Abstract: Economic crises can impact the art world ecosystem in many different and significant ways. This lecture examines how the collapse of the French franc in the decades following the First World War activated powerful ‘push’ and ‘pull’ economic forces that compelled French art collectors to monetise their collections while simultaneously elevating the purchasing power of international art collectors. Using the artwork of Amedeo Modigliani and Auguste Rodin as examples, these factors are shown to have played a significant, and previously under-recognised role, in the large-scale translocation of French modernist art that radically accelerated its commercial and critical reception across the globe and positioned it at the apex of the newly established hierarchy of modern art.

Dr David Challis is an Early Career Researcher and sessional teacher in the School of Culture and Communications at the University of Melbourne. His first book titled ‚Foreign Currency Volatility and the Market for French Modernist Art‘ was published by Brill in 2021 and received a positive review in the Journal of Cultural Economics in 2022. His research distinctions include the 2020 Paul Mellon Centre Postdoctoral Fellowship in London. David’s ongoing research interests focus on the evolution and operation of historical and contemporary art markets. David returned to full time study in 2013 after a career in the Financial Markets Industry based in Australia and London.