Art collecting 5 - The first art gallerie in Madrid

Where acquire works of art with responsibility and knowledge. The Madrid case study

Art galleries are key sales agents in the art market. If I speak of the Spanish case of Madrid it is because currently the Madrid art market is a mature and very interesting market and a good example for anyone who wants to start an art collection.

Art galleries are not the only sources for acquiring works for a collection or for an occasional purchase. Once as a young collector they define the type of collection, the next thing is to know where to buy works. Any collector should experience security and confidence with their sources of art acquisition.

There are several sources: art galleries, auction houses, art fairs where art galleries in their best clothes, art dealers, etc. I am only going to talk briefly about two of these sources because art fairs will be the subject of another installment of this blog.

AUCTION HOUSES: I personally enjoy snooping around auction houses and I have to say that a couple of auction purchases were unsuccessful, but others have given me satisfaction. When I talk about a failed purchase, it's something subjective, because I still enjoy those works a lot today and they were a good lesson. In any case, my recommendation is to buy at auction houses that offer confidence because they have high standards of seriousness.

ART GALLERIES: Art galleries are the prelude to art centers and museums. The contemporary art artists present in all the museums previously exhibited in art galleries.

Did you know that visiting an art gallery is free? Not only that, gallery owners are delighted to attend to visitors personally, we gladly do guided tours. In the case of my gallery, I dedicate all my efforts and time to gallery visits that require and appreciate it.

But a collector must differentiate between an art gallery and art dealers. The job of an art gallery is fundamentally to promote artists. The team of this gallery carefully selects a number of artists that they create of artistic quality and we present them, both in exhibitions in the gallery and in fairs so that interested people and collectors come into contact with their work and get to know their names. The desire to follow the name of an artist occurs automatically when the work is interesting and of quality.

But when you enter a world that is somewhat less known, it is enriching and also interesting to know the history and origin. Understanding the origin is a necessary step to better understand the object of study, which in this case is the art gallery. In the attached text you will find data on the origin, which should also be linked to the evolution of collecting. For example, the first art gallery in Madrid that opened in 1940 the text mentions some names that should be known by any collector of Spanish art.

I talk about art in Madrid because it is where I live and where I have the gallery, however, it is just an example, each person who follows this blog will enjoy doing the exercise of inquiring about the birth of art galleries in their city of origin. The attached text link in Spanish by Hernando González (Hernando González, 2019), is available by pressing the following paragraph.  I also attach the academic citation of the document for those who are interested.

Hernando González, A.H. (2019). The pictorial market in Spain. Years 40 and 60 (Galleries Biosca, Edurne and Mordó). Collecting, Patronage and the Art Market: European, American and Asian Scopes. III International Congress (2019), p 150-161.

You must select the link "Full text (pdf)". The link to the text, which is freely accessible at the time we write this blog, and any mention of the content of the document must be made respecting the principles and copyright.

I will attend or comment in private on questions or doubts that come to:

ojoavizor@mardevidaart.com

I hope you enjoy it and see you on the alert.