for visual arts in Denmark during the past 20 years, and how it is composed of private and public demand. The focus is on the market for first-time sale of works of arts of living Danish artists. The reason for this focus is that only this part of the market is crucial for living Danish artists’ income possibilities as artists. The size of this market along with the number of artists supplying that market is crucial to artists’ prospects of making a living from their art. The size of the art market in Denmark is mapped by studying both the supply-side and the demand-side of the market. The method applied in this chapter is a novel contribution to the literature. By collecting information on the public purchase of visual art (demand-side), the sales from galleries and art dealers (supply-side), as well as a survey to artists concerning the distribution of their income from artworks on sale channels and customers (public and private), an estimate of the market for first-time sale of works of art by national artists can be established.