Rinse Cycles

August 11, 2025

Every so often, the art world steps into what feels like a rinse cycle, spinning, twisting, shaking loose the dust of what once was. It’s easy to forget, amid the glamour of openings and auctions, that the art market is not a static organism. It’s alive, breathing, and constantly in renewal. There are always new artists stepping up to the canvas, new galleries emerging in unexpected cities, and of course, new collectors reshaping the landscape with fresh eyes and different values. Yet occasionally, the cycle doesn’t just swirl, it shifts. Seismically. Unpredictably. And when it does, the entire system trembles.

These resets come slowly, almost imperceptibly, until suddenly the old ways just don’t work anymore. The formulas that once delivered recognition fall flat. The gatekeepers, once powerful, are sidelined by new voices. And the market, forever fickle, turns its attention elsewhere. For artists, this shift can feel like the ground giving way. Years of effort can appear to dissolve overnight. The comfort of a known system, however imperfect, is replaced by the murky unknown. It’s disorienting, and for many, it’s terrifying.

But here’s the quiet truth: this is also a cleansing. When the cycle turns, it washes away the complacent. The half-hearted, the opportunists, the ones in it for the quick win, they fade. The rinse cycle doesn’t favor noise or surface shine; it rewards those who hold fast. The artists who endure these periods are not always the loudest or the trendiest, they’re the ones rooted in their practice, not their positioning. When the dust settles, they’re still standing, because they never stopped doing the work.

This is not a time to retreat, but to lean in. When the gallery lights flicker and the market whispers of uncertainty, the serious artist doubles down. They take the studio more seriously than the scene. They invest in their vision with more clarity, not less. While others pause, they press forward, creating with a conviction that doesn’t wait for applause. The rinse cycle, in its upheaval, offers a rare opportunity: a leveling of the playing field. And in that leveling, there is space, space to be heard, to be seen, and to lead.

So while change can feel like collapse, it’s more often an invitation. An invitation to shed the superficial and re-center on the essential. For those willing to withstand the wash, to stay true amid the spin, the cycle doesn’t destroy, it reveals. And what it reveals is the artist who was always meant to be there.