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Gen Zers have become the most active buyers of high-end art, changing the face of a market long dominated by Baby Boomers, according to a new survey. In 2025 and the first half of 2026, Gen Z spent more on fine art than any other generation, according to the Art Basel and UBS Survey of Global Collecting by Arts Economics. Gen Zer spending was more than twice as high as that of Baby Boomers, Gen Xers, Millennials and older generations. Gen Z made up nearly half of all collectors buying artworks priced above $1 million in 2026, according to the survey. The survey included 3,100 high-net-worth respondents, with assets over $1 million, who are currently active in the art market. The Gen Zers in the survey spent an average of $347,460 on art, up 19% from the previous year. That compares to overall average spending by high-net-worth collectors of $124,265 in 2025. Gen Zers were also the biggest spenders in other collectible categories. They held the biggest lead over Boomers, Gen Xers and Millennials in sports memorabilia, wine, whisky and spirits, and luxury collectible sneakers. One of the biggest margins was in jewelry and gems, where in 2026, Gen Z spent $151,310 on average, more than five times the average among Gen X collectors ($29,500), the next-highest-spending cohort. "This tells a very different picture of who's out there buying art," said Matthew Newton, Head of Art Advisory Americas at UBS. "There is a wide conversation happening in the art world to accommodate and attract this generation. This tells us that those individuals are already out there and already very active." Along with spending, Gen Zers are also becoming a larger presence at galleries, museums and art fairs. Noah Horowitz, CEO of Art Basel, said the Art Basel fairs worldwide are becoming magnets for Gen Zers, especially women. "Since Covid, we've seen significant volume, fair on fair on fair, of new VIP audiences coming to our shows," he said. "They are more female. They are younger, they are more self made. And what we're seeing is they also have a high proclivity to spend. When they lean in they lean in significantly." Gen Zers are also more likely to hold on to art inherited from their families. Of those who had inherited works, almost 90% of Gen Z collectors still held them, compared with only 64% of Gen X collectors. The finding contradicts widely held notions in the art market that Gen Zers and Millennials don't want their parents' collections and were likely to put them up for sale. Women are also becoming a larger force in the art market. As they gain a larger share of global wealth, through earnings, startups and inheritances, women are collecting more broadly than men, according to the survey. Men were more likely to buy at higher price points, with 13% of men buying works over $100,000 compared to 7% for women. But women had higher participation across mediums, including painting, photography, digital works and emerging artists, according to the survey. The boost from Gen Zers and women is helping to drive a rapid recovery for the art market after nearly three years of declines. Total sales in the art market increased 4% in 2025, to $59.6 billion, according to the report. In the first half of 2026, 19% of collectors spending between $1 million and $10 million were new collectors (collecting up to five years) versus only 4% from the very well-established segment (collecting more than 20 years), according to the report. Clare McAndrew, founder of Arts Economics, said the outlook for the market this year looks strong. "Looking ahead, we see the sentiment fairly positive," she said. "In every segment that we looked at, over six months, over 12 months, over 5 or 10 years, a majority expected the art market to grow."
document fetched 2026-10-09 02:52 · canonical https://cnbc.com/2026/10/08/gen-zers-are-now-the-biggest-spenders-in-the-art-market-survey-finds-.html