The effects of Brexit are clear for the art world – backing local artists is the way forward

Trade barriers and the Covid-19 pandemic have affected the UK’s ability to import art, but have also created a unique opportunity for local talent to thrive, argues Patrick McCrae

‘For British artists who are innovative, this is a potentially really exciting time’ (iStock/Getty Images)

The effects of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic have hit culture hard, but now it’s time to shine a light on emerging local artists

From the suspension of in-person events, exhibitions and art fairs to the scant provision offered by the government to protect freelancers, the art world has been hit harder than most throughout the pandemic.

The impact of multiple lockdowns threw the art world into disarray, but the pandemic has ultimately only exacerbated issues that Brexit was already causing for the art market.

According to the Art Market 2022 report, produced by Art Basel and UBS, more than $1bn (£767m) worth of art trade has been lost by Britain in the past two years.

Brexit has impacted transport, logistics and packaging – paving the way for competing countries, from established hubs including France, Germany and Italy, to newer players like China, to overtake Britain in the global art market.

Leaving the EU ripped up our free trade agreements, and the knock-on effect of that has been ballooning costs in purchasing and important art from abroad. To move a painting between Spain and Britain now costs at least 10 per cent of a painting’s value and the Art Market Report pinpoints this as being behind Britain’s billion-dollar Brexit drop.

Britain’s saving grace is that this is a country steeped in culture, and with a strong artistic identity across the world. Allied to the fact that the art market is roaring back from recent disruption (only last month L’empire des lumières by Rene Magritte sold for a record $79.8m at Sotheby’s), the opportunity exists to reboot our arts economy and maintain our prestige on the world stage.

Brexit barriers and the pandemic have affected the UK’s ability to import art, but have also created a unique opportunity for local talent to thrive.

The UK is blessed with a wealth of artistic talent. With external costs rising, the value of emerging, local artists has never been higher, and is heading in only one direction.Attitudes to art are changing. As City firms look to lure employees back to work, there is increasing demand for art collections that reflect a company’s values in the office. Often, this means engaging with the local community, and art that reflects the locale.

According to the Leesman Index – which charters employee feelings towards their workplaces –, people in the UK value art in their workspaces more than any other region in the world, but 70 per cent are dissatisfied with the application of these collections. This means more opportunity for exposure for local artists, not just in galleries, but in public spaces, in offices, and in private collections.

For British artists who are innovative, this is a potentially really exciting time. Digital art has exploded onto the scene in recent years, demand for enriching visual content is rising, and there has never been more appetite for art outside of the traditional gallery model.

Brexit has been an unnecessary setback for one of the most important aspects of the UK’s economy. The pandemic was a further blow, but if we can seize the initiative and champion local artists to build a more sustainable arts economy, we have a rare opportunity to rebalance culture in this country, and foster a far more prosperous system that encourages the brightest talent to pursue a viable career in art.

It's natural to look at Brexit and rue what we have lost by being less open. Strangely, looking inward might now provide an answer.

Patrick McCrae is CEO of art consultancy ARTIQ