Although the outside of the safe looks a bit simple, the inside of the door is not simple at all.
The entire safe is located in the middle of the fourth floor of the building, covering an area of approximately one hundred square meters. It is divided into six separate small safes, each with a separate combination lock.
Only Old Mike could enter this safe. Even Robert, the painter he asked to take charge of the daily work of the gallery, could not enter. So, after Old Mike entered, he opened all the six small safes one by one.
These small safes are filled with paintings, some of which are hung on the walls and some are placed on special easels. One safe can hold about twenty oil paintings.
"Cole, do you know why I put these paintings here without worrying too much? Because these paintings are not famous paintings. Not only were the prices low when I purchased them, but I also think they are investment-worthy. So these paintings are for collection on the one hand, and they can also be considered investments on the other hand." Old Mike pointed at the paintings and talked.
"In fact, I think investing in oil paintings is also a very good investment, so I started to try it, and the result looks very good. Here, look at this painting, it is a painting by John Patrick O'Brien, he created it in 1987, I bought it in 1990, and it cost me $120,000 at that time. As a result, O'Brien's fame has soared in recent years, and his works are full of the interest of 'modern romantic realism'. Now they have begun to be widely collected by many private individuals in the federation and Europe. If this painting is auctioned now, the minimum starting price is more than 800,000 US dollars. If you meet someone who likes this painting, it is not uncommon to sell it for millions of dollars. In just six years, my investment has increased sevenfold. This investment is not bad, right?"
Yang Jing nodded. "Mike, what you said is correct. In recent years, with the recovery of the federal economy and the rise of the IT industry, a large number of millionaires, tens of millions, and even hundreds of millions of dollars have been created. Therefore, the collection industry has become popular in recent years. Whether it is oil paintings or other works of art, it is actually a good time to invest."
Old Mike nodded with a smile, and he was obviously very proud of his boss's praise.
Of course, he would not use these paintings as an investment. Although he bought these paintings, the one who paid for them was the boss in front of him. With the boss's wealth, a hair he plucked at random was worth a hundred times more than all the paintings in the room.
So these paintings are mainly for collection.
Although these paintings were not very valuable, Yang Jing still looked at them with great interest.
He himself did not have a very deep understanding of Western paintings, but now with so many works of modern painters in front of him, it was enough to greatly increase his knowledge of Western paintings.
A still life oil painting in front of him aroused Yang Jing's interest. He moved closer to appreciate it carefully and nodded with satisfaction.
Although this still life oil painting is still a little immature, its structure already has a hint of master's charm. It is probably either the work of a famous artist when he was young, or a future famous artist who has not yet become famous.
Seeing that Yang Jing was interested in the painting, Old Mike came over, took out his reading glasses and put them on, then looked at the work and said, "This is a painting by a young federal painter who emerged a few years ago. His name is David Leffel. Although his still life oil paintings are still a little immature, they are full of charm and have a Rembrandt style. I bought this painting the year before last for $30,000, but I think if Leffel is given some time, he will definitely be able to soar to the sky."
Yang Jing agreed with this. He could see the charm contained in the painting. Just as Old Mike judged, as long as this young painter could continue to work hard, it would only be a matter of time before he became famous.
Yang Jing's judgment was indeed correct. If he went back to the original time and space to check on David Leffel, he would know that David Leffel became famous after entering the new century and was even hailed as the "modern Rembrandt."
After visiting several small safes in succession, Yang Jing was very satisfied with the paintings purchased by Old Mike.
Just as Old Mike said just now, there are very few paintings by famous artists among these. Most of them are works by painters who are not yet famous. However, Yang Jing can see that these paintings have great potential for appreciation.
In the last small safe, Yang Jing found a surprise.
"Mike, are these works by Norman Rockwell? Where did you get them?" Yang Jing was really surprised when he saw the three works in front of him.
"Haha, you finally found it. How about it, is this a nice surprise?" Old Mike asked with a big laugh, looking like he was seeking credit.
"It's really a surprise. I didn't expect you could buy Rockwell's works... Well, let me take a look. Jesus Christ, are these three paintings all Rockwell's works before 1943?"
"Bingo! Cole, you are absolutely right. These three works were indeed created by Rockwell before 1943. I was lucky enough to see these three works from a friend, so I spent $2.1 million to buy them. Well, the deal was completed the night before last. I called you here today mainly to give you this surprise."
"Mike, this is a big surprise. But weren't all Rockwell's works before 1943 burned when his studio caught fire that year? How come these three works are still here?"
Old Mike shook his head and said, "The fire in 1943 did not burn all the works in Rockwell's studio. A small part was rescued. These three paintings survived the fire."
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