Revised on 7 November 2026. Should any information have changed, please notify me and I shall update it.
A collection commences the day one acquires a second work with the first in mind. Prior to that moment, there is merely a purchase; afterwards, there is a criterion. This guide does not dictate what to acquire, as that remains your prerogative. It explains how to purchase with limited funds without faltering in areas unrelated to taste: the format, the location, the price and the documentation.
Where to begin with limited funds
Excluding figures, as prices fluctuate according to the artist and the city, the customary order of pricing is as follows, from lowest to highest: original limited-edition graphic work, short-edition photography, drawing and work on paper, small-format painting or sculpture and, finally, unique large-format work. Graphic work and drawing allow one to possess original work by artists whose paintings one could not otherwise afford.
Be wary of 'signed reproductions' or prints without an edition or artist oversight: these are not original graphic works, even if sold as such. The distinction is also evident in the VAT, which is only reduced to 10% for items that the law defines as objects of art.
Subsequent costs
The price of the work is not the cost of the collection. From the outset, one must aggregate taxes and commissions, transport and packaging, framing and installation, insurance, storage and, in time, conservation. Furthermore, one should not purchase with capital that may be required at a specific date: the art market possesses low liquidity and selling also incurs costs.
Where to purchase
At the artist's studio. Price without an intermediary, direct conversation, and occasionally work not held in a gallery. The delivery of a work by its author generally attracts the reduced rate provided for objects of art; verify that the piece and the transaction align with the fiscal definition.
At a gallery. A higher price, yet accompanied by selection, artist representation and, typically, the possibility of payment in instalments. Inquire whether the gallery represents the artist or merely holds the work on consignment.
At fairs. Numerous works presented together, rapid price comparison, and pressure to decide. Retain the documentation and decide the following day.
At auction. A secondary market, with prices occasionally low and additional expenses that must be added to the hammer price. This requires greater experience.
Online. Useful for discovering work; hazardous for purchasing without inspection if returns are not permitted.
What to retain from the first work
Create a file for each work, whether physical or digital, from the beginning: an invoice with VAT itemised and the vendor's details; photography of the front and reverse, including labels and signatures; a certificate, if available; a record containing the title, year, technique, dimensions and edition; and correspondence with the artist or gallery. That file will serve for insurance, loan, sale or inheritance purposes, and reconstructing it later is significantly more arduous than creating it now.
Pay by bank transfer. In addition to providing an audit trail, cash payments to professionals are limited by law.
If you receive professional advice
Inquire how the advisor is remunerated, what commercial relationship they maintain with galleries or artists and whether they receive a commission from the vendor. The independence of an advisor is not to be presumed.
Common mistakes
This section reflects my own criteria. Purchasing for investment without understanding how such a work is resold. Paying a fee to 'join' a collectors' club that in reality sells work from its own holdings. Purchasing without an invoice to 'save on VAT', thereby remaining without proof of purchase. Failing to inquire about the state of conservation. Hanging the first significant work opposite a window.
And one less visible error: failing to converse with the artists. A modest collection with a direct relationship with the authors possesses more meaning, and more documented history, than a large one purchased blindly.
Further reading
- How to inventory a collection that mixes physical and digital artworks
- How to care for an art collection at home
- Authenticity, attribution, and forgery: a guide for collectors
- Paid open calls and vanity galleries: how to identify them
On the open conversation
If you have been collecting for a short time and wish to share what you would have liked to know at the beginning, your experience would improve this guide. This notebook remains open.
Sources
- Act 37/1992, on VAT, arts. 91.One.4 and 135 to 139.
- Law 7/2012, art. 7, on the limitation of cash payments.