Building an art collection

May 7, 2005 11:52 AM

My wife and I are interested in building an art collection. We are young, live in the NYC area and are overwhelmed by all the choices. Suggestions of good online or local resources for learning more?

We have wandered into Chelsea galleries, gone to various "art street fairs" and museums etc. Purchased purely on aesthetic and 'whim', our novice collection includes two South American batiks, a couple of nice pencil sketches, some B&W photography, a tiny watercolor and several old prints (we seem to spend an equal amount of money on frames!).

For our first wedding anniversary, we thought we would spend up to $2000 or so and wanted to make sure we were getting something of value, but really don't know where to start. Our style is young and colorfully modern, and we are not as concerned with the 'investment' aspect as the 'i love this piece of art' value.

posted by remlapm to media & arts (14 comments total)

1) Pick an artist you already like.
2) Look at more of their art and art by their contemperaries.
2) Buy the stuff you like.

I think you've got it going pretty good already.
posted by schroedinger at 12:10 PM on May 7, 2005

Schroedinger, that's what we are already doing. We are looking to move beyond the aesthetic and actually learn about the art we want to buy.

If there is 1 page .pdf on "what to look for when buying art to make sure you are getting good value", I would love to see it!
posted by remlapm at 12:17 PM on May 7, 2005

I've never heard of such a thing.... but maybe a good, classic art history textbook might give you a little more perspective and confidence about the kind of work you are buying.
posted by josh at 12:32 PM on May 7, 2005

It's great that you're in it for the love rather than the investment; I feel the same. I've had good luck going to student showcases of various Masters of Fine Arts programs. There can be a lot of uneven work, but then you'll come across someone amazing, and you have the added bonus of supporting that person when it's most needed and appreciated. Generally, artists will put up contact information, if not always prices. If I love something, I'll e-mail that person and see if they're interested in selling what I want.

I'm not familiar with the possibilities in New York, but what a rich spot to explore. Just a bit of googling turned up a link to The Art Students League of New York -- I've no idea what the general quality of work is, but from 5/23 to 6/3 they're having a best-in-class exhibit that might be worth checking out. I'm sure you could find a lot more for yourself with a bit of search. Enjoy building your collection!

(on preview: ok, now I'm confused. You're in it for what you like, but you also want guidance on good value? The two don't always correlate. I learned about art by taking art history courses, reading about the history of art as well as art criticism, and visiting galleries and shows. If a work has been made with skill and inspiration and is in line with my aesthetic, I just know it. There are no shortcuts of which I'm aware.)
posted by melissa may at 12:40 PM on May 7, 2005

There seems to be a number of helpful articles about art appraisal here. Reading books or attending seminars for art appraisal seems like a way to go for learning about how to value art.

That said, I think you can't go wrong with schroedinger's approach: research and buy what you like. If you're looking for investment-grade works, I think you need to spend in the thousands of dollars.
posted by junesix at 1:16 PM on May 7, 2005

Erm, that second "2)" should be a "3)".

I guess I figure an art collection should be a collection of art that you like. If you're not looking for an investment-type there's not much more to it than that. Just research the guys you like, and go to art galleries and art museums (New York must have gobs of them) to look at art to add to your collection and get a feeling of what place the art you have has in relation to the rest of the art world.
posted by schroedinger at 3:15 PM on May 7, 2005

And perhaps if I read the comments more thoroughly I would have noticed your follow-up and my follow-up would have been marginally less unhelpful. Sorry!

Olga's Art Gallery is a pretty comprehensive starter resource, it has most of the most famous artists.
posted by schroedinger at 3:20 PM on May 7, 2005

You say you want "something of value", but you're not interested in it as an investment.... What kind of value are you looking for? If you buy works that bring you pleasure, that's a value, and your own taste is the best guide. It's hard to tell from your question what additional "value" you're looking for. Are you worried that your taste is somehow underdeveloped or unsophisticated? There's no short, easy-to-read guide to shore up your confidence. Follow your interests: go to shows, talk to artists. When you go to a museum show, read the curator's statement, and research anything in there that you might be unfamiliar with. Maybe take a class or two. Try to understand the connections and references in the art you like.

I think the exciting thing about collecting work by young, emerging artists is that there is no textbook to guide you along. You're the collector; you're the tastemaker. And the best way to develop your taste and your instincts is, I think, to look at as much art as possible.
posted by mr_roboto at 4:33 PM on May 7, 2005

I suppose to clarify, by 'value' we mean 'not over-paying'. Many of the galleries here seem to have inflated prices. You are paying for the 'coolness' factor of the work, rather than the 'materials + time + artist modest cut'.

I suppose, in short, we are looking to understand the seemingly (to our novice eyes) arbitrary difference between a $200 and a $4,000 painting.
posted by remlapm at 4:44 PM on May 7, 2005

What you want to do is to go to openings of group shows featuring young artists; meet and flatter other young artists; and get invited to studio shows - that is, shows put on by the artists themselves. Then you have the opportunity to make offers on pieces you like, directly to the artists, before they're in galleries with their prices marked up.

You might even luck out, and have some of them become valuable! I hate to say this, but the key is to appraise the artist as well as the art - the New York art scene is viciously nepotistic, and of any group of young artists of roughly equal talent, the one you'd most like to party with (or shag) is the one most likely to get gallery shows and have their work appreciate in value. [Full disclosure: this is the slightly bitter ex-BF of a now-hot young painter talking.]

[On preview] The difference is entirely market-based, and the market is largely nepotistic. To beat the market, you have to understand which artist knows which collector, which collector is sleeping with which gallerist, which gallerist used to be in business with which critic, and who's selling them all their drugs. It's not for the faint-hearted. Really, don't worry about return on investment; just buy what you want to have looking back at you from your walls for the next ten-to-fifty years.
posted by nicwolff at 4:58 PM on May 7, 2005

Oh, and framing's a bitch. It seems to be impossible in NYC to spend less than $100 framing a picture well enough to hang at home. You'd think you could do it yourself, but I gave up on that after a pretty good try - and I have a fully-equipped wood shop.
posted by nicwolff at 5:06 PM on May 7, 2005

This site is pretty good reading:
http://markelfinearts.com/ArtladyMonica/

Her $700/$2000 cut-off points (paper/canvas) for starting to wonder about "value" are well-argued and seem reasonable.
dc
posted by dpcoffin at 9:42 AM on May 8, 2005

Just buy prints from me! Ok, maybe not necessarily from me... but, seriously, I would suggest checking out some web sites of artists in addition to looking in galleries. The world of galleries is kind of... I don't know, insulated?
posted by edlundart at 4:54 PM on May 8, 2005

i think you're contradicting yourself. either you care about the investment or the only way "value" comes into it is whether you like it enough to buy it.

so either ask for advice on investment or buy what you like.

also, you can save money by making your own frames (though if you're buying for investment i'd be careful in case you do soemthing stupid and damage the piece). frames places will often sell you glass cut to size, if you ask nicely (assuming you want glass).
posted by andrew cooke at 5:16 PM on May 8, 2005