What Epstein's Emails Tell Us About the Art Market

Katya Kazakina· Guest0:01

It's really an unprecedented window into how the art trade, which is pretty opaque, really works. And also it shows how the mega wealthy collectors and investors, how they monetize art.

Kate Brown· Host0:17

I'm Kate Brown, and this is The Art Angle, a podcast from Artnet News. There are many ways to read the vast trove of documents tied to the convicted sex offender and financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in prison in 2019. The Epstein files offer a window into the rarefied power brokering circles he inhabited. But the latest tranche, released by the US Department of Justice in late January and comprising some three million pages, 2,000 videos, and 180,000 images, also provides a behind-the-scenes view of high-level financial maneuvering, including Epstein's connections to the art market, the art world, and the cultural sphere. Revelations in the latest files have already had consequences. Former French Culture Minister Jack Lang resigned as president of the Arab World Institute after disclosures connecting him to Epstein, and French financial crimes prosecutors have opened a preliminary investigation into him and his daughter for alleged aggravated tax fraud laundering. Art collector and film producer Steve Tisch is also facing scrutiny over email correspondence with Epstein in 2013 concerning