The Romanian art auction market developed slowly after 1989 due to communist rule, but has boomed since 2008 with the success of auction houses like Artmark. Artmark has become the dominant player, accounting for 85% of the market in 2015 through effective marketing, education programs, and events like Art Safari Bucharest which attract over 15,000 visitors. The LAVACOW online auction platform, launched in 2014 as part of Artmark, focuses on contemporary Romanian and international art and is helping connect the Romanian art market to international buyers and artists.

1. www.lavacow.com

2. The Romanian art auction market
• 1947- 1989: Communist rule  no art market
Cultural heritage law: the state had pre-emption right in any art transaction.
• 1990: Alis, the first Romanian auction house, is established
• 2002: Monavissa
• 2005 - 2007: Pogany
• 2008: Goldart, Quadro
Small businesses, owned and administrated by a few people.

3. 2008: Artmark is launched
The Artmark Winter Auction proves a success:
 total sales exceed €570.000
 Girl in Pink by Romanian painter Nicolae Tonitza sold for €120.000

4. 2.5
3.7
8.4
13.7
14.6 15.1
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Transaction
volumes 2008 -
2013
(expressed in €
mil.)
The Romanian art auction market booms
*Source: The 2013 Report on the Romanian Art Market

5. 85%
3%
7%
5%
Artmark
Goldart
Alis
Other auction
houses
Art auction market share in 2015

6. I. Effective market mechanisms
• Powerful marketing/PR strategy visibility
Artmark – the game changer

7. • Art management courses (The Artmark Institute for Art Management)
• The Art Collector’s Guide
• Art Society Cultural Centre: exhibitions curated by experts
• The Romanian Art Market Index: transparency

8. II. Filled gaps in the art market
Art Safari Bucharest:
 the most important art exhibition in
Romania
 first edition, 2014: over 15 000
visitors
 2016: 25 000 visitors
 connecting the art market and the
network of Romanian museums
 international exhibitors from
Germany, Italy, Austria,
Switzerland
 visited in 2016 by representatives
of Tate Modern, the Beelden aan
Zee Museum, the Bavarian
Parliament Culture Committee

9. Artmark Historical
Estate: historical and
artistic properties
Art Games: tailor-
made applications for
art auctions

10. LAVACOW
 part of the Artmark Group
 launched in 2014 at the
first edition of Art Safari
Bucharest
 created in response to the
growing popularity of
online art sales

11.  entirely in English
 user friendly, can be accessed from
anywhere in the world
 the only initiative of this kind in Central
and Eastern Europe
The LAVACOW website

12. Focus on contemporary art
Flourishing contemporary art scene
2001
First private art gallery:
deINTERESE Gallery, Bucharest
Other galleries in Bucharest: H’art, Anaid,
Nicodim, Ivan, 418 Contemporary Art Gallery,
Elite Art Gallery, Zorzini, Mobius, Suprainfinit
2009
The Paintbrush Factory, Cluj
Plan B, Baril, Sabot, Nano

13. The LAVACOW selection
Accommodates international customers:
 Romanian and East European contemporary artists,
as well as emerging artists from Western Europe,
USA, South America
 Multiples by renowned international artists, including
Gerhard Richter, Barbara Kruger, Joseph Beuys,
Robert Indiana, Andy Warhol, Man Ray, Pablo
Picasso, Salvador Dalí, René Magritte, Max Ernst

14. Connecting the Romanian and
the international art markets

15. The Revolutionary Auction Room

16. The bonus recommendation system:
Bonus in the amount of 1% deducted from the Buyer’s Premium for every
person recommended, when he/she bids for the first time
Membership levels
Artsmart: at registration
12% Buyer’s Premium
Collector: total hammer price value of minimum €50.000
10% Buyer’s Premium
VIP: total hammer price value of €100.000
8% Buyer’s Premium
The perks of buying from LAVACOW

17. Notable sales
April 2015
Adrian Ghenie, Self-portrait with Laurels (2000-2001)
Estimated at €6.000 – €9.000
Sold for €22.000
The first work by Adrian Ghenie ever auctioned in Romania
Oil on paper, 35 x 40 cm

18. March 2016
Bronze Hand by Paul Neagu (1970-
1971)
Pre-sale estimate: €2.000 - €4.000
Sold for €15.000
The Tate Collection: two companion
works, Empty Hand and Full Hand
Bronze, wood, iron and plexiglass
33 x 22.5 x 3.5 cm

19. May 2016
Ion Țuculescu, Childhood
(1956)
Pre-sale estimate: €35.000 - €45.000
Sold for €60.000
Oil on canvas laid on
cardboard, 54.5 x 46 cm
 H1 2016: Positive Earnings