Art Collecting Clubs by Patricia Frischer

Everyone I talk to seems to agree on one thing. We need more people buying art in the San Diego region. These grass roots purchasers will not only support our artists but will enable more galleries to survive and all the supporting interests of the industry. No one knows that better than I, how large of a circle of influence that is. You just have to study the 35 categories in our directory of the visual arts on SDVAN.

Art Collecting Clubs are one way that small local groups can make a big difference. A group can be any number but should be guided by at least one mentor. Meetings can be arranged on any schedule but should be more or less regularly held. Members should participate in the scheduling of subjects for the meeting. They can look at the Arouse Yourself with Arts events and the SmArt Collector to get tons of idea. Groups could actually be organized by galleries, or artist consultants or artist agents all of whom would make good mentors as would university art professional like curators and art historians and critics.

Members can decide to gather just to share information but they could also contribute an amount per meeting to facilitate group art purchases. Hopefully members will eventually start to make discoveries of artists and introduce them to the group. Think of the investment club which sprang up all over America and became so popular when the stock market was the most exciting game in town. Imagine Art Collecting groups who rotate work from one home to another and start to build group collections.

If the money is going to change hands, let’s look at the benefits to the buyers especially if we can tempt the sometimes nervous potential patrons to group together.

Benefits:

• Companionships and fun of the group meetings – what better way to learn about the visual arts than while drinking wine and gossiping with friends on a regular basis in a lovely setting
• Education about the art buying process – overcoming fear of the unknown and having the mystery of those high prices explained, empowers those who seek to own
• Art on the walls of homes – buying with the group and rotating works gives the club member a chance to see how it feels to live with an original work
• Chance of investment increase – buying what you love is elemental, but seeing how a group purchase can play a role in promoting an artist is very satisfying
• Thrill of creating an entire collection – having a chance to be part of a larger budget with bigger buying power allow a member to see an entire group of works to come together
• Supporting the arts community – giving monetary value to the worthwhile work is fundamental to the survival of creativity in SD.

Of course like an investment group, if money is exchanged than a governing document needs to be adopted to determine duties of member (president, secretary, treasurer) management of assets (letting new member join, exit strategies, and reporting practices for taxes if works are sold) and general policies. Of course, I have been thinking about this and the following is a simple sample that could be used.

• Every 6 month the members contribute $100.
• Six times a year the group meets and looks at suggested art purchases
• The group owns the works together and once a year the art is distributed to the homes of the members on a rotating basis on loan.
• All members have to have household insurance to cover the art works while in their homes.
• Totals of the values of owned art works are accessed every 4 years.
• A running total of the investments pool (The Fund) is issued at the meeting.
• Anyone wanting to buy into the Fund has to pay a share equal to the sum invested at the time of entry into the fund
• Anyone wanting to exit the Fund has to agree to take an art work currently assessed at the value of the sum of their current monetary investment or a 75% majority of member agree to sell a work of that value. Members of the group are given first option to buy the work at the current value.
• All members vote on art work purchases. A majority of 75% of members present at the meeting is needed for purchase and a 75% majority of those present is needed to make the purchase
• All members can make suggestions of artists for the fund and should arrange for information, studio visits, or presentations by the artists if local. Local collectors, galleries and museums professionals should become advisors to the group.
• Officers are elected every 2 years and it is the secretary who is responsible for sending out notices of meeting, taking notes and issuing minutes, a treasurer is to keep track of funds and arrange for assessments, the president to conduct the meeting and make strategic plans for the Fund
• In event the Fund is closed, the members can vote on how work should be distributed to members or given to charity for tax exempt donation.

This is one of those ideas that everyone agrees is good, but will not happen unless someone gets off their duff to make it happen. Volunteers, please, step forward.

Patricia Frischer is a founding member and coordinator of the San Diego Visual Arts Network, (www.SDVAN.net ) which funds the SD Art Prize, directory and events calendar and SmART Collector features. Frischer has taken on the roles of gallerist, curator, writer, teacher, website coordinator and artist. Her many metamorphoses make her difficult to fit into any of the usual art world categories. She is author of "The Artist and the Art of Marketing" has lectured extensively on marketing for artists. She is a trainer of artists’ agents, art dealers, consultant and collectors. Her own artwork (www.DrawsCrowd.com ) has been shown internationally and her most recent one person show was at Oxford University.