Art and Money

William N. Goetzmann (1) , Luc Renneboog (2) , Christophe Spaenjers (2)

1 School of Management
2 Department of Economics

This paper investigates the impact of equity markets and top incomes on art prices. Using a newly constructed art market index, we demonstrate that equity market returns have had a significant impact on the price level in the art market over the last two centuries. We also find evidence that an increase in income inequality may lead to higher prices for art. Finally, the results of Johansen's cointegration tests strongly suggest the existence of a long-run relation between top incomes and art prices.

Keywords: Art market; Equities; Income inequality; Cointegration; Comovement

William N. Goetzmann, Luc Renneboog, Christophe Spaenjers. Art and Money. American Economic Review, 2011, 101 (3), pp.222-226. ⟨10.1257/aer.101.3.222⟩. ⟨hal-00623450⟩