Collecting Art for Beginners: 7 Pointers

Artwork by Poppy Charnalia

For many people curious about collecting art, it can be a very intimidating process. Anything you try for the first time is venturing into the unknown. With art being so subjective, opinions are often overheard or they may influence your gravitational pull to artwork. Walking into a gallery can feel stuffy, elitest or uncomfortably quiet. Art on the walls may not have prices posted and you may feel uncomfortable asking. Not all artwork on the walls may be available for sale. “NFS” on a tag indicates this—Not For Sale. You may also be uncomfortable about the language, the dialogue and being caught off guard. It happens. If we can say one thing to you, it’s that none of that matters, at all. That gallery exists to sell art and to represent the artists in their portfolio. The gallerist never knows who will walk in the door and buy. No matter what your budget, there is art for you.

Collecting art is an adventure and should be stress free. We suggest that you start by collecting small pieces that you love, that pull you in. Your eye and your life experiences make certain pieces of art mean something to you. Those are the pieces you may be attracted to. In other cases, I know that I have personally been attracted to art that I never imagined I would like. You never know what will speak to you. When it does, consider taking it home with you. Beginning with small pieces will get you acclimated. They are usually sold by the artist at art fairs and events like that. This will also give you a chance to interact with the artist. Approachable art fairs and festivals are ideal to introduce you to different kinds of art and meet the artists in person, who are usually present in the booths. This is how emerging artists start selling their art usually. It gives them an opportunity to sell outright to the customer. Artists like talking about their work and are generally open to lots of questions unless they are too busy. Feel free to ask for an appointment with them if they are approached by others while you are there. Make sure you grab a business card from them for your records. Your comfort level in place, visit galleries around town and close by. There are all different kinds of galleries as there are all different genres of art. You will find out soon enough what kind of art resonates with you. Do a lot of poking around online to get a feel for styles and prices. Social media is a great place to start following fairs and galleries that you like. Also see where else the artists you like are showing their work. Follow as many resources in art as you can.

Immerse yourself in art and the people around it

Start looking at art everywhere you go. There are many websites and social media platforms you can check out. Visit galleries, museums and exhibitions that grab your attention. Look at all kinds of art. Read books about art. Research and familiarize yourself with the history. Over time, you will see pieces fall together. Scour the internet. Research the artists and why they make art. Follow them on social media. Connect and converse. Discover all you can about art and start piecing together what kind of art resonates with you. If you can, travel to different areas locally and abroad. See how other cities and towns have districts of galleries and culture. Create opportunities for discovering, learning and adventuring and of course indulge in food everywhere the road takes you. Many restaurants also showcase the work of local artists. Collecting emerging artists is a great way to acquire art at affordable prices. The journey is really about discovery.

Learn about the landscape

Obviously you will begin to figure out what resonates with you. Once you begin down this path as a viewer of art, recognition begins as relevance about the art and the artists take shape. You begin to visualize how it all fits into the grand scheme of contemporary art. Learning about history will help you indicate where influences came from. Artists themselves are sometimes inspired and their style develops through the melding and bending of artists throughout history. Some take away more than others. Finding artists that invent their own style is the key to finding the nuggets. Just like when you hear The Lemon Song from Led Zeppelin song and realize they might have heard a familiar song from Robert Johnson. There are all kinds of influences in the art world as well. Emerging artists take a while to find their style. You will know you have found someone who has developed their own style when you can identify their work without seeing their name. There are also groups of artists that form different subcultures in the contemporary art landscape. Dark artists, low-brow, minimalists, hyper-realists, pop art, abstract artists, surrealists, conceptual artists and many more. You also have artists that create 2D work like paintings or 3D work, like ceramics and sculpture artists. You will start to see what separates some from the others. If your interest takes you there, it is all about looking and learning. Never be afraid to ask questions. Through decades and current events, you will also start to notice what significant events influence artists. The mass exodus of people from one place to another, climate change, war, politics are some of the big ones. Artists create art and express their inner selves through the art they make. There are waves of attention towards events through the years and you can begin to identify their significance. You begin to learn that your eye guides you like a compass. Optics lead the way and your brain and body start responding as you go deeper into the art world. It is a combination of curiosity and excitement that keeps you energized. It takes some time to get there, but the more you learn, the faster you will arrive at the different destinations. Just like cooking, baking, or any learned skill you have, practice and time invested can enrich that curiosity.

About that research

After you devour the internet and exhaust your body schlepping around galleries and museums far and wide. After you are fulfilled with all the self-discovery you can handle—start drilling down on that particular kind of art you love. There may be more than one. Your taste is your own. I for one, am very eclectic, so it makes it a bit harder. Once you build up confidence and create relationships in the art world, yes, you should meet these people and correspond. Follow artists to different openings and shows. Your world will benefit from the amazing people art can bring into your life. Get to know the climate and do as much research as you can about the kind of art you love and the artists that are making it. Look locally and as far away as you would like to venture. Your relationships can take you to the inside of the art world. Getting to know artists, gallerists and curators will help keep you updated on what is hot. Show up for the artists whenever you can. Attend openings, artist talks and gallery tours to support artists. Your presence is so important to them and validates their work. Metrics are everything, as galleries and museums pay attention to how many visitors they have. If a show is well attended, that artist may get invited back. Your presence in their world becomes very meaningful to them and the galleries. The margins are slim for galleries who carry local artists and community based programming in many cases. Back to what to look for — everything is subjective, but remember, once an influential person formulates an opinion about an artist, that influence has a way of snowballing. I remember I had the chance to purchase a piece of work at an auction and I walked away so other people could have the chance to purchase the piece. I was running the auction and not sure if it was ok to buy up a bunch of art at my own auction. I did not purchase the work. I regretted it right away. A year later, that artist won a big award at the city art association. From that success, an opportunity opened up for them to show at a major museum. Now, his work is more valuable because of his successes. Learn who is good and just buy the work that resonates with you. If your instincts are right, one or two of your early pieces may become more valuable, but this is not important. When you are ready, start making bigger purchases with artists that have bigger clout.

Just like designing your house, keep to the classics as your baseline

You have invested and have done your research. It is very easy to be swayed by the winds of trending, buzz-worthy artwork. Unlike 80’s hair drenched in Aquanet, or your Jordache jeans, your investments should be made on sound work that can withstand the test of time. Sure, brown wood paneling was all the rage in the 70’s, as stark white kitchens are today, but in 8-10 years time, they will be dated. It is harder to know what art will fluctuate but the flash in the pan should be examined wisely. Filter out any hype and craziness over artwork and only buy what you really want. You may only want a small collection that makes you happy, or you may have the budget for a museum-quality collection. Your budget and your intuition and maybe some influential guidance will dictate the caliber of art on your walls. But, if you fall in love with a piece of art and it lands out of your price range, communicate transparently with the artist or gallery. In some cases, you may be able to work our an agreement. The gallery has a job and that is to get the art in the hands of collectors. Of course, the more well-known of a collector you are, the more prestigious the sale is for the gallery and the artists. Many high-level galleries would never, but with some, you never know, until you ask. One of my favorite pieces was purchased on a four payment installment plan.

Buzzed buys

Like buzz-worthy buys we also have buzzed buys. Sometimes you end up having cocktails in places where art is sold, like vacation towns specifically. Take it from my personal experience, that doing an art walk after a few cocktails may be a recipe for some impulse buying. I think we have all been there. Luckily, I made a very fortuitous purchase. A painter known for her style and subject matter who was heavily sought-after decided to create a series of five pieces of another subject in the same style. One piece, the last one in this series was available in her studio when my accomplices and I walked in. After a lot of research about this artist and talking with some locals that validated and improved upon what I already knew, her gallery was on my list for a visit. The timing of the visit happened coincidentally, as we were passing by. The purchase was made impulsively because it resonated, although it was out of my budget. I spent the money anyway. Bad judgement there, but…I recouped quickly and never had a moment of regret. Now it is one of my prized pieces. Learning about the importance of that piece only after it was home on my wall for months made it pretty glorious. A warning to all, be careful about consuming adult beverages while art shopping. I will say though, that supporting community galleries by purchasing a glass of wine at shows is important. The finer galleries should just be handing you a glass of champagne at their openings just for being there, like our favorite gallery in Provincetown, CUSP. That being said, some of my favorite pieces were purchased after a couple vinos. I think my overthinking is mitigated by libations.

Think about how you collect art

Think about why you want to collect art. In Juniper Rag, we explore the artists biographies and statements and do in-depth features to help connect the viewer with the artists. Sometimes looking at a piece of art will not make the same impact as when you learn the story behind the artists and learn about why they make the art they do. Sure, when you are starting out, you are eager and make purchases based only on impulse, just because you love the color or the image. There is something else to think about. The impact of that art in the landscape of life and times and to you personally. The price tag sometimes has no bearing on the art’s value to you or the world. Whether it is inexpensive or not, the art should make a mark and be significant to you in some way. You live with the art in your home and it becomes part of your story. Your friends, family and neighbors will see it and be effected by it. As a child, I remember being enamored by the pieces that my grandparents brought home from their travels. Brass embossed plates on the wall from India, engraved cups from Istanbul on the table at Thanksgiving. My grandfather was always making art himself as well. Being around that culture and creativity as a child changed my life and opened my mind to deep curiosity. As an adult I chose to fill my house with art so I would always be surrounded by the memories and the stories of their origin and their future. Your personal connections to objects in your home matter, no matter how esoteric they are.

Just buy it

After all, if it speaks to you and you can afford it, begin by just buying it. If you are walking a show and you ruminate about a piece, pay attention to other people feeling the same way about the work. If you gravitated to it, chances are someone else did too. I have lost a few by hesitating. You have to take time to think and process, but when you are indecisive, sometimes you lose the opportunity. If you react strongly to a piece, pay attention to that feeling and make a decision accordingly. I tend to overthink. That is my way and sometimes, it costs me. When you buy a piece of art that you love and are deeply connected to, it can transform you and your space. It really becomes part of your life. You wake in the morning and see it, you walk by later and take a look. The color of it may pull your whole room together or make a pop of contrast. Guests at your house will ask questions and their curiosity about your art will become interesting conversations. You may inspire another art buyer by sharing your adventure. The value is endless and that this euphoria continues long after your purchase is made. The excitement of collecting art is real. Buy one or two and then, you’ll know.

Get familiar with some of our artists by visiting the Juniper Rag Art Market and our Elevation Exhibition that can still be viewed online.