"Red Moon Rising" 30X24 Inches Acrylic on canvas

The often stated claim that the prices of works of modern art are completely unrelated to their artistic value is thus not borne out by our research. If anything, the contrary tends to be true.
Bruno Frey and Werner Pommerehne, 1989.
Frey and Pommerehne, Muses and Markets, p. 93.

Paintings are perhaps the most costly man-made objects in the world. The enormous importance given to a work of art as a precious object which is advertised and known in connection with its price is bound to affect the consciousness of our culture.
Meyer Schapiro, 1957.
Schapiro, Modern Art, p. 224.