Are you tired of having mass-produced artwork on your walls? Did you just move into a new space and can’t wait to decorate but you are a little intimidated by the process of collecting original art? Do you wonder how some people manage to put together a cohesive collection of original artwork?
Worry no more. I’ll be creating a series of articles to help you learn how you can become a proud collector of art. Follow this series and you will learn all you need to know about starting your own collection or adding to what you’ve already got.
1. Start by deciding what type of art you like.
I know, I know, I can hear you say “but I don’t know what type of art I like”. The easiest way to decide what type of art you like is by seeing lots of art. You can never tell what you like till you know what you don’t like. How will you know what you don’t like if you haven’t seen it before? Go out and see art!
If you’re intimated by museums and galleries, then start small. You can start by going to local art festivals. Make a habit of reading the art section of your local newspaper for information on what’s going on in the local art scene.
Opening receptions are also another ‘low-pressure’ way of getting into the art scene. Usually, you’ll have friends and family of the artists among many others at the reception. The environment is less intimidating and since there will be many people in the space during the reception, you can easily go unnoticed. The internet is another low pressure way to see art. Art magazines will also do it for you. The more you see art, the more you begin to appreciate it.
2. Be guided by your passion for art not the latest art trends
Well, now that you know what type of art you like, let that be you guiding principle. After all you will be looking at these pieces of artwork pretty much everyday. There will always be certain types of art that are trending at any particular point in time. Don’t go following the trends just for the sake of being trendy. If you do that, pretty soon you will lose interest in what you’ve collected and you will not be motivated to do any more art collecting. You’d have collected artwork in which you have no interest because your heart was not in what you were collecting just your brains.
3. Set a realistic budget for your art collecting goals
Don’t believe the myth that art collecting is only for the super rich and out of reach of ordinary people. You can comfortably collect art in a way that is affordable to you. If you are on a budget, you should seek out the original work of emerging artists, which will be more reasonably priced than those of established artists.
Also, you can collect limited prints of established artists as opposed to their original artwork which are also more expensive. Smaller works of an artist will also be less expensive than their larger works. Art collecting need not be daunting. Being informed about how to put your dollars to the best use, will make it easier for your art collecting adventure.
Start off with these three points and you will be well on your way to building your own collection. See art. love art and buy art. Remember the more art you see, the more you appreciate art.
Thanks for reading. Share your comments below. Do you collect art? Are you planning on collecting art? What are some of the things you’ve used to start your own collection?
Best,
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