What will determine the value of Hunter Bidens art in the future? Could something as simple as a few of the right people adding i to their collection assure collectors of its value?
I should add that I was impressed with his work, I expected to see a much lower quality.
Everything is worth what its purchaser will pay for it. In the world of art, this is especially true.
It probably wouldn’t make much of a difference. If Biden were an unknown having his work bought by a famous collector could give him the exposure he needed to break into the big leagues, but he is already well known for his father. People are going to buy his paintings because they are pretty good art and come with the story that “This was painted by President Biden’s son”. The same reason the not so good paintings Sylvester Stallone originally sold for $5 are now worth tens of thousands.
Probably the single biggest contributor to increase in value would be Fox News and their ilk which have now made them “Paintings by the presidents son now seen on the news!”
I would guess that interest in Hunter as a person and as a painter is going to fade pretty quickly after Biden is no longer President. If Hunter was just some random person, I doubt he would have had any financial success as a painter. I think his paintings are good, but they’re pretty similar in quality to pretty much any artist. They’re not so good that they stand out or are likely to move the art world in a new direction. Go to pretty much any street market and you can find similar artwork.
Are there similar situations of artwork from other President’s children that we can use for comparison? I’m sure that while the President is in power the child’s artwork has a lot of interest, but I would guess that’s more due to the status of their parent. Once their parent is no longer President, how did the value of their artwork hold up?
Ikes art, mostly paint by number, can fetch up to $5000, and it is unremarkable as art. But he was actually President.
So was George W. Bush, who has emerged as a reasonably talented portrait painter.
North West & Johnny depp paint too
Unfortunately for Hunter, another artist already has dibs on artwork titled “Take The Money And Run”.
Notoriety sells, which doesn’t explain why some of Hunter’s stuff is going for more than 10 times the price of the most expensive John Wayne Gacy painting.
Hunter writes in the latest filing that his income has “decreased significantly” since late 2023, when he initially launched his lawsuit, claiming that in December of that year, he “sold 27 pieces for art at an average price of $54,481.48.” However, in the 15 months since, he has only sold “one piece for $36,000.”
Meanwhile, he says that his book sales fell from 3,161 in the six month period between April 1, 2023 and Sept. 20, 2023 to 1,100 over the last six months.
Hunter adds that he had been expecting to “obtain paid speaking engagements and paid appearances” off the back of the “positive feedback and reviews” of his book and artworks, but concedes that this “has not happened.”
Hunter Biden Claims He’s Been Left Homeless After $4 Million Malibu Rental Home Was Made ‘Unlivable’ by California Wildfires
https://www.realtor.com/news/celebrity-real-estate/hunter-biden-homeless-house-wildfires-paintings/
Could he move back home with his parents?
He should be able to pay for a nice mobile home for less than he was paying for his Malibu rental. He just needs to sell 1 more painting.
Remember Billy Beer? For those who don’t- Jimmy Carter’s loser brother put his name on a brand of beer. For whatever reason, Billy Beer did not last long. Every now and then, somebody will share that they have found an unopened can, believing it to be worth a large sum of money. Last time I checked, an unopened can of Billy Beer was worth about twenty dollars.
I feel the same principle is involved here. I believe that unless there are more scandals (which would raise the value temporarily) the dollar value of the paintings will steadily decline over the years.
That assumes the money paid for them was market value.
I remember Billy Beer. I was in my early teens, so not exactly in the market for it (unlike many of my peers) and I always heard that it was just your basic beer, sold as a novelty item.
I remember Superman peanut butter. It was not exceptional. Growing up, it was my preferred brand because hey it had Superman on the label. I don’t remember exactly when the brand stopped production and I have no idea why.
The main problem I have heard from people who actually drank Billy Beer was that it was terrible beer. Putting it out there as a ‘celebrity’ endorsed novelty would IMO have led to lasting sales if the product had been reasonable quality.
OTTOMH The John Goodman live action Flintstones movie was decades ago. I’m not sure when the last new Flintstones project from Hannah Barbera was. Cocoa Pebbles and Fruity Pebbles continue to sell because (though they have no nutrition and contain a buttload of sugar) consumers find them tasty and reasonably priced.
They also make fun variations of Rice Krispie Treats.