Press Release: - Frank To Champions Fine Art as an Attractive Alternative Asset
Media Release : - FRANK TO CHAMPIONS FINE ART AS AN ATTRACTIVE ALTERNATIVE ASSET
by Liquorice Media
Scotland's newest young fine art star, Frank To, has championed fine art as an attractive investment option as the country teeters on the brink of a recession which has seen stocks and shares plunge in value over recent weeks as a consequence of the global credit crisis.
Set to exhibit a selection of his latest work at the Edinburgh Art Fair 2008, Frank To is a young Glasgow-based artist whose unique painting technique is garnering him international recognition as a leading contemporary figurative painter amongst art critics and high profile collectors alike, including actor Patrick Stewart (of Star Trek fame) and New York based Michel Witmer, who hangs To's paintings alongside those of Picasso, Dine and Warhol.
To said, "The global financial crisis is creating mass fear, fuelled to an extent by certain media groups and I think people need dramatic examples to shake them out of that state of fear and apathy. The last dramatic example in the art world saw the rise of the YBA movement in the 90s with Damien Hirst and Tracey Emin, when Charles Saatchi showed that modern art could be used as an investment.
"With many investors reluctant to put their hard-earned savings into banks at present, fine art offers an attractive alternative asset. After all, depending on the artist, the value of art rarely falls over the medium to long term."
In September Damien Hirst broke the record for an auction of works by a single artist, pulling in some $125 million.
The turmoil in the financial markets has led to a rise in demand for real, tangible assets such as fine art, fine wine and whisky with investors attracted by the strong performance of the art market compared with more traditional asset classes. There is also evidence that the art market is becoming more global, with India, China, Russia and the Middle East all bringing new artists and investors into the market.
Taking place at the Edinburgh Corn Exchange, from 21st to 23rd November 2008, The Edinburgh Art Fair has firmly established itself as Scotland's largest art fair with more galleries representing more artists and with more artwork for sale than you will find anywhere in the UK outside London.
ENDS For further information please contact Frank To on tel 07796 312613 Issued on behalf of Frank To Fine Art by Liquorice Media tel 0141 564 8058 Date 20th November 08
Notes to Editors • Born in Falkirk in 1982, 26 year old To graduated from the University of Huddersfield with a BA (Hons) Fine Art before going on to gain a Masters of Fine Art from Duncan of Jordanstone Art College where his tutor was Calum Colvin. In recent years he has exhibited alongside some of the greats of the international art scene, including Tracey Emin and Damien Hirst. • His work has featured in several national art fairs and shows in Bath, Harrogate, London, Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow and in the collection of Dundee University. His work has featured in various episodes of STV detective drama, Rebus. • To's painting technique is inspired by a story attributed to the Renaissance sculptor, Michelangelo. It was said Michelangelo could visualise the human form within a block of marble. To, similarly, teases out figures from initially abstract images. Other influences on his work are drawn from literary sources, such as the Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle. • Arguably To's most famous collector is Patrick Stewart, who said, "I have known Frank To's work since his degree show at Huddersfield University and have several of his paintings, including a quite powerful and unusual portrait of myself. I like Frank's work for its thoughtfulness, intensity, use of colour and mature technique." • http://www.vimeo.com/2144515
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=9yR2xX8enqk