Buying Art : The Basics Whether You Are A Pro Or Not !

Part 3

The rest of the questions that should be asked:

Where Has It Been?

It's also important to know where that particular piece of art has been. This is done by accumulating all incidental information about the piece. It's similar to making a biography of the piece, from it's birth, which is the artists completion of it, up until the present day.

This can b helpful since good provenance and documentation can increase an artwork's desirability, collect ability, and market value. Having a good provenance in the art world is analogous to having good pedigree in the pet world. For example, if a painting was exhibited at a notable and important art show, then it is more collectible than a similar painting that wasn't; just the same with awards and prizes.

Is The Price Fair?

For this question, it doesn't really matter what the piece's value may be in the future, since nobody can really answer that. What you should want to know is whether the piece is fairly priced today or not. This is a very important question, because just like other services or goods, art can sometimes come overpriced.


The last question is-

Do You Like The Piece And How Will It Look In Your Home?

This is the most important questions of all. YOU are the one that has to look at the piece all the time. Your the one that needs to enjoy it the most. Buy something that you will like and enjoy.

Please leave the comments, we love to read them.

Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"

Buying Art : The Basics Whether You're A Pro Or Not

Part 2

Five questions that you should ask when buying art.

If the time comes that you see a piece that you want, whether it be a sculpture, painting or a print, there are generally four questions that you should ask them and yourself to start your decision making.


Corn husking sculpture



Women in art ( paintings)



Who's The Artist?

To answer this, you have 2 reliable sources: spoken and written information. Spoken information usually comes from the artist himself, gallery exhibiting the piece or the dealer. It can also come from other collectors, friends, family, and other people that are familiar with and about the art or the artist being considered. On the other hand, written information could come in a number of forms like artist career resumes, gallery exhibits catalogues, art reference books and exhibition reviews.

How Important Is It?

This could be answered by simply looking at as many possible pieces done by the artist. Try to be familiar with the range of the artists' art and see where that particular piece falls. You can start by asking the seller to show you a number of pieces done by the artist, whether original, in print, or in photographs. Also try to see works from all periods of the artist's career; doing this can teach you a lot about the artwork and the artist at hand.

More to come tomorrow. Please leave your comments, we love to read them.

Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"