In the Know
In the last few issues, I have been discussing the importance of brick and mortar galleries and the experience that comes from buying art from these physical locations. Lately, I have moderated several panel discussions on this process, panels made up of collectors, art dealers, auction professionals and museum curators. What everyone seems to agree on is that buying art is a personal experience that is made better when a collector has someone like a gallery owner or art dealer to offer advice, find new artists and show collectors how to support an artist throughout the duration of their art careers.
Collectors are passionate people who care deeply about the art they buy and add to their own personal collections. Most collectors choose the art they buy via deep emotional connections that supersede the financial aspects of the transaction. Having said that, art dealers live with this every single day, are surrounded by the art daily while working in the gallery and are thinking about it, talking about it, promoting it continually. That is why I feel it is still important for a collector to find a dealer, or dealers, they enjoy working with and use them for information when it comes to art purchases. I find most art dealers to be invaluable resources who will more than happily share their expertise with interested collectors to help them along their own particular collecting journey.
The best advice is to shop around, find a few people whose tastes align with yours and who you trust, and then use them for advice, much in the same way you shop for an accountant, a stockbroker or an attorney. Then the rest is up to you. The buying part, that is! Enjoy!
Sincerely, Joshua Rose
P.S. We are always looking for new topics for our widely popular Collector’s Focus sections. These are great because they allow collectors a chance to see a wide range of available art from one common subject matter at once. If we’ve missed a collecting category, please let me know! We are always looking for ways to better the magazine. I can be reached at editor@westernartcollector.com.