Art Patronage: From Objects to “Clout”
Experts see a new form of art patronage emerging that changes from the ownership of objects to funding public facing art projects that generate visibility and deepen social influence (clout). Although the art is public, the patron receives status via exclusive access for their personal circle, such as private viewings or events.
It’s a trend predicted by cultural strategist Mark Spiegler who connects this to the broader luxury experience market that is popular among the “new wealthy”. That said, at the same time, he sees this development mainly in the West, whereas in Asia patrons still focus on building physical art collections that are showcased in private museums.
Analogue Art: The Return of Arts and Crafts
At a time when AI slop is flooding the internet, contemporary crafts receive a renewed appreciation. Textiles especially have their institutional moment, for example with the latest exhibition by installation and textile artist Chiaharu Shiora at the Hayward Gallery running until May 3. Or at Museo Reina Sofía (Madrid) & MACBA (Barcelona) with “Weaving the Sculpture: Aurèlia Muñoz and Ruth Asawa”, a retrospective connecting Catalan textile pioneer Aurèlia Muñoz with Ruth Asawa’s sculptural wire works, running 5 November 2026 to 29 March 2027. Besides textiles, also ceramic and glass art celebrate a comeback, for example at The Met with The Infinite Artistry of Japanese Ceramics, tracing over 13,000 years of Japanese ceramic art, on view until August 8, 2027.
Regionalization of the Art World
Artist and writer Joshua Citarella predicts the end of globalisation as a unified "world society" for art. He foresees a return to regionalization of art markets like China, Russia and the West. He calls this the “great firewall of culture” shaped by geopolitical tensions and increasing art censorship that hinder the free spread of ideas. It’s an observation further fueled by a general art fair fatigue among galleries that carefully choose in which markets they participate. In general there seems to be a focus on local community-building around a small but high-quality collector base. According to Spiegler, successful galleries are staying small, focusing on deep emotional and geographical ties to their artists and a core group of about 15 loyal collectors.
Artists Engaging Critically with Technology
The rapid technological change is a defining feature of our era. So it’s only natural that artists are trying to make sense of how technology’s impact on society unfolds. AI has evolved into its own artistic category with artists such as Hito Steyerl, Trevor Paglen and many more engaging conceptually with the medium. In this context pure digital works of art are being replaced by physical-digital hybrids often combining traditional art forms like painting or sculpture with digital technologies. Another signal that art and technology related practices gain momentum is Arts Council England's recent announcement to recognise Digital Arts as a new artistic artform, which “is the first new discipline Arts Council England has introduced in decades, and one of the first times anywhere in the world that a public arts funder has taken this step.”
De-financialisation and the Return to Art as a Relational Force
A new wave of collectors craves a more meaningful engagement with culture through studio visits, artist talks, and guided museum tours. They crave experiences beyond the transactional. Models like the Cultivist, where members pay annual fees (starting around $2,500–$2,850 for "Enthusiast" level, with higher tiers available) for exclusive perks like priority or free entry to over 100 partner museums worldwide, may experience a rise in applications. The shift tends to go back to art as cultural capital instead of hyping it as an investment.
The Art Market Bets on the Middle East
We are only a few weeks into 2026 and the art world has already passed one of its most anticipated debuts, Art Basel Qatar. The edition featured a museum-hybrid layout with a slower, more conversational atmosphere over the typical high-pressure sales environment.
Opinions, whether the Middle East will become a new major player for the international art world, are mixed. While the region has seen major investments in new museum projects, an article in the Financial Times also notes the underlying tensions regarding human rights, censorship, and the pace of institutional growth stating that “its long-term success depends on whether international commercial interests can successfully integrate with a developing regional ecosystem.” Marc Spiegler also comments that while governmental investments in art and culture are strong, the private buying power is far smaller with just a few dozen active collectors.
The Year of Museum Openings and Biennials
2026 is the year of a series of high-profile museum openings that range from George Lucas’s "temple" for narrative art in Los Angeles and Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim’s desert expansion in Abu Dhabi to innovative digital and photographic spaces in Hamburg with the UBS Digital Art Museum and Brussel’s launch of the Centre Pompidou Kanal.One long anticipated art highlight is the opening of the New Museum’s expansion on 21 March featuring more than double the museum’s exhibition space. In addition to all museum openings, the Whitney Biennial starts on March 8 followed by Venice on May 9.