StephenHero
Black Floridian
- Joined
- Mar 10, 2009
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I am just entering the world of art collecting and have some philosophical questions that I hope more experienced collectors can answer: How important is it for you that your art pieces relate to one another in some way (i.e., medium, theme, color, etc.)? In other words, how do you balance the competing interests of buying what you like and buying something that becomes part of a cohesive collection? Have you ever decided not to buy a piece you liked because it would stick out as an anomaly in your collection?Originally Posted by Ambulance Chaser
In short, buying works of thematic or physical similarity is a smart thing to do, but ultimately you're paying for it so get what you really enjoy. I know that the Sotheby's/Christie's power collectors often buy in themes/movements or collect one artist extensively. One reason is that it helps build their art's reputation in social circles by giving the impression that the collector is an expert in the given theme and that each work was collected with thoughtful consideration. The intention is that a collector becomes a "go-to" buyer in the market of (insert theme). This gives them more leverage (and better prices) with dealers when a work comes for sale that they like because the dealer can sell it knowing it's going to a prominent collector of similar work. Dealers are more reluctant to sell to collectors who don't have a reputation in a given area. I have no idea if this is important or the reasoning for your interest, but it should be helpful nonetheless. Eclectic collections are also much tougher to hang in a private home. It may make acquiring new works a bit more challenging because of the need to find cohesion between everything. American Impressionists aren't going to work well with larger color field abstractions. Often the required framing conditions has much to do with this. Mixing figurative with abstract is usually a good plan, but in general the most effective way to collect is by era. These are the general breakdowns. Old Master (Before 1880, with emphasis on pre-Realism) Impressionism/Post Impressionism (1880-1900) Early modern (Cubism-1920's) High Modern/Post War (1920's-1950's; includes first generation abstract expressionism) Contemporary (usually since 1965; includes second generation abstract expressionism) Another important area is contemporary Asian art, which is a really strong market, and likely your best chance to make a fortuitous investment purchase. With the Chinese market growing rapidly, the demand for Asian contemporary works will take off over the next 20 years. Much of the work is vaguely political which increases its historical and cultural significance. The contemporary Chinese scene is similar in cultural importance to the New York abstraction school of the 50's and 60's in terms of cultural revolution and the work going on now will likely be the most sought after contemporary work of the 21st century. I actually just bought a few catalogs of contemporary Chinese art this week out of curiosity. Interesting stuff. But If you're collecting art you probably have your head screwed on correctly so use your intuition.
