Einige Jahrzehnte, gar Jahrhunderte später sorgten dann wichtige Vertreter der ersten industriellen Revolution dafür, dass einzelne Künstler:innen ganz besonders hervorstachen und Werke an die Frau und den Mann gebracht wurden. Allen voran Industrielle, die durch ihren Reichtum ihr Heim schmücken wollten. Mit diesen Werken wurde an Auktionen, die bis dato für Möbel, Juwelen und andere teure Güter bestimmt waren, gehandelt. Einige Idealisten mit gutem Riecher und noch besserer Vernetzung in die jeweilige Kunstszene, hingen ihren sicheren Job an den Nagel und investierten ihre Zeit und Geld für Künstler:innen. Ein junger Mann war Daniel Henry Kahnweiler der früh schon von Stuttgart nach Paris auswanderte um da junge, unbekannte Künstler durch Exklusivverträge an sich zu binden. So gilt er als Entdecker und Förderer von vielen, heute weltberühmten, hoch geadelten und gehandelten Künstlern wie u.A. Pablo Picasso und Georges Braque, die den Kubismus entwickelten und so die Kunstgeschichte massgeblich änderten. Der Beruf des Galeristen war geboren.  

A few decades, even centuries later, important representatives of the first industrial revolution made sure that individual artists stood out and brought their works to women and men. First and foremost, industrialists who wanted to use their wealth to decorate their homes. These works were traded at auctions, which until then had been held for furniture, jewellery and other expensive goods. Some idealists with a good nose and even better connections in the respective art scene gave up their secure jobs and invested their time and money for artists. One of these young people was Daniel Henry Kahnweiler, who emigrated from Stuttgart to Paris at an early age in order to tie young, unknown artists to himself by signing exclusive contracts. He is considered to be the discoverer and patron of many artists who are now world-famous, highly praised and traded, such as Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque, who developed Cubism and thus significantly changed art history. The profession of the gallerist was born. 

So, a few more revolutions later, we find ourselves in the midst of the digital revolution, with its platform-based art trade offering everyone fair access to art. We have learned from history and seen that artists want to stand up for themselves and be empowered. They want to see their work as a profession and be in control of their own business, without galleries influencing their work and creating dependencies. We may think of trade in the Golden Age with market stalls and haggling, but diversity is becoming more and more established. We can thus collectively change the world, put a spin on development and give those a platform and voice who are lost among the market shouters.  

We stand up for every artistic form and expression. Together we are taking the (r)evolutionary step for equal opportunities. Are you joining us?

Image credit: Genre painting “The well-stocked kitchen, with Jesus in the house of Martha and Mary in the background”. Joachim Bueckelaer, 1566. Rijksmuseum Amsterdam