Title

Collecting: motives, sources and rituals.

Author

van Ogtrop, Akky

Details

Sixth Australian Print Symposium, National Galley of Australia, Canberra, 2007

Publication date

2007

Type

Conference paper

Language

English

Country of context

Australia

Full text

Collecting: motives, sources and rituals.
by Akky van Ogtrop

[Image 1. KURT LOEB, From the book Een Kwadraat prikkels, 1969, drawing ]

Introduction
• Is there such a thing as a typical collector
• - rich/poor
• What motives? learning/research
• When did it start?
• How did it develop
• Methods of collecting, sources, and rituals
• What will happen to the collection? bequest or sale
• To store or to show?
• And why should you start collecting art instead of cars and why would you specialize in works of art on paper?

Is there such a thing as a typical collector?
One could say that the act of collecting starts in childhood. Remember all the shells and pebbles, sport heroes and stamps. And research into collecting shows that one in three people remains a collector for life. Many forms of collecting can be found in many different societies over a long period of time.

A form of art collecting existed in the earliest civilizations—Egypt, Babylonia, China, and India—as arrays of precious objects and artworks stored in temples, tombs, and sanctuaries, as well as in the palaces and treasuries of kings. Such collections frequently displayed spoils taken from conquered people and served to praise the power and glory of a king or a priestly caste, rather than to display art objects for their innate significance.

A taste for art collecting per se first developed in the West among the Greeks in the Hellenistic Age (4th–1st century BC) as they came to value art of previous stylistic periods for its own sake, rather than for its religious or civic significance. It was only with the rise of Rome, however, that art collecting came into its own.. Wealthy Romans formed collections of Greek sculptures and paintings and commissioned copies to be made if the originals were beyond their reach. A voluminous trade in copies and fakes arose in order to satisfy the insatiable demand for Greek art. Gaius Verres, Lucullus, Pompey, and Julius Caesar were among the most important Roman collectors, as were the emperors Nero and Hadrian.

Over the years many individuals developed collections of great fame like the Guggenheims, the Getties, the Barnes Collection and the Saatchi Collection. And in Australia: The Hinton Collection, The Felton Bequest and the James Fairfax Collection.

Collectors come in all shapes and sizes and have been infected by the bug since all times. They say that collecting is an infection which is more intractable than any virus

[Image 2.] DADA POSTER, Theo van Doesburg & Kurt Schwitters Lithograph, 1924, Kurt schwitters 1887 – 1948. Kurt Schwitters was a rare kind of collector. His collecting manifested itself in special gathering procedures. Day by day he walked through his home town Hanover or other cities he visited in search of trash, scouring the pavement, the gutter or dustbin . Schwitters would return from his excursions with pockets and bags full of paper litter, bus tickets and other trash which he turned into material for his collages. Those callages are now hanging on the walls of collectors and museums.]

What motives? Learning/research
People have various reasons for collecting. For many it is simply a hobby. Sometimes, however, collecting becomes more than just a hobby—it can become all-consuming. It is not uncommon for collections to become extensive, such as collections of 10,000 die-cast cars, 600 porcelain vases, or several thousand cookie cutters. A collector may start with just a few items, only to feel an intense urge to acquire more. That urge to collect things is so deeply ingrained in the human race that there is virtually nothing that hasn't been considered for a collection. And then collecting can help to expand one's horizon, create interesting contacts and may lead to friendships and connections made with fellow collectors, and—perhaps most vitally—the pleasure that accompanies finding and acquiring a new and much-desired object and in the art collectors case forming relationships with dealers, keeping up with your chosen genre, checking on what ''your'' artists are creating--these are the hallmarks of the true collector.
Ideally, preservation should be the overriding motive for collecting; interest in the origins and history of the respective piece. All things considered, keeping and maintaining of objects and customs for contemplation by today's and future generations is really the only sensible reason for collecting.

This altruistic motive is rarely found in its purest form with private collectors. Museums are the appropriate institutions for that. Still, it is commendable that private individuals collect and do that for whatever reasons - quite often at a time well before the items seem to qualify as museum pieces. Often the only things limiting a personal collection are space and money. Many collectors insist that monetary value is a secondary factor in their collecting.

But the idea of art as an investment is popularly held by some and even promoted by many dealers.. While some artists’ work appreciated considerably over time, there is no safe way to predict future gains, and collectors should be wary of any such promises. Besides, collections built purely with profit in mind tend to be mediocre collections. It is collections formed with passion and intelligence that stand the test of time, both aesthetically and monetarily.

[Image 3. Max Ernst; Lewis Caroll, Colour Lithograph, 1971 edition of 50]

I caught the collecting bug from my father. He collected first editions music scores by composers such as Beethoven, Handel etc , transcripts. letters and books about music. He filled our entire house with his collection, making floors sag under the weight of the books. When space ran out he rented extra storage space to handle the overflow. And when that was not enough garages from friends were annexed. He was the one who took me to auctions and second hand shops and well the dye was cast. I was hooked and started to collect works of art on paper’

My love for prints and consequently my print collection started during my study at the Royal Academy of Art in sHertogenbosch where I majored in printmaking. At that time I was poor and the only means of acquiring works was a lot of exchanging and bartering with fellow students and teachers . After my study I found employment in one of the major art galleries in Amsterdam: Gallery de Eendt . and for the next four years while learning the ins and outs of managing an art gallery curating exhibitions and dealing in art I continued to collect. Some artists where great and gave a work as a thank you after their exhibition finished. Over the years I have been able to get a substantial collection together through luck, looking and all kind of other tricks. From that beginning ''I've gone from exchanging to buying art to collecting art,''

We all know that the world of works on paper and especially the print world never received the same exposure that consumer advocates and consumer reports have lavished on the car industry, detergents or that Monet blockbuster exhibition. But as a collector I know that works of art on paper are often the most fundamental, spontaneous, genuinely affordable and collectable of all art forms.
.
[Image 4. HENRI MATISSE, “Pasaphae”, 1981
Linocuts with text by Henri de Monterland. A Posthumous publication of Matisse Linocuts from 1944

[Image 5. MATISSE]

SOURCES, Where to start looking
Galleries
When I arrived in Sydney in the late 70ties I started to visit the galleries but encountered only one gallery showing international art : Stadia Graphics Gallery in Paddington one of the first and foremost galleries in Australia to specialise in Works on Paper. Founded by Stanislas and Diana de Hauteclocque . To start a gallery specialising in art on paper in the 70s was gutsy. to show international prints was even gutsier .Stadia showed exhibitions like Picasso: Suite Vollard, Marino Marini:, Matisse and “100 years from Goya to Cézanne”, “And launched and represented local artists such as Jorg Schmeisser, Jennifer Marshall, Anne Thompson, Earle Backen, John Coburn, and many more.. Stadia Graphics managed to get a following of print collectors and certainly was instrumental in putting international and Australian printmaking on the map.
Those years were also good for my own collecting urges.. As interest in international works was low in Australia and still is, I often was able to buy very cheap at auction: a Pierre Alechinsky, the Belgium Cobra painter for $50.. And from exhibitions: a Picasso from the suite Vollard and works by Matisse. But I also learned to appreciate the local printmakers and acquired work by Earle Backen, Jorg Schmeisser, GW Bot, Stephen Spurrier, Ron Mc Burnie and others.

As a Collector you visit studios, galleries and museums regularly to keep up to date .Charles Saatchi always makes numerous visits in person to exhibitions, and little-known back-street galleries particularly in East London, in order to discover innovative work. as well as seeking out artists' studios. Many young artists have launched their careers owing to his interest in their work.
[Image 6. JORG SCHMEISSER, , Landscape from”Zustande II. 1984, Etching.]
Artist’s studios
Like al other collectors I am drawn to studio visits because we want to feel like part of the creative process, It can be tricky as sometimes the collector realizes mid-visit that he can't afford anything, but is too embarrassed to say so. and equally embarrassed the artist may think, "He hates my work.."

[Image 7. Lajos Kassak, 1887 – 1967, Planche E, 1961 Colour Screenprint, Published by Denise Rene, Paris.]

Auctions
Buying at auction can be exciting. Most dealers caution that the auction market is a dangerous place for the non-professional. But this is like telling the tourist not to enter the casbah to buy an Oriental rug. I love going to auctions and again sometime can be lucky or sometimes miss out on that wonderful work. Famous collectors are mostly well known to the auction public and therefore cautious with bidding themselves as that might influence the price. Mostly they have someone else bidding for them.
[Image 8. Frantisek Kupka, “1871 – 1957, Une Absolue, 1952 Colour Screen print from the portfolio, Maitre de L”Art Abstrait published by Art d’Aujourhui, Paris.]
[Image 9. Rick Amor, Artists Studio, 1996, gouache.]

Art Fairs
Art Fairs are excellent places for the collector as all galleries and dealers are under one roof. OK I am biased but The Sydney Art on Paper Fair is a great example …Top collectors travel the world from one art fair to the other. The Basle Art Fair and TEFAF in Maastricht are amongst the favourites. To be seen and to be seen to buy. And also to see what your rival is up to is a great game.

[Image 10) SAM FRANCIS, Red, Blue Yellow, 1961, lithograph]

[Image 11) ROBERT MOTHERWELL, Red Sea I, Aquatint 1976.]

Buying Art on Line
I am not very good at buying on line. I have to ask Ron McBurnie who is a wizzard on line collector to help me there. But if you can not make it to auctions or the art fairs you might want to try an online auction. Internet auctioneer eBay recently purchased Butterfield Auctioneers, the San Francisco auction house. The move was seen as eBay's bid to take on the art world's elite, Christie's and Sotheby's, which will launch their own auction Web sites. While the expansion of the Internet into Picasso and Monet may shake things up, serious collectors still rely on the human touch to help them make their moves. By far the most critical relationship is the one with the art dealer. A good dealer gives advise, can bid for you at auctions, ''No great collection was ever formed without a dealer.''

Websites
Nowadays most artists as well as most dealers and galleries have a website where you can peruse the works and order on line.

I also collect artists books and they are easy to buy on line or from dealers websites.

[Image 12. “DER STURM” 1912 “Wochenschrift fur Kultur und die Kunste”, With original woodcut by E.L Kirchner. I found this important publication between the Brahms music scores in my fathers collection.]
[Image 13. ARTIST BOOKS INSTALLATION SAPF. Artist’s books by Stephen Spurrier installation at the 10th Sydney Art on Paper Fair.]
[Image 14. ARTISTS BOOKS from my collection, foreground Noel McKenna.]
[Image 15. SAPF Birthday cake made from a collection of reject prints and drawings by students of COFA]

To store or to show?
"There are many approaches to the collecting of works of art on paper, for example the art lover's and bibliophile's approach in which works on paper are kept in boxes and drawers, systematically arranged, keeping the works away from sunlight and the public. Or to share the collection with a wider audience through exhibitions in museums or starting a gallery like Charles Saatchi, or just display privately or in the office. My collection is in drawers, on the wall and sometimes included in museum and gallery exhibitions
Whatever the case I have to care for it properly, providing a good environment, and safe handling and storage conditions, critical to preserving paper collections..

[Image 16. BEN NICHOLSON. 1894 Turkish Form, Etching 1967 , bought from another collector]

What will happen to the collection? Bequest or sale
During the 18th century non aristocratic collectors, such as Pierre Crozat, Horace Walpole, and famous banking families were able to form important collections. Meanwhile, the great private collections of Europe's royalty began to be opened to public viewing, and eventually monarchs and aristocrats began donating their holdings to the public. The first notable example of this was Maria Ludovica, the grand duchess of Tuscany and last of the Medicis, who in 1737 bequeathed her family's vast art holdings to the state of Tuscany; they now form the core of the Uffizi Gallery, the Pitti Palace, and the Laurentian Library in Florence. Maria Ludovica was followed by many other monarchs and aristocratic collectors, and the great art museums that opened all over Europe in the late 18th and 19th centuries were based on collections their owners had left to the state. The movement of artworks from private collections into museums has been a dominant feature of art collecting ever since. Also here in Australia.
[Image 17. PANAMARENKO (pseudonym of Henri Van Herwegen, 1940) IJsvogel , Screenprint in 8 colours. The name Panamarenko is supposedly an acronym for Pan American Airlines and Company.]
Then there is also the chance that collections through selling are devided up. When the famous Sarah Lea collection was sold, some works were donated to a number of museums, others went to private collections and the rest was sold at auction. It is often really sad to split up a major collection, it tells you so much about the collector, social environment, the art movements, and with one sale a whole history of collecting can disappear.. However if need to, you can sell your collection at auction or via an art dealer or via eBAY. Or donate to a gallery, museum, library, or built your own museum.
For me collecting and preserving art with knowledge and care is the surest way to enjoy a lasting reward whether you collect for love, money or both. What will happen to my collection? Well I do not know as yet, so for now I just keep on collecting.

© Akky van Ogtrop.
Paper presented at the Sixth Australian Print Symposium, National Galley of Australia, Canberra, 2007
 

Last Updated

13 Aug 2012