Alighiero Boetti: an investment in a piece of art history
Alighiero Boetti was born in Turin in 1940, where he made his debut at Arte Povera in January 1967. He was a conceptual artist who, on the one hand, followed the principle of 'necessity and chance' - hence his embroidery of letters, small or large and multi-coloured. Another part of Boetti's work, undoubtedly his own, from the early 1970s offers 'exercises' on squared paper, based on musical or mathematical rhythms and offering compositions in which the lines of animals recall Etruscan and Pompeian ornamentation. Boetti exhibited in the most emblematic exhibitions of his generation, from When Relations Become Form (1969) to The Italian Metamorphosis 1943-1968 (1994). He has been present at the Venice Biennale several times, and among the most important exhibitions of the last few years was the excellent Game Plan retrospective at three prestigious locations (MOMA in New York, Tate in London, Reina Sofia in Madrid). His extensive body of work is also held by Italian and international museums, including the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Stedelijk Museum, MOCA in Los Angeles, etc.
Arte povera, literally "poor art", was a radical Italian art movement from the late 1960s to the 1970s, in which artists explored a range of unconventional procedures and non-traditional "everyday" materials. The term "poor" refers to the characteristic exploration of a wide range of materials, going beyond traditional materials such as oil paint on canvas, bronze or carved marble. Artists used earth, rags and branches among their materials. By using such disposable materials, they wanted to challenge and undermine the values of the commercialized contemporary gallery system.
Alighiero Boetti's art market is quite young and should be considered after her death (1994), since the early 2000s, when average prices began to rise. The first peak was in 2014, followed by a period of slow decline until 2022. In one year, the prices of his 2014 tapestries doubled and almost tripled. This situation indicates a moment of great speculation, which creates uncertainty about the possible continuation of growth, but given the constant increase in prices over the last twenty years and the resulting economic stability of the artist, the purchase is advisable for long-term investment.
To see the value of Boetti's works, we recommend visiting the Mutual Art website, which illustrates the valuations of his works and the value they actually achieved: https://www.mutualart.com/Artist/Alighiero-Boetti/B882F3E28976528C
Although the prices of Boetti's works average between four and five tens, as many as 19 works have reached prices above one million dollars. Among them, the Mappa tapestry was sold in 2022 for a record price of as much as 8 million dollars.
At Stoja Art Collection Gallery, we are proud to have a Boetti tapestry as part of our contemporary art collection. Titled after the embroidered words, Divine astrazione, it is the smallest, but one of the most liked works in our gallery. On a surface of 18x18 cm, 16 letters are embroidered, which stand out with the brightly colored yarn used, forming the phrase "divine abstraction".
If you would like to see and experience this extraordinary work up close, you can view it in our gallery by prior arrangement.
