Is that picture worth 3.500.000 Euro ? Am I off topic ?

[george]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:99_cent_II,_diptychon_-_Photo_courtesy_of_Sotheby%27s.jpg

I think that the picture is as stupid as the name of the photographer.....Gursky !!
How can it be possible that this picture was sold for over 3.300.000 !!!
What makes a good photo ?


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most_expensive_photographs

Opinions wanted.

George

[KeithB]

Well in practical terms, it is worth that because someone paid that much for it!

On another, related topic, Ctein and The Online Photographer are offering folks the chance to get their own Dye-Sublimation print.  This is a dying art (hah!  I made a pun!) and may be your last chance to get a reasonably priced one:
http://theonlinephotographer.typepad.com/the_online_photographer/2008/10/ctein-dye-trans.html

[Bob Atkins]

What makes a good photograph and what makes a valuable photograph are two different things. The value of an image can depend a great deal on who made it. Even if aesthetically similar, your shot of Yosemite might sell for $200, while Ansel Adams shot of Yosemite might sell for 20,000.

I don't think anything makes a photograph worth $1 million dollars except for the fact that someone is willing to pay that much. Presumably they believe that others will also consider it valuable, so in time they will be able to sell it for a profit.

[george]

Sorry Bob. I was carried away.
I sure was off topic there !
Sure, what gives "value" to a photo is how famous the photographer is.....but you have to get famous one way or another to claim such prices.
Have you seen the photo ? Sold for almost 3.500.000 !!!! No wonder the banks are getting exploded due to overvalued assets !
That is socially sick !  A stupid photo and a stupid price .

[Bob Atkins]

The first phtograph to sell for over $1 million was this:

http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/pcgn/hob_2000.272.htm

Nothing very special about it, certainly nothing that screams "I'm worth over $1 million". The art market is impossible for mere mortals to figure out. It's a closed club. Once the club decides something is "art", the price can skyrocket for no apparent reason.