The Value of Art: History of Art Gallery in France and Europe

Nathalie Moureau, Professor of Economic Sciences (University of Montpellier Paul Valéry)

On 9 April 2025, the first of two ENCATC Art Talks on the value of art, held at the Université libre de Bruxelles, looked at the history and current state of the French art gallery sector. Nathalie Moureau introduced the idea of an art market ecosystem and traced how galleries evolved from the nineteenth-century dealers, who already worked internationally, into today's highly diverse sector, showing how the number of galleries grew sharply between the 1980s and 2020, with increasingly varied sizes and strategies. She also examined the rise of mega-galleries, with global reach, substantial financial resources and industrial-scale operations, including the digitisation of art through online platforms and viewing rooms, and analysed how these major players can accelerate artists' careers while drawing talent away from smaller galleries.