Collecting Art is not as difficult as you may think and if you are reading this, you cannot be luckier in the quest to conquer your curiosity.
Collecting art is as simple as following the steps discussed below. Ready or not, here we go:Â Â
What’s your budget?
This is the first thing that should cross your mind; either a collector that wants to show off artworks at home, libraries, or a new collector that exhibits artworks bought for sales.
In collecting art especially at an art fair like Art X Lagos where there are numerous works of excellent art on display; without having a financial plan, you will end up spending your flight budget to buy artworks.
But we know if you travel down for art fairs or GALLERY exhibitions, it is a must you travel back home, right?
So before you leave home know and be specific on how much you have to spend: $2m, NGN10,000, NGN10,000,000…
Research the artist
Some collectors buy artworks that fascinate them ( more like love at first sight); like Tunji Akintokun MBE who has been collecting art as a professional for over 20years.
Others simply make research into the background of the artists (where they come from, what have they been doing,…), the collectors and institutions that have bought an artist’s work over time, level in the art class, amongst other things.
However, it is more advisable for an emerging professional art collector to know who the artist is but an art lover who simply wants to collect art for display, not for sale can buy what they like; no stress!
Yet, new collectors should pre-plan what artworks they are looking forward to buying and why! This is as a guide because remember there should be a budget, so ensure artworks bought at the end of the day are in line with your interests and focus.
Also, ask yourself what kind of story you want to tell with your collections so you know what to get when you see it. Instead of roaming around fairs for as many days as it is opened and going home empty-handed at the close of it.
Representation
Here, new collectors go further to understand who is discussing the Artist or the gallery, persons, or institutions presenting the artist’s artworks;
what is their reputation?
Some art professionals believe that if an artwork is not being talked about ( especially by experts) then it is not on the radar and might not bring in much value afterward.
How engaging is the artwork?
How well does the artwork catch your interest, does the artist have a unique voice
(what is the artiste saying in a different way)
or does it follow trends ( what’s the artist saying in a common way: style!),
the level of professionalism of the artist, etc.
All of these things not only help you decide whether to collect or not collect the artwork but it helps to determine the artist’s longevity in the art business.
The understanding of the aforementioned gives an overview of the quality and how much the artworks bought will appreciate or depreciate in value!
Well, if you are an art lover who wants to personally enjoy the feeling owning an artwork gives; be happy because you really don’t have to go through all of these principalities which a new art collector for sale cannot afford to overlook.
Category of artist
Is the artist up and coming, contemporary, modern, global blockbuster, modern masters, contemporary blockbuster, …
A new collector who wants to sell artworks is advised to have a mixture of artists from different categories. If you spend all the budget or most part of it buying modern arts and say up and coming artists work; you might not have enough to buy works from other categories.
So, how much you have to spend, how well you know the artiste, who are those representing the artist’s work, how engaging is the artists, and finally which is also a very important consideration of a new collector who looks to sell artwork; collection of artworks from different category is paramount to collecting art like a professional.