Salvo’s jubilant painting attracts strong bidding

Salvatore Mangione (1947-2015), known as ‘Salvo’, is now one of the ten most successful artists on the global contemporary art market, rivaling artists such as Banksy and Richard Prince in terms of annual auction turnover.

A remarkable artistic journey

An iconic figure on the Italian conceptual art scene, Salvo was born in Sicily in 1947 and moved with his family to Turin in the mid-1950s. From his teenage years, he immersed himself in painting, copying masters like Rembrandt and Van Gogh. At just 16, his work was exhibited at the Società Promotrice delle Belle Arti. He quickly became familiar with Turin’s vibrant art scene and met key figures of the Arte Povera movement like Mario and Marisa Merz, Giulio Paolini, Giuseppe Penone, Michelangelo Pistoletto and Gilberto Zorio.

From conceptual avant-garde to figurative painting

In the 1960s, Salvo took an avant-garde and ironic approach, creating self-portraits, etched marbles and neon lights that all referred to his self-proclaimed alter ego ‘Salvo’. He forged a close artistic and friendly relationship with Alighiero BOETTI, sharing a studio with him until 1971. After a highly conceptual initial phase, during which he was in contact with well-known American artists like Joseph Kosuth, Sol LeWitt and Robert Barry, Salvo made a decisive and radical change of direction: in 1973, he oriented his creativity towards figurative painting and started painting surprisingly colorful, dreamy and exotic works, completely breaking with his previous conceptual work.

“I have always liked the ambiguous aspect of things: the false naivety, the false primitivism, because everything that is apparently intelligent and technical, I find boring. It leaves no mystery.” —Salvo

An art market revival…

It is these painted works that are currently attracting a great deal of enthusiasm on the art market. SALVO (1947-2015) created canvases with simplified shapes and dreamlike landscapes, recalling the Surreal scenes of Giorgio de Chirico, whose work he deeply admired. His colorful landscapes have also influenced Contemporary artists like Nicolas Party, whose works have enjoyed phenomenal art market success for several years.

While Nicolas Party’s paintings have already reached 7-digit sums at auction (between 1 and 7 million USD), Salvo’s are currently rising quickly. In October 2023, one of Salvo’s imagined landscapes sold for $841,000 at Christie’s London, well above its high estimate of $150,000. The following month, one of his paintings crossed the million-dollar threshold for the first time in Hong Kong.

It will be interesting to see if Salvo’s prices will catch up with those of Nicolas Party. In the meantime, both two artists have found an audience in search of freshness and originality.

Evolution of salvo’s position in the world ranking according to its turnover at auction:

Salvo’s auction records en 2023 :

During 2023, his auction record rose several times, finally crossing the million-dollar threshold for the first time in November (in Hong Kong).

May, in Italy

Senza titolo (1989), 150 x 200 cm

Estimated: $64,300 – 96,500

Price incl. fees: $305,300

Farsetti, Prato, 27 May 2023

October, in London

Il giorno fu pieno di lampi la sera verranno le stelle(1991), 200 x 150 cm

Estimated: $97,100 – 145,600

Price incl. fees: $841,000

Christie’s

November, in Hong Kong

Il Mattino  (1994), 205 x 327 cm

Estimation: $230,800 – 359,100

Price incl. fees: $1,115,000

Christie’s

Valuation levers

The growing recognition that Salvo enjoyed in Europe in the early 1980s led to his participation in the 41st Venice Biennale in 1984 and several institutional exhibitions both in Italy and in Europe over the following decades, culminating in a major retrospective at the Galleria d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea in Turin in 2007. The recent strong inflation in the value of his works appears to be based on several factors:

The strategic management of his assets: since Salvo’s death in 2015, the creation of the Archivio Salvo has played a crucial role in preserving and promoting his artistic legacy. This organization has orchestrated several prestigious exhibitions which have sparked new interest in his work, particularly in the United States and Europe.

The influence of younger Contemporary artists: renowned Contemporary artists like Nicolas PARTY and Jonathan MONK have incorporated elements of Salvo’s style into their own works, which has helped to redefine and popularize Salvo’s aesthetic. This recognition by influential figures has brought Salvo out of his relative obscurity, raising demand and the market value of his works.

Social networks: younger audiences have discovered and shared Salvo’s works on social media, enhancing his notoriety and attracting a new set of collectors. This social dynamic has amplified global interest in his works.

Exhibitions and presence at art fairs: the increased visibility of Salvo’s works at major art fairs as well as exhibitions at prestigious galleries has also boosted demand. In spring 2023, the Gladstone gallery devoted an exhibition to his conceptual work in New York, while the Emmanuel Perrotin gallery paid homage to his colorful paintings at its gallery on Avenue Matignon in Paris. On both sides of the Atlantic, two major galleries spanned Salvo’s entire career. In the spring of 2024, Salvo’s works were notably successfully exhibited by the Mazzoleni gallery at Art Basel Hong Kong.

The value accretion on Salvo’s work is therefore the result of a combination of strategic estate management, contemporary influences, greater visibility at fairs and exhibitions, and a strong presence on social media.