In 2015, childhood friends Christian Luiten and Curtis Penning set up a blog inspired by their love of contemporary art, which they had discovered through rap music. The pair had grown up in a small Dutch city without access to galleries and museums, and were looking for a way to connect with fellow culture fans. The blog featured album covers, rap lyrics and cool contemporary art. Named Avant Arte, it grew into a platform for discovering artists, attracting a community of over 3.5 million people across more than 100 countries.
Today, Avant Arte is considered one of the art market’s most influential disruptors — serving as a jumping-off point for first-time collectors, particularly those who are young or feel intimidated by the art world.