An Exclusive Interview With JAN PETER VERHAGEN

TEFAF ONLINE PROVIDES BENEFITS FOR DEALERS AND VISITORS

- Miguel Bermudez

TEFAF ONLINE PROVIDES BENEFITS FOR DEALERS AND VISITORS By

Miguel Bermudez

The year 2020 could become known as a consequential and transformative moment for the art world. Technology had been slowly making inroads into the complex and often closely guarded community of the art market's traditional sectors.

In our interview with Jan Peter Verhagen, Marketing Communications Manager of TEFAF Global, we learn that the online art fair organized by TEFAF in New York City this past fall was an excellent example of what is to come and what cannot be replaced.

These online experiences are definitely widening the audience to a worldwide reach that has been unthinkable just a few years ago. Some hints of the staggering number of online auction sales participants give us an idea of the growing interest in the art world. During its Hong Kong evening sales, Christie's reports that over 500,000 global viewers tuned in live to follow the auctions. Technology and wide access to high definition images, video streaming, and other tools are making the online experience as close as possible to being physically present. There is, however, that unique and irreplaceable component that art lovers and collectors want to have in front of an art piece.

The moments of discovery, the dealer/educator participation in explaining the piece, the sharing of stunning achievement of the piece's creator are just a few elements that give a material piece its significance and human dimension.