The Ultimate Guide to Building a Valuable Art Collection

After careful consideration, you've decided to build your own art collection. Whether driven by passion or investment, an art collection can be a symbol of your great taste, knowledge, and status. However, a poor collection may only reflect your ignorance and terrible ‘eye’ for art. As someone working in Japan's oldest contemporary art gallery, I have been fortunate to meet top collectors from around the world. In this article, I will share practical advice from these collectors whose collections are desired even by the top museums.

To build a meaningful art collection, a collector must conduct proper research and fieldwork. Nobody is born with a great ‘eye’ for art; it is developed through actively visiting, researching, and analyzing museum and gallery exhibitions. This becomes even more crucial if you don’t have the money to casually buy any artwork you fancy. 

By following this guide, you will learn how to conduct proper research on the artist and artworks you wish to collect, and by the time you realize, you’ll have your own discerning ‘eye’ for art.

1. READING MATERIALS

The first step to researching your favorite artist is to find some reading materials about them. As artists build their careers, galleries or other cultural institutions typically publish various types of books about their works. Specifically, there are three main types of reading materials: books that provide an overview of the artist's works, exhibition catalogs, and catalogs raisonnés. 

Image: Philip Guston: A Life Spent Painting

You can start with any book that provides an overview of the artist's past works. This will help you identify the pieces that best represent the artist and understand the characteristics or motifs in their art. While it's important to recognize the types of works you tend to like, it's even more crucial to understand when the artist's best pieces were created. Most artists have a peak period, whether in their 30s, 40s, or 50s, and you want to find their best works. Such artworks are flawless in terms of structure, color, and strokes, and will never bore you.

Now that you know the basics of the artist and their works, step two is to dig deeper by reading the museum’s exhibition catalogs. Curators understand that their exhibitions significantly impact their reputation, so they ensure that the audience understands the concept of the curation through these catalogs. Inside, you will find pictures of artworks that best represent the artist and the exhibition. Your goal here is to understand the artist through the eyes of the curator. This is important because the curator’s primary job is to show why the artist’s works are historically significant and valuable.

You should also visit gallery exhibitions and review their exhibition catalogs. To attract museums and collectors, gallerists also put significant effort into their exhibitions. However, unlike curators, gallerists can be a bit more business-minded. They understand the art market, including the artist’s current performance, the price of the artist's artworks, and which pieces are most in demand. This is the kind of information you don’t want to miss.

The last type of reading material you should look at is the catalog raisonné. It is a comprehensive listing of all the known works by the artist, containing detailed information about each piece. Sometimes, it also includes the names and nationalities of the collectors. This allows you to see which type of artworks are most popular among top collectors and in which countries the artist is most in demand. Although it is said that there are fewer fakes among the works listed in a catalog raisonné, counterfeiting is becoming easier each day, so you still need to be careful.

As you probably noticed by now, not all artists have these reading materials, and younger artists certainly do not have a catalog raisonné. Gather as many resources as you can, but don't strive for perfection.

2. MUSEUMS

As you read about the artist, it's also important to visit museums and explore their collections of your favorite artist. If there's an exhibition showcasing the artist, even better. This is where you can develop your eye for art.

Image: Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum

Before heading to the museum, write down in your notebook exactly what you want to know from the exhibition. Consider questions such as when the artist produced their best works, what recurring themes or motifs define their art, which galleries have been pivotal in their career, and who collects their works. Bring your notebook along to jot down other things you noticed during your visit. 

Also, don't forget to obtain a list of all exhibited works and later write down the creation periods of those artworks in your notes. Top museums will always aim to exhibit an artist's best pieces, allowing you to discern when the artist was at their peak. For instance, if an artist lived from 1947 to 2001 and the majority of the exhibited artworks were painted in the 1980s, it suggests that this period was his peak. These are the artworks you should focus on collecting.

Here, I'd like to share an important tip. Not all museums have the best collections or exhibitions. Yesterday in Tokyo, I attended an exhibition of a well-known artist—though I won't mention names due to friends working there. Upon examining the creation years of each work, I discovered they were all produced after the 2000s, even though the artist passed away in 1957! It turns out that the artist's estate or family continued to reproduce works in the artist's name after his death. Naturally, these reproductions hold less value than the original artworks. This is why it is important to select the right museum. 

3. GALLERY

The last important way to research your favorite artist or artwork is to visit galleries. Here, you can gather practical information such as the artist's reputation in the market and the prices of their artworks. These are details you cannot really get by reading catalogs or visiting museums.

When visiting galleries, they may not always have the artwork you seek. However, there are times when a piece you love unexpectedly comes out of nowhere for you to buy. While researching artists, you typically don't need to rush, as unlike stocks, artwork values don't change easily. But if you suddenly find a piece you want at a gallery, you may not have much time for thorough research. In this case, you would want to already have some practical information in your head, such as the typical market prices of artworks and current trends in the art market. This will help you make an informed purchasing decision.

To gather practical information, you must first find the right gallery. Some galleries prioritize selling works solely for profit. Look for a proper gallery that has represented your artist for at least 10 years, possesses comprehensive knowledge about the artist, and understands their market value. Building a good relationship with these galleries is crucial as they often provide insider information not readily available online.

Exhibition at Hauser & Wirth; Nairy Baghramian, Se Ployant (2024)

Thank you to those who have made it this far in this article. I hope you now understand how to begin collecting artworks by following the three methods we've explored: Gathering information through reading materials (art books, exhibition catalogs, and catalogs raisonnés), analyzing museum exhibitions, and visiting galleries. Remember, it's not just about researching in your room. Fieldwork is crucial, and there's much to learn from visiting museums and galleries. Understanding the perspectives of curators and galleries regarding your favorite artist will significantly help you make informed purchasing decisions.

Last but not least, pursue the artwork you love. When you find artwork that you like, you'll naturally try to research and learn more about the artist. Art can also serve as a valuable alternative asset, but unlike stocks, you can hang it on your wall and enjoy it daily. Might as well find pieces that bring you joy.

If you have any questions at some point, feel free to contact me here.

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About the Author

Shion Hamazumi

After graduating from Tel Aviv University (Israel), Shion has been working with Tokyo Gallery+BTAP. With over 70 years of history, the gallery boasts a wealth of collectors from around the world. Driven by his passion for art, he helps collectors understand the art market and share his love for art history.