My two books examine the art world from different but related perspectives. Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Making of an Icon explores the life of one of the most influential artists of the modern era and the forces that shaped his extraordinary posthumous reputation. Art Collecting Today explains how the art market works and offers practical guidance to collectors navigating it. Both books draw on extensive interviews, original research, and my experience working in the international art market.
Books by
Doug Woodham
JEAN-MICHEL BASQUIAT:
THE MAKING OF AN ICON
Jean-Michel Basquiat became one of the most celebrated artists of the modern era, yet much of his story has been obscured by myth and incomplete accounts. Jean-Michel Basquiat: The Making of an Icon provides a fuller account of his life and art, as well how he became a cultural icon in the decades after his death.
The book is divided into two parts. The first follows Basquiat from childhood through his death at twenty-seven. Drawing on more than 100 interviews, court records, family sources, and previously unpublished documents, it offers new revelations about the experiences, ambitions, relationships, and struggles that shaped his life and art.
The second examines the decades after his death, when Basquiat entered the twin pantheons of fine art and popular culture. Most writing about him ends with his death in 1988, leaving largely unexplained how an artist whose career lasted less than a decade became a global cultural figure and one of the most valuable artists in the world. The book traces the roles played by family members, dealers, collectors, museums, the market, and changing cultural attitudes in building and sustaining that reputation.
Readers will come away with a clearer understanding of Basquiat as both an artist and a person, and of the forces that transformed him into a global cultural icon.
For more writing on Basquiat, explore Basquiat, Reputation, and the Art Market in Insights.
Available wherever books are sold.
Selected Reviews and Coverage
It “Wasn’t the Critics Who Propelled Basquiat. It Was the Money Guys” — Bloomberg
“This New York Street Artist Was Unknown How He Joined the $100 Million Art Market Club”— Barron’s
“The Story of Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Brief but Dazzling Life, as Told by an Art-World Insider” — The Art Newspaper
ART COLLECTING TODAY:
MARKET INSIGHTS FOR EVERYONE PASSIONATE ABOUT ART
The art market can be difficult to navigate. Prices are often opaque, advice may be shaped by conflicts of interest, and decisions about buying, owning, and selling art can have significant financial consequences. Art Collecting Today explains how the market works and gives collectors a practical framework for making better-informed decisions.
Drawing on nearly 100 interviews with collectors and art-market professionals, as well as my experience as President of Christie’s Americas, the book examines the questions collectors encounter over time. It explains how works are valued, how galleries and auction houses operate, how transaction costs and taxes affect outcomes, and how collectors can recognize conflicts of interest and avoid costly mistakes.
Readers will gain a clearer understanding of the incentives and relationships that shape the art market, along with the knowledge needed to ask better questions, weigh their options, and approach decisions about their own collections with greater confidence.
For current articles on collection planning, selling art, and other financial decisions facing collectors, explore Financial Advice for Collectors in Insights.
Available wherever books are sold.
Selected Reviews and Coverage
"Mr. Woodham's book is an elegant, amusing and perceptive guide to a market that is (often) long on hocus-pocus and short on transparency.” — The Economist
"Several books about the notoriously opaque art market claim to be user-friendly, but Doug Woodham, who was president of Christie's Americas, may be the first to produce a truly hand-holding guide." — Financial Times
“Mr. Woodham’s book contains startling information about the number of people in the market for the world’s most expensive art.” — New York Times