What The First Weeks Of The Print Market 2025 Have Told Us

With the lingering uncertainty surrounding tariffs, funding for the arts, and cultural policy, one thing is clear: after a bruising 2024, the market is desperate for stability - but in a politically and economically divided landscape, whether that stability will materialise remains to be seen. In this newsletter, we examine what the first weeks of 2025 reveal about the print market’s direction.

The London Art Fair kicked off the year in style, and I had the pleasure of attending myself. I must say, I was thoroughly impressed. I attended the VIP night, first stopping by the ArtTactic market talk before making my way through the gallery booths. Speaking with gallerists, many noted how attendees were rushing in to secure their spots for the discussion - not wanting to miss the experts' insights into the art market in 2025.

I had attended the same talk the previous year, and while both were insightful, there was a notable shift in the 2025 edition. This year’s panel, chaired by the ever-excellent Lindsay Dewar of ArtTactic, brought together three influential women voices in the industry: Julia Bell of Parapluie Art Advisory, Georgina Walker of Beaumont Nathan, and Martina Batovic of Artisan Art Intelligence. The dynamic between them made for a particularly engaging discussion, touching on key shifts in market power, evolving collector behaviour, and the broader economic forces shaping the art world.

Changing Power Dynamics: Artists & Collectors Take Control

The discussion centred on market shifts and emerging trends, but the most striking takeaway was the changing power dynamics within the art world. The balance of influence is shifting away from auction houses and galleries, with artists gaining more control over where and how their works are sold. At the same time, collectors are reclaiming their leverage, a shift the panelists unanimously agreed upon. This redistribution of power poses challenges for traditional art institutions, particularly in light of the continued turbulence surrounding auction houses and the increasing number of gallery closures over the past year. This presents a promising outlook for collectors, as the current market offers strong buying opportunities - particularly for blue chip art - alongside increased negotiating power with auction houses and galleries.

Are Public Sales Formats Failing to Maximise Value?

Auction houses, in particular, seem to be on the defensive. Sotheby’s fee structure changes in 2024 effectively pushed consignments toward Christie’s, resulting in a stronger year for the latter. This reality is hard to ignore, especially now that Sotheby’s has reversed its structure in an effort to regain market share. While these shifts primarily affect high-value consignments, what remains to be seen is their impact on online sales, where works typically fall into the low to mid-tier price range. Interestingly, and according to ArtTactic’s Global Art Market Outlook For 2025, while sales value for works priced under $50,000 (USD) in the Impressionist & Modern and Post-War & Contemporary categories declined by 3%, the number of lots sold in this segment actually increased by the same percentage - suggesting that while overall spending dipped just slightly, buyer appetite remained steady. This shift raises important questions: Does an increase in volume within a lower-value segment indicate a fundamental market trend, or are current public sales formats simply not optimised to maximise value?

Affordable Works Dominate at Phillips' First Edition Sale

Phillips' First Edition sale of the year further reinforced this trend, where affordable works dominated bidding activity. I can’t say I was entirely surprised by the outcome. High-value lots like Banksy’s Flower Thrower Triptych - the highest-valued lot of the sale - and David Hockney’s The Arrival of Spring in Woldgate, East Yorkshire, 17 May 2011, barely scraped the low estimate seeing less aggressive competition. Meanwhile, unsigned Banksy prints such as Morons and Love Rat, as well as Hockney’s Pushing Up, from Some More New Prints all exceeded estimates, demonstrating strong demand for works in the lower price bracket. The message is becoming increasingly clear - 2025 is shaping up to be a year where lower-valued artworks drive the market.

Paris and the Middle East: Key Players in 2025

Paris is set to further establish itself as a key player in the global art scene, with its expanding roster of fairs and exhibitions backed by institutions like the Fondation Louis Vuitton. The highly anticipated David Hockney 25 exhibition is just one example of how the city continues to attract international attention. Meanwhile, the Middle East is drawing increasing focus, with Sotheby’s upcoming Origins sale reinforcing the region’s growing presence in the market. As the art world shifts toward these emerging hubs, one question remains at the forefront of my mind: What about Asia?

Is the Asian Art Market Under Pressure, or Poised for a Resurgence?

The same ArtTactic Global Art Market Outlook found that Hong Kong and Mainland China sales declined by 49% in 2024, positioning the Asian market as one under increasing pressure. U.S. tariff hikes have further compounded these challenges, likely contributing to a low 17% confidence level in the region’s potential for recovery. I’ll delve into the impact of tariffs shortly and the challenges the Asian art market will inevitably face, but first, in the spirit of optimism, I want to highlight some promising signs of resilience - particularly among Asian blue chip artists with strong Western influence.

Takashi Murakami x Louis Vuitton Re-Edition Launch

The year began with a wave of nostalgia-driven buzz surrounding the highly anticipated Louis Vuitton x Takashi Murakami re-edition launch. With pop-up cafés opening in New York, London, and Paris, the revival of Murakami’s collaboration with the luxury fashion house has reignited conversations about the intersection of high fashion and Contemporary art - a dynamic that has long shaped market trends. This campaign exemplifies the power of art, fashion, and celebrity influence, heightened by Zendaya’s role as the face of the relaunch.

While Murakami’s print market has softened in recent years, select works - though appearing sporadically - continue to outperform expectations at auction. This was evident in Phillips January Editions sale, where all eight Murakami lots exceeded estimates, with the highest-valued piece achieving over £10,000 against a £3,000 high estimate. With Murakami back in the public eye, renewed visibility could lead to increased interest in his fine art market.

I haven’t made it to one of the pop-ups yet, but I’d wager that Murakami x Louis Vuitton Flat Whites and Matcha Lattes are drawing enthusiastic crowds - not just for the nostalgia, but also for a GenZ demographic increasingly tied to the generational wealth transfer that both the art and finance sectors have been anticipating.

Victoria Beckham Features Yoshitomo Nara In Sotheby’s Exhibition Sale

And then, of course, there’s Yoshitomo Nara, whose market momentum is also reinforced by celebrity influence. Just this week, Victoria Beckham made headlines with her collaboration with Sotheby’s, showcasing a curated selection of blue chip artworks in her London flagship boutique for a limited five-day exhibition (February 6–10), before the pieces head to Sotheby’s Contemporary auctions. The collection is an impressive mix of heavyweights, featuring Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, and George Condo, among others. Included in the display is Nara’s Cosmic Eyes (in the Milky Lake) - a striking piece whose estimate remains unpublished in Sotheby’s catalogue. However, considering its fresh provenance, scale, and current market conditions, I wouldn’t be surprised if it fetches up to £4 million at the hammer.

At the same time, Nara’s influence extends far beyond the auction world. He recently designed promotional posters for a Los Angeles concert benefiting wildfire relief and is gearing up for a major exhibition at the Southbank Centre in London this June. With his increasing visibility across both commercial and institutional spaces, this bodes well for his market presence in both Asian and Western spheres.

The Impact of U.S. Tariffs and “Trumponomics” on the 2025 Art Market

Now, onto what many have been anticipating - U.S. tariffs and the broader economic policies under Trump’s second term. One of the most pressing issues looming over the 2025 art market is the growing uncertainty surrounding political and economic shifts. With London and New York serving as dominant global art hubs, their stability remains critical to the market’s overall health. However, Brexit-related challenges continue to reshape the UK’s art landscape, making regional expansion an increasingly vital strategy. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s return to office is already introducing new obstacles, particularly in the form of tariffs that could have serious implications for the international art trade.

To briefly summarise Trump’s tariff policies so far: the U.S. has postponed a planned 25% tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico for one month in exchange for heightened border security measures from both countries. However, a 10% tariff on Chinese goods has already taken effect. This development isn’t entirely unexpected, as Chinese imports were previously subjected to tariffs during Trump’s first term between 2017 and 2021. While the immediate concerns surrounding these policies focus on taxes on oil, electronics, automobile parts, and agricultural goods, the art market faces its own set of challenges - particularly regarding the trade of antiquities, textiles, and paper-based goods.

This brings me to an important point: the materiality of artworks. A recent report by Tim Schneider examined a unique study published by Metalabel, The Anonymous Creative Futures Report, which analysed how artists are navigating the complexities of buying, selling, and marketing their work. One of the most striking takeaways, as highlighted by Schneider, is the increasing prevalence of multidisciplinary practices among artists - meaning a broader range of materials is being used than ever before. This directly connects to the growing challenges around material costs and tariffs, as rising import duties on paper, textiles, and pigments could significantly impact both creative production and market accessibility.

This topic also ties into discussions from our latest OPEN EDITION panel on Preserving Value, where Helena Poole of MyArtBroker explored the challenges of preservation in printmaking, particularly concerning materials. Some materials are inherently more difficult to preserve than others, but ultimately, the artist's choice of materials at the time of production plays a crucial role in longevity. Artists have long experimented with different materials for decades, but tariffs now pose a direct challenge - if a printmaker relies on imported, high-quality paper that becomes subject to additional duties, they may be forced to switch to a more affordable, locally available alternative.

With rising import duties on paper, pigments, and specialised printing supplies, artists - especially those working in print and editioned works - may need to rethink their production methods entirely. Earlier, we discussed Murakami’s collaborations with Louis Vuitton, but another artist who has been increasingly working with textiles and the luxury fashion sector is KAWS. The rising costs of textiles could present challenges for these kinds of cross-industry partnerships as well, particularly as more artists explore fashion collaborations.

Ultimately, Trump’s tariffs could create a ripple effect across the art market, forcing artists into difficult choices:

1. Absorbing the higher costs themselves, which would cut into profits.
2. Passing additional expenses onto collectors, potentially reducing demand.
3. Shifting toward more accessible materials, which may compromise artistic integrity.

In some cases, artists might even reconsider print production altogether, leading to reduced output and altering supply-and-demand dynamics. If key materials become taxed, harder to source, or significantly more expensive, print production could shift in unpredictable ways, fundamentally shaping the future of editioned art. The intersection of tariffs, material choices, and conservation challenges is set to be one of the most critical topics to watch in 2025’s evolving art landscape.