Know your mind
Jack Wakefield Collecting art on a budget can be daunting. The galleries are snide, the auctions confusing, the whole apparatus seems to have been set up as a conspiracy against the decent, normal, interested punter. Well, it needn't be. Here are a few pointers to make sense of the process that separates you from your hard-earned money and connects you with a work of art. The fundamental thing is to know your own mind. What do you want from a work of art? There are no wrong answers here. You have a passion for all things Victorian, you want a bit more colour in the living room, you are excited by abstract expressionism. But if you try to buy something without a clear sense of what you want, you will be susceptible to the basest sales techniques and most likely come away with dross. Once you know what you want you can start finding out about it by going to museums or reading books or surfing the internet.
It is a good idea to have plenty of dry runs, go to an auction or an art fair with an imaginary budget and a camera to take photos of your non-purchases, see what actually a great place to buy on a budget tishartists.co.uk.
Good luck and good hunting.
Jack Wakefield is an independent art dealer and consultant (jackwakefield@gmail.com).
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