Art Buying Collectives

Emma Jacobs writes an interesting piece for the Financial Times about collectively purchasing art. The concept is not new as there have been private groups which formed investment groups for stocks and also real estate.  Here the group purchases art collectively, and then shares the art with members to display in their homes. The ideas allows for the group to purchase art where the individual may not be able to afford. The article states the main emphasis of the collective is to build a collection and experience the enjoyment of living with different pieces. The objective is not necessarily to make money or think of the art solely as investment vehicles, but I would think holding value is part of the equation as well.

Jacobs reports there can be complications and issues

Robert Lee, of the London collective, believes appreciation of the work is enhanced by the fact that the various pieces look so different in each member’s home – one lives on a houseboat, another in a flat in the city centre, while others have houses in the suburbs ranging from small Edwardian terraces to large Victorian villas.

Rotating artwork around members’ houses is not without its problems, however. “Sometimes people get attached to a picture and don’t want to see it go. Sometimes we find people are reluctant to hang a work – we’ll find it sitting in a garage or a spare room,” says Betts. Tim Eastop says for that reason one of the London collective’s rules is that “even if there’s a piece that we don’t like, we have to hang it”.

Fox believes “it works best when someone has to hang something they hated. Nine times out of 10 at the end of the six-month hanging period they love it. They are confronted by something challenging every day.”

To read the full Finanical Times article, click HERE. Not that for some article access registration is required at the Financial Times.