Prices for Russian art have been growing by leaps and bounds in recent years. This is evidenced by the statistics of world auction houses - for example, a new world record for the cost of Russian painting was set at the latest auction at Christie's: Natalia Goncharova's painting "Apple Picking" was sold for almost $10 million. The previous record for Russian painting was about 8 million, lasting only a couple of weeks.

In general, the turnover of auction trade in the “Russian art” segment since 2000 has been to 2006 increased 20 times, reaching $153 million - Russian art acts as a market driver (the total trading volume over the same period increased only 1.5 times). But does this indicate a sudden boom in “Russian” on a global scale? Experts have no illusions.

“The driving force behind the frantic rise in prices for Russian art is, first of all, Russian demand,” said Sergei Skaterschikov, president of Kunst Asset Management, on the RBC TV channel in the “Sphere of Interests” program. That is, we are talking, rather, about diversifying investments: objects of art along with precious metals, securities, real estate, etc. used as a money saving tool.

At the same time, it is more correct to talk not so much about interest in Russian art, but about the increased activity of collectors from Russia. “There are more Russian collectors on the market than Russian paintings,” says Sotheby’s Russia and CIS general director Mikhail Kamensky, explaining the rise in prices precisely by the shortage of Russian art. And collectors from Russia could well be considered patriots if most Russian paintings were not stored abroad.

Be that as it may, “Russian demand” promises a boom for “Russian” in the future. And in anticipation of this, Russian banks even began to offer new art banking services.

“Objects of art have less mobility than securities,” explains M. Kamensky, “but with the right advice or the right timing for investment, this is a long-term and profitable investment.” True, while this service is in the nature of a kind of vignette: “private client service, the presence of an art bank,” etc., notes S. Skaterschikov, “art banking comes down to organizing invitations to major exhibitions and meeting international consultants.” Formally, art banking also includes such an important item as insurance of collections.

So far, the turnover of art banking in Russia is small, and it is difficult to predict the future of this service. As a rule, it is not profitable for banks to work with private investments in art, since the main players in the art market are dealers, consultants and reputable gallerists. But as an additional service, art banking has every chance to take root in the “rich soil” in Russia - at a minimum - by expanding the range of banking advertising.

Note that a boom in collecting is expected in other developing economies of the world (globalization offers the same investment tools). “The most important outposts of the largest investment companies and galleries are located in the east and in Asia,” emphasizes M. Kamensky. “In the Indian and Chinese markets. The Persian Gulf looks promising.”

However, experts warn that the art market should not be viewed as a tool for getting rich. The principles of collecting cannot be analyzed - we can only roughly expect which items will increase in value in a few years. Moreover, safety, proper storage, insurance, and transportation of art objects require huge expenses.

The main problem of the art market remains counterfeit: after all, there are no recipes for determining authenticity - the best guarantee is the previous owner (preferably a cult figure, the emotional connection with whom also determines the value of the item). Consultants and dealers should not be in collusion, etc. But everything related to consultations in Russia is a shady matter, experts admit. According to the chairman of the Russian Collectors Club, Valery Dudakov, there is a “crisis of expertise” in the country, and only collegial expert councils, supported by the introduction of financial liability for experts, can save the situation.

By the way, in Russia there is also a state examination - museums, based on their reference databases, are obliged to advise the population, explains M. Kamensky. At the same time, experts admit that there is a shortage of specialists in this profile in the country - by the way, only the largest banks in the world can afford to employ specialists of this level (their services are very expensive).

In any case, Russian icons and the Russian avant-garde are traditionally valued, however, the best guarantee of investment in art remains their diverse nature. The consolation, when a collection becomes cheaper, is the aesthetic pleasure of contemplating it.

Russian art in the 21st century has risen in price 20 times