A point that also seems to have been missed, is believing in an artist at a relatively early stage in his career, I believe in Parla wholeheartedly and have put my money were my mouth is. Now of course I would prefer that my capital outlay did not diminish greatly if things ever turn out for the worse and I need to sell; but I have bought the art not as an investment (as a lot of contemporary art that smausages relate to seems to be sold) but because I have happended upon an artist who when I see his work I have a real connection with and moves me in a way that no other living artist has, that may sound far fetched but it is true. Isn't that the reason we should be buying and appreciating art.

In one word . . . YES!

More to do with motivation than prices.

interesting how in recent auctions the watercolours and prints - havent gotten close to the levels in price or return some had predicted - the sothebys auction is the first real test within a contemporary scene to measure the collectability factor of Parla. There will be a lot of twitchy bums when this lot comes up, that is for sure.

If you speak with serious art collectors, Parla is a speculative artist, rather than an established one.

Looking at the auction results the past couple nights I would have to rescind my estimate of 30-40K after the results of those Banksys. How about that Gangsta Rat, a large great unique canvas of a classic image for less than 40k. I would still guess this busts estimates, but maybe around 18-25k

>Irrational exuberance has been doused,<

But irrational exuberance still exists. Look at Kaws or the Hope poster mania. There's always something that people will chase no matter what they should have learned form the past. I'll give you all congratulations if it does go for 80k (and strong advice to consign you Parla's now!) But we've now all seen work here sell for hundreds of thousands that the next year won't go for half that so don't count your chickens no matter what happens.

My problem with Parla is that concept is king in the art world. Although he paints pretty pictures, they're borderline decorative, they are technically very proficient but they're not groundbreaking and I don't see Parla adding anything on a deeper or conceptual level to the world of art, at least not on the same level of other painters in the price range you think he's worth — the contemporary art world doesn't want pretty, they want smart, clever, witty, intellectual. There is a market for him but I just don't see him becoming a darling of the art world like so many hope.


LOL but it's already gone!

Good post.

I know this thing is about money for most people, but I do think the galleries have a responsibility to try to prevent people buying from them who just shove it auction shortly after purchase.

Its not good for anyone who likes or collects the artist

I know it doesnt really apply to this peice as its a few years old, but as slowmo says it can cause the artist long term damage and stop people investing in them as no one really likes to fritter away money regardless of how much they like the look of thier purchase

I think Parla considers himself to be a contemporary artist with roots fro the streets and not a guerilla street artist and I gather he hates to be pigeon holed into the bansky category. Not sure we'll see him at elms lesters again. He was hanging out with Murakami and co in London earlier this month. Hmmmm - wonder if thats business or pleasure?

When the rest of the over hyped, over priced and irresponsibly 'placed' artists are busted it will be the Parlas of the world rising to the top and on their own merits. The man is an Artist - through and through an he is brilliant.

its one piece in one auction
its bearing on the future success of Parla is zero

There's a lot of talk about certain artists being unknown away from the forum and also the hype the forum can create around an artist; how do people know how popular an artist is 'away from the forum' or is it just an assumption people are making. Without knowing who Elms Lesters (eg) have sold to, is it not somewhat presumptuous to make such a comment??

Not having a go, just interested to here people's thoughts on this...

Of course i dont know who elms are selling, in fact i question whether they sell anything judging by their pricing

what im saying is i dont understand where this huge valuation has come from? Normally the buzz is created by staggering auction sales and/or high press of which parla has neither?

If there is a market for the 75k pieces and they are selling then ill concede this point. and it was meerly a point of topic and an observation not an argument . . .

my friends in the art-world (outside the banksy forum) have pretty much no interest/knowledge of Parla.

its not a knock against him as i like his work. but a question? Has anyone on the forum spend 50k Plus on an original?

Bang on - short term gain won and it still annoys me, because I think Adam Neate is very very good.

I'm lead to believe that Jose is very keen on setting the pricing and knowing the buyers of the works. Not sure if the sames true for Adam.

To be honest, I've seen plenty of his watercolours which I'd prefer to this piece (without actually seeing it in person of course). This could be the most "relevant" or "important" piece of his career, but it happens to be one that I'm not too keen on. I dont own any of Parla's work and as such try to take it on a piece by piece basis and this one doesn't get me excited in the way that much of his work does - I prefer the more layered pieces and feel that this lacks a bit of depth in comparison, although I do like the colours.

I'll leave those of you who are either more knowledgable or invested to some degree, to argue the pricing issues surrounding this piece and Parla's work in general. However, it's probably worth noting that the vast majority of Parla's fans (within this street art scene) cannot afford to go out and drop 5/6-figure sums on art in general and I can't help but wonder if this may be his true motivation for "hating to be pigeon holed into the bansky category," and as such, even as a fan of the work myself, I also believe this may well present a major obstacle not only for him, but for many artists looking to "defect" or progress from street to contemporary scenes. The buyers are different and in the case of the latter, it may take some doing for the likes of Parla + Co' to woo the trend-setters of the contemporary art world. I personally feel that his chances are better than most, as there seems to be an almost political element involved in picking up his work at source, which is def' not present for most artists in this scene. As such I have no difficulty in believing Frankie and Funster's comments above. (My personal and perhaps limited view, is that there are a lot less talented artists selling work for more money than Parla in the contemporary scene as it is)

What's been said above regarding Neate's pricing certainly seems very sensible - but if collectors won't bid to ANYWHERE NEAR retail pricing levels in auctions, how on earth do Elms manage to sell out at such levels consistantly? I'm left scratching my head everytime a nice Neate original comes up at auction, as they never seem to reach the lower estimate!