Art collecting is the hobby of the rich and nouveau rich – or so it was. Since the advent of the world wide web, technology has had an enormous impact on the world and the world’s economy. No longer are international travel, leisurely vacations, and the arts activities designed and marketed exclusively towards the wealthy. It’s given ordinary earners everywhere the ability to go where previous middle class citizens nare had the opportunity to go before.

Purchased on Etsy for $399

One of the areas that was considered to be off limits – or at least out of financial reach – was art collecting. Unless you knew an artist directly, it was difficult to find paintings and drawings that were affordable for the regular joe. The most logical place to look for art was at a gallery, and galleries have been known to mark up paintings 100% when an artist is showing in their space. These markups are necessary for the gallery to make a profit, but they aren’t necessarily conducive to purchasing affordable art.

While many people look at art collecting as a possible investment, art is subjective and obviously isn’t something you should approach the way you would buy burgeoning tech stock from a Silicon Valley startup.

To get a better handle on how art is priced in galleries, we spoke to Troy Nelson, a Brooklyn based art dealer:

To really understand the mark up process, one has to know the four types of artworks and how they are distributed to art galleries. For example, there are originals, limited and unlimited reproduction prints, and limited and unlimited photography prints. Each is associated with a conceptual cost, production cost, distribution cost, signature cost, and cost as to whether or not the artwork has been distributed directly from the artist to the art gallery or through an indirect distribution system. These costs are the baseline factors to determine price prior to reaching art galleries. Art galleries incorporate the baseline price factors with their overhead expenses staying within the established market price.

Original paintings have a different process. Many originals are sold directly from the artist or are sold on consignment through the art gallery. In any event, the artist expresses a minimal asking price based on conceptual cost, production cost, signature cost and negotiates a residual for the art gallery.

Purchased on Etsy for $20

Reproduction prints are a great way to go if you have an artist in mind that you really love, but that you absolutely cannot afford or the original painting has already been sold.  These are typically signed and numbered by the artist and are much cheaper than an original artwork.

While art collecting still isn’t something that is considered very mainstream, the numbers of people who have become more interested in purchasing art for their home has increased over the years – likely due to technology making it more accessible to mainstream consumers.

…there have been spikes in art sales over the past 10 to 20 years. These spikes are driven by customers who have become more educated on art and its intrinsic value…

While art galleries do provide a legit service providing face to face interaction and consultation, there are still major cost benefits to buying online directly through an artist.

With buying directly from an artist online, the only conceivable pro is the comfort that the artwork and the supporting documents are authentic. Unlike the art gallery, the online service is impersonal. I guess it all boils down to personal preference as to whether or not you want to interact with a human or a machine.

Purchased at the Tribeca Art Walk for $600

So, the big question is where do you find pieces of art that are affordable and that appeal to your aesthetic senses?  Art walks and trips to an artist’s studio are always possibilities.  To schedule a time to visit an artist studio, contact the artist directly and find a time that you’re able to stop by and peruse the artwork.

New York City has tons of art walks all over the 5 boroughs.  The Chelsea and Tribeca neighborhoods have been on top of the art scene for years with their plethora of artist studios in the area, although the past 5-10 years has seen Brooklyn’s DUMBO neighborhood  art scene blow up.

As for websites to purchase art, Etsy has been a surprising leader in online art sales, giving artists a cheap e-commerce platform to work with and a global audience to promote themselves.  Many of the works that I’ve accumulated have been acquired through Etsy’s art section.  There is also the option to find limited reproduction works on the popular site 20×200, although they tend to lean towards more photography and abstract work rather than painting reproductions.  The great thing is that they have 200 reproductions of 8×10 work that sell for $20, as well as other sizes for reasonable prices.  The only downside is that the prints sell out very quickly, so you have to jump on them right away, otherwise you’ll miss out.

Another popular site is deviantART, which hosts a number of artist online galleries (many of which have duplicate content on Etsy).

However, the cost of buying art doesn’t necessarily end with the painting or drawing that is purchased.  There’s still the problem of framing, which can be an enormous cost depending on the size of the artwork you’re working with.  One easy way to get around this is to buy frames online that you have to put together.  Learning the ropes of assembling the frames yourself will save you a bundle, and after a few tries you’ll have it down pat.  For framing, try places like PictureFrames.com which has cheap frames that are easily assembled with some practice and patience.  And they also offer frequent discounts that further lower their prices.

While this guide certainly isn’t completely comprehensive, it’s a good start to help the burgeoning art collector purchase works that are still financially attainable.

Do you purchase art?  Do you think it’s important to support the visual arts – even on a shoe string budget?  Let us know in the Comments section – or leave us a link to your favorite artist or place to purchase art.

Related posts:

1. LifeStyler’s Last-Minute NYC Budget Gift Guide
2. When Budget Weddings Breed Budget Attendees: 10 Gift Ideas for Under $20
3. Bargain Beauty Buys: Looking Fab Without Blowing the Budget