title: Albert C. Barnes of Philadelphia and the emergence of the dealer-critic system in the early modern art market
Creators: name: Christman, Olivia Dorothea Carol
Publisher: name: :none
Year: 2021

description: Diese Arbeit analysiert den amerikanischen Kunstsammler Albert Barnes, der zwischen 1912-1950 Gemälde der frühen Moderne sammelte. In dieser Zeit verlagerte sich der Kunstmarkt vom Salonsystem zum Kritiker-Händler-System. Diese Verschiebung erfolgte aufgrund der zunehmenden Industrialisierung und Technologie. Das politische Chaos in Europa weckte den Wunsch der Händler, an einen breiteren Kreis neu wohlhabender amerikanischer Käufer zu verkaufen. Durch die Analyse des Lebens, der Beziehungen, der Sammlung und der Stiftung von Barnes findet man das Schlüsselloch in die Funktionsweise des gesamten Kunstmarktes. Wenn man mit Barnes' Leben, seinen Händlern, Künstlern und seiner Philosophie beginnt, versteht man zuerst den Mann. Dann, über die Zeit, in der er lebte, tauchen wir in das Weltgeschehen und die anderen Akteure des Kunstmarktes ein. Der letzte Abschnitt befasst sich mit Barnes' Sammlung und seinem Vermächtnis. Anhand seiner Biografien neben Kunsthändlern und Kunstgeschichtsbüchern können wir den Wandel des Kunstmarktes auf der persönlichen Ebene erfassen und seine Entwicklung nachvollziehen. Seine Stiftung scheiterte als reine Bildungseinrichtung, aber Barnes Leben und Vermächtnis bieten weiterhin einen Einblick in die Kunstwelt des frühen 20. Jahrhunderts.
description: This thesis analyzes the American art collector Albert Barnes who collected early modernist paintings between 1912-1950. In this time, the art market shifted from the salon system: where a few prestigious art schools controlled which artists, which artistic style, and what class of buyers were admitted, to the critic-dealer system: where dealers worked directly with art critics to popularize young emerging artists and would sell to anyone interested in buying. This shift occurred due to increased industrialization and technology, such as the camera which, could capture images better than even the most skilled painters. Other contributing factors were the mental and economic hardships surrounding the political chaos in Europe and the desire from dealers to sell to a broader range of newly wealthy American buyers. By analyzing Barnes life, relationships, collection, and Foundation, one finds the keyhole into the working of the art market as a whole. His principles of democracy, education, and scientific ascetic beauty encompassed the emerging philosophy of the new art market. His friendships and academic companionship with other buyers, dealers, and artists were key in understanding the new social aspect of the art market as well as its democratization. These ties prove that the early modern market ignored distances traditionally kept between the social classes. By starting with Barnes's life, his dealers, artists, and philosophy, one first understands the man. Then, moving on to the time he lived in, we delve into the world events occurring and the other actors in the art market. The last section is on Barnes's collection and legacy. Using his biographies next to art dealers and art history books, we can capture the shift of the art market on the personal level and understand its development. His Foundation failed as purely an education institution, but Barnes's life and legacy continue to provide a lens into the early 20th-century art world.