The word is somewhat imposing and makes one think of large rooms full of pieces or of a long tradition – with areas of shade – that goes back to the rooms of wonders or cabinets of curiosities of the 17th century. So, first of all, it must be clarified that almost no small collector considers himself a collector, even if he has accumulated a respectable amount—they all are—of artistic work. Furthermore, the media discourse, so focused on institutions or the most morbid and debatable phenomena of the art market, does not usually give a voice to those who collect away from large auctions or stratospheric figures. So, outside their circles, small collectors are usually found through friends who have seen their houses and point them out with comments like: “Juan has a collection of drawings that doesn't fit one more on the wall” or “Beatriz's apartment is full of contemporary sculpture.” Then, Juan and Beatriz—they are assumed names—tell you that no, they are not collectors, but hey, they do have some things.
When on March 6, the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun, informed the Consortium of Gallery Owners of his intention to reduce VAT on art sales from 21% (general rate) to 10% (the rate that has been applied since 2018). , for example, on movie or concert tickets and even higher than the 4% applied to books and press) a small storm broke out on the networks. A part of society (which, for once, included both people who perceive themselves to be on the left and others who perceive themselves to be on the right) did not understand that lowering taxes on a business that, as is frequently read, was being considered. moves billions of euros and breaks profitability records every year. However, as gallery owners and artists comment, the news went down well in the sector despite the fact that it caused some confusion during fairs that, such as Arco and Justmad, were being held just at that time.
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Interest, beauty and rarity: book collecting, the passion that (still) escapes the clutches of the art market
Rafael Bonilla, co-director of the Paisaje Doméstico gallery, explains that “collectors have been complaining for a long time. They wonder why a novel or a play has reduced VAT and a work of art does not.” This gallerist insists a lot that he tries to ensure that the price does not represent an obstacle for “the collector who falls in love with a work” and, for example, always allows the payment to be split in installments. Paisaje Doméstico works with pieces by some of the most important Spanish artists of the moment, but the public that acquires work is of all types and, of course, is not made up mainly of magnates or investors: “There is no fixed profile; It would be as risky as asking who likes music: anyone can like it. Just as a song generates a powerful emotion in you and you will follow that singer for life, in the world of art there is a moment when a work moves you or changes your mood and the spirit of that artist takes over you.” . When insisted, Bonilla tries to refine and improvises a profile of this small collector that he repeats (“doctors, civil servants, managers of small companies…”), but he immediately adds that there is always some client who “instead of buying a print in IKEA, it occurs to you to buy a work.” Something very positive because “collections often depend on a first click, on that first work that is followed by the others.”
Neither decoration nor speculation: enjoying the works at home
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“As a capricious collector or seeker of small pieces that give me pleasure, I am governed by very different things from what moves the curator,” says Carmen Iranzo, professor at the Higher School of Design of Murcia and a collector for decades, although she still finds it difficult. recognize it. The curator is governed by a series of market issues, current values, fashions and prestige... And the very small collector does not pay attention to market criteria, nor does he think about the value that the work will have or the possible heirs." To finish settling the most morbid issue, he immediately confesses that “the price is only experienced as a fear of not being able to access a certain job, never in terms of the presumed value” and details what his first purchase was like: “I thought it was out of my control.” odds. In an exhibition of original drawings at the Sin Sentido gallery, I especially liked one by Elisa Aguilé. And that night I dreamed of that drawing in a glass showcase that belonged to my grandmother. When I finally bought it I was surprised that in my memory it was completely different. But that doesn't make me like it any less, and I still love it. I realized that of course I could have it, but it is a matter of priorities.”
Both the bibliophile (who has the help of that phrase, now a little old-fashioned, by John Waters: “If you go to someone's house and they don't have books, don't…”) and the record collector have been more accessible for decades. to the general public than the art collector. But both the book and the vinyl are reproductions of an original or supports for certain content and, as Walter Benjamin pointed out in
The Work of Art in the Age of its Technical Reproducibility
, a manifesto that gains relevance with each technological advance: “Even in the The best finished reproduction is missing something: the here and now of the work of art, its unrepeatable existence in the place where it is found. In this singular existence, and in nothing else, the history to which it has been subjected in the course of its duration was realized. Unlike other objects, the work of art is an unrepeatable presence and Vicente Martínez Gadea, an architect with dozens of them in his habitual residence, is amazed that there are those who do not feel it this way: “I do not understand those who have never decided to to buy not even an engraving or a small drawing.”
“Lack of space is not enough of an excuse. I was in the house of a Dutch collector who had the ceilings full of paintings,” Martínez Gadea continues. Iranzo agrees, although he acknowledges that, in his case, “the desire to buy a piece appears first, always above practical issues,” and sometimes the danger of deterioration is real because his house is in worse condition than the piece. what buy. “For example, now I have acquired a painting by Hermann Reimer and I think about how I should arrange the house, whether I should paint or not, to give it a decent space,” he admits.
Without having to develop a strategy, most collectors are clear about what they are looking for. “I have work on paper, some
collage
and some small paintings,” declares the teacher. “Minor works that at no time seem minor to me. The drawn originals make me very happy because the drawing contains many things: the germ and an intimate work that can remain there or be transformed. It is a first phase during which you see a lot of the artist or illustrator groping,” she continues. Of course, interests often evolve and, from time to time, even those with experience doubt. Then the gallery owner intervenes: “I ask the undecided people what they like, what their house is like, what their life is like, what their concerns are and even how their finances are, because sometimes we have to talk about money, like time.” explains Bonilla. “I like to advise and be a kind of agent that guides and indicates where their collection can go if they decide to buy it. And if they already have a collection, I advise as to which piece fits or does not fit into that collection. In addition to being a gallery owner, I collect, and there are pieces that I love, but that I don't buy because they are not in line with my collection,” she concludes.
Several people in an art gallery.Mint Images RF (Getty Images/Mint Images RF)
And what do artists prefer? May your works coexist with an individual or become part of institutional collections? Luisa Pastor, with work in the Nordés Gallery, comments that both options are satisfactory: “I am interested in the collector being happy with the acquisition. I like to think about how he will relate to her later and the place he will occupy in his space along with his personal belongings. The works have to travel and become independent! On the other hand, relevant collections, public or private, are those that allow us to grow and chart a trajectory.” And what are those relationships that are established between collector and work? The Alicante artist continues: “Art has the power to make us reflect on the world around us, as a thinking device rather than a decorative object. I like to think that one does not live in the same way in a house surrounded by books and paintings as without them.” Regarding the “use” that each client gives to the works, Bonilla remembers an anecdote that he finds tremendously beautiful: “I have a client who collects video art and one day I asked her how she really enjoys her collection. And what she does is give parties and dinners at her house and project all the works that she buys.” There are many ways to enjoy works, but, in all cases, collectors speak of the pleasure they give them. It will be the
aura
(another term from Benjamin).