Lithuanian Art Market Expert Ornela Ramasauskaite – Among the Leaders in Global Art Investment

Photo by Gabija Morkunaite 

Press release

Even though Lithuania is a small country, its artists are recognized worldwide. In addition to artists, niche representatives such as Lithuanian art market expert and art investment consultant Ornela Ramasauskaite is acknowledged as leaders globally. She was honoured with the “Leading Female Figure in Art Wealth Management” award at the “Wealth & Finance Awards 2023,” and her company, “artXchange Global,” received the “Art Investment Strategist of the Year – Europe” award at the “LUX Global Excellence Awards 2023.” 

These awards place Lithuania on the art market map, connecting culture with economics and going beyond aesthetics. The global art market impresses with impressive art sales, and art investment competes with the S&P 500 stock index returns. While the works of Lithuanian creators are not yet widely considered global investment opportunities, art experts can draw attention to authors from this exotic country. 

“It’s an honour to be recognized in international awards. The art market is very niche; everyone knows each other, relying heavily on reputation, scrutinized meticulously. However, awards provide visibility among the mass audience – part of my mission is to demystify art investment, showing that it’s an accessible option even for average-income individuals. Secondly, I want to attract the attention of corporations – it’s rare in our region for them to have their art collections,” says O. Ramasauskaite. Her expertise extends beyond asset management consultations; she also works with creative industries and technology in the cultural sector. 

“I’ve been in the art market for almost two decades – during my UNESCO cultural management and cultural policy studies, I worked at art auction houses, served as an expert in the Council of Europe’s cultural policy monitoring project, and worked on managing art collections. I quickly realized that my field of work is the entire world, allowing me to choose interesting projects. I became an ambassador for the Amedeo Modigliani Foundation (Italy), rescued one Dubai bank with NFTs, talked at several international creative industries conferences, joined the CultTech association as a mentor and advisor for investors in art and technology startups, evaluated applications for the large cultural project Zmina: Rebuilding (Ukraine). In my doctoral studies, I delve into the impact of artificial intelligence on the art market and manipulations in shaping the prices of artworks. I have several prominent collectors with whom we gradually build amazing collections without compromising on quality. All my partners know I don’t favour specific galleries; I always remain objective, focusing on methodologies and indices. In other words, I’m in a new place each time, and I already consider Istanbul airport my second home,” O. Ramasauskaite laughs. 

The art expert is pleased that Lithuanians are increasingly recognized in the global art business – more and more young people choose international studies related to cultural economics, politics, or management, work in prestigious institutions, and specialize in narrow fields such as taxation. In the Baltics, interest in art is also growing, collectors are emerging, and a tradition of attending art exhibitions is being born. “It’s exciting to observe the careers of several artists – there’s a good chance that we will soon have globally renowned names whose works will be sought after by prestigious museums and serious collectors,” says the director of the “artXchange Global” art market agency.