There is a difference in buying art to decorate your home and collecting it. Becoming a collector requires investment, patience and instruction. Here are four tips from the Affordable Art Fair:
Start small: Not only do smaller artworks have more modest price tags but being able to buy more lets you explore your tastes. But don’t rush. Take time to build an incredible collection, as opposed to simply a large one.
Educate yourself: Learn more about the art world. Training your eye and understanding different techniques will help you choose quality pieces. As well as flicking through art or art history books, do some online research about contemporary art and artists: their training, their trajectory, their typical price points. Invaluable resources include artinfo and artnet.
Discover your tastes: Within a collection, it is expected that there will be a certain amount of cohesion, whether that is defining what resonates with you, or building around a loose theme such as subject matter, style, artists or medium. Art should be an emotional experience. The biggest mistake you could make is buying something you don’t love.
Get involved: See as much art as you possibly can. Visit museums, galleries, art fairs and any other arty happenings you come across. And speak to people – pick the brains of gallery owners, museum curators and even the artists themselves.
Affordable Art Fair: how to start your own collection | Metro News
