A photographic imagination

From Remove the price tags and take your pick

Is there a link between a painting's artistic merit and its market value? John Windsor thinks not

Here is a tick-list of criteria for commercial success: a reasonably prolific oeuvre (beans or Blochs, dealers need a constant flow of stock); membership of an art movement; recognition in art history; artwork in public galleries; backing from powerful collectors such as Charles Saatchi. One might add: high quality art. But the market does not judge art; it merely rides the reputation merry-go-round. Good art is art that sells.

Certianly the most succint expalnation of market forces and teh quality of art.