How to Become an Art Collector - Even Without a Plan
It never starts with a plan. It starts with a piece that won't let you go.
If you're wondering how you actually become an art collector - here's the answer before you read on: you already are one. Just asking the question says it all: you want to be an art collector. You just haven't bought your first piece yet.
Let me show you what helps you land your first piece of art:
Choose Your Art Style First
You feel like you don't have a style at all? Like you often just don't have the words for what you love?
Then think back: to that one artwork - in a friend's living room, in a homewares store - that captivated you so much you had to stop.
There's a colour that pulls you in, and you don't even know why. You don't need to be able to name it. Whether it's abstract or figurative artwork, portraits of women, or art with flowers: the piece that makes you pause, the one you can't walk past - that's your style.
Choose Your Favourite Colour
The real question isn't which colour matches your sofa. And no, it doesn't have to match the rest of your home either.
It's which colour matches your mood, the moment you open your eyes in the morning. The colour that makes your home shine - and you, too. It can be your favourite colour. The one you keep being drawn to, even if it's bold.
Even if your first thought is: „What if I choose wrong and won't love it anymore in five years?“
From my own experience: that first pull toward a colour or painting is usually right.
How Much to Spend on Art as a Beginner?
What do you actually get for your budget? Honestly, more than you think.
You don't need a fortune to own something real. You deserve something that makes your heart skip - just for you, because you're worth it.
Here are a few numbers to go by:
The most common options for wall art, and what they cost.
Fine art paper prints - a great entry point, smaller price tag. Starting point: AU$60 to 300.
Framed or unframed artwork - unframed gives you the freedom to frame it your way. Framed is ready for the wall straight away, framed starting at AU$150, depending on size.
Canvas wall art prints - no frame needed when already stretched, instant presence. But honestly, I think they look even more striking framed. For AU$160 to 550, you already get a decent size.
Original artwork - hand-painted. One of a kind. There's almost no upper limit here. For starters: decide how far you're willing to go - then see where you can find your favourite piece within it.
Featured: Fine Art Print Collection
Good Places to Buy Artwork Online
What if you buy online - and it looks completely different in real life? Don't buy from an anonymous platform. Buy from an artist.
From someone who says you're not just a customer to me, and if something doesn't work out, I've got your back.
And honestly? Most of the time, a piece of art looks even better in person than you imagined. ;)
How to Choose the Right Size Art for Your Space?
What if it ends up too big, too small, or somehow lost on the wall? Measure the wall, not the piece.
As a rule of thumb: your artwork can easily take up two-thirds of the width of your sofa, bed, or open wall area. Smaller tends to look lost, bigger is almost never wrong.
Let me tell you a bit about Yunjoo, one of my lovely customers: she bought her first piece (30x30 cm) because it just felt right. Later, she told me her choice was exactly right. She just wished she'd gone bolder on size.
You can start big or small. Both are fine. But the bolder choice is usually what makes the bigger difference to how a room feels.
One more thing - the most important one:
Let Your Heart Decide What Artwork to Start With
Your head will always find a reason to wait a little longer. Your heart already knows.
A piece of art should make you happy - and make you feel something. The moment you first lay eyes on it, your heart should skip a beat, like something in you is finally singing.
That's the moment you really know - that's the one. And just like that, you're an art collector.
If you're looking for luminous abstract wall art created in Australia that catches exactly this feeling, explore the collections below.
Click Here for the Fine Art Print Collection
Click here for Whispers of a Dream - the artwork at the very top of this page
Good taste attracts more good taste. A few brands that impressed me lately:
Takeawei – colourful handmade ceramic lighting
Kip&Co – bold, colourful, joyful homewares