buying paintings

[faustian bargain]

We went to a few studios last weekend at the local Open Studios event (Oakland). There's some good stuff out there!

Have any of you bought art from local talent? What do you look for? Do you just pick something that you "like", or do you have some other criteria?

As a corrolary, do any of you buy non-local art? Via the web, or by some other means?

And finally, does anyone buy art by a well-known or up-and-coming artist?

These questions are directed at both collectors and non-collectors.

-Andrew

 

[alflauren]

I think it's important to buy what you like so that you have the interest to develop an understanding of it. (Besides the main point of buying what you like so that you can actually enjoy it!) Once you develop an understanding of a certain area of art, you may decide that you're buying the right stuff or have to shift your interests slightly to maximize both enjoyment and investment.

I am very interested in classic posters, and I started out by buying up good deals across all genres of poster art. I was left with a hodge-podge of stuff and a disjointed collection, but I learned a lot about the industry. So I sold off everything except my travel-related posters and concentrated on acquiring classic airline posters. Now I'm rather happy with my collection, and I know quite a bit about which posters have value and which do not.

 

[designprofessor]

Follow your instinct. Follow your research.