On View: Selections from the Troemel Collection, have been displayed in intimate conversation with other selections from the Troemel collection.
Did you know I’m an emerging art collector? I am! I collect many things, but art is unique. By
paying for something we love, collectors ensure the future production of more things made in the
image of our purchased work, propelling artists’ careers through dynamic cycles of reflection,
production, and exhibition. As the artist gains a higher profile the value of the work purchased
escalates, validating the artist as well as us early adopters for having the insight to take a risk on
the unforeseen talent others didn’t immediately recognize. Through hard work, innovation, and
entrepreneurism everyone’s effort becomes jet fuel in the flight of culture. I present for the first
time in a gallery not an exploration of my own creative pursuits, but a look inside the mind and
archive of Brad Troemel: the collector.
These days when it comes to emerging art you have to know what you’re getting yourself in to.
Let’s just say we’re not in Kansas anymore—or Soho for that matter! Think of me as a book smart
“Samantha” and former world class folk style wrestler, but most of all think of me as an
empathetic disruptor; I’m an insider who knows some of the biggest changes in the industry
actually come from within. Sure, we’ve all heard of the “starving artist” and yes, we’ve all heard of
the emerging “art star,” but I’m asking you to take a ride on the CTA. Not the Chicago Transit
Authority—I’m talking about celebrity-turned-artists, a developing arts economy I have invested in
personally and hold as the centerpiece of this display hosted by Zach Feuer Gallery.
At this point you’re probably asking, “What are CTAs all about?” That’s where I come in: The
celebrity-turned-artist is an individual who has entered art making after being famous in another
career field and is attempting to make it big all over again. Frustrated with the stagnancy or
corruption of their native industry, the celebrity turns to art for a shot at the type of unfettered
self-expression their previous industry never allowed. Their work is what I call a “super good,” a
commodity concept you’ll be familiar with if you know about super foods. Most emerging art is like
pasta—a food full of carbohydrates for immediate energy usage that can quickly metabolize into
unwanted fat if the initial burst isn’t properly put to use. Instead, celebrity-turned-artist work is
like the superfood wild rice, which has been proven to protect against prostate cancer.
Simultaneously an art object, a memorabilia item, and a hyper-intimate autograph, CTA works (and
super goods as a whole) are a highly potent bundle of commodities nestled within themselves, able
to be extracted individually or allowed to appreciate in value simultaneously as a diversified
portfolio.
Whenever someone asks me I always tell them my motto is “If I own it, it’s mine,” and that’s the
truth. An accurate understanding of property lends itself not to believing in indefinite
protectorship but to the potential for alteration without consequence, you can only change what istruly yours. This is why so many of the pieces featured in On View: Selections from the Troemel
Collection , have been displayed in intimate conversation with other selections from the Troemel
collection, so as to excel beyond the ordinary and into the extraordinary as super goods
themselves. Art is only the beginning. I hope to show the breadth of my work as an investor and
collector of culture at large through this select display of cutting edge surveillance and personal
defense technology; physical crypto currency, precious metals, and rare coins; rare collectibles and
couture fashion. Through this liberty-drenched exploration of property, we all can gain a glimpse
into understanding ownership as an oft unforeseen but powerful creative act in its own right.
Image: Brad Troemel
Opening: Saturday, February 21
Zach Feuer Gallery
548 West 22nd Street
Tue - Sat 10am to 6pm