THE COMMERCIALIZATION OF ART

The contemporary art industry has undergone a marked transformation as artistic production increasingly intersects with commercial logic, digital marketplaces, and investment-driven collecting behavior. This study examines how commercialization forces including online auction platforms, art-as-asset investment trends, and social media-driven visibility shape market trends, pricing structures, and buyer decision-making in the contemporary art sector. Using a quantitative, cross-sectional research design, primary data were collected from 410 respondents comprising collectors, gallerists, independent artists, and art investors across primary and secondary art markets. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, multiple regression, and one-way ANOVA in SPSS v.28, supplemented by Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) in Smart PLS 4 to test the hypothesized relationships......