How to Feel Confident Visiting an Art Gallery, According to Gallerist Hannah Traore https://ift.tt/zTqJU31

Visiting commercial galleries is one of the easiest ways to encounter contemporary art. They’re free to enter and feature rotating shows of curated artworks, making them a crucial part of how art is circulated and discovered.

But for many, the prospect of visiting a gallery can be anxiety-inducing. Stereotypes of sparse wall texts, aloof staff members, and a veneer of elitism have affected the popular perception of galleries, making them feel impenetrable to many outside of the art world.

The reality is that the vast majority of galleries are run by passionate, enthusiastic people who are more than happy to engage with anyone interested in the art they are showing. Still, many new audiences report difficulties with visiting galleries, from feeling intimidated to being unsure about whether artworks are for sale. To better understand these issues, I invited a group of participants who were unfamiliar with the commercial gallery world to visit a number of spaces across New York and report back their experiences. Then, I brought their concerns to rising tastemaker Hannah Traore, whose eponymous Lower East Side gallery emphasizes underrepresented artists and makes the experience of viewing and collecting art feel a little more human.

“[Being inclusive] was one of the huge concerns that I wanted to tackle when opening a gallery, because it becomes a class and race thing as well,” Traore told me. “Who is a typical buyer at a gallery, and so who gets that type of attention? It’s not young people. It’s not often, unfortunately, even though it’s changing, but it’s often not people of color. It’s super unfortunate because galleries should be the most accessible art viewing experience.”

I met the 30-year-old gallerist at her Orchard Street space, where “Who? Me?,” a group show focused on contemporary self-portraiture, occupied the front, while the back room held a solo presentation by Maryland-based interdisciplinary artist V Walton. After studying art history at Skidmore College and completing a yearlong internship at the Museum of Modern Art, Traore opened her gallery in 2022, and it has fast become an anchor in its local gallery community thanks to its program of buzzy shows.

Traore sat down with me in her office, which was full with works from the gallery’s artists, to help demystify the gallery experience and answer the concerns of our participants.

Here are the four main issues I heard—and how she responded.

1. Feeling intimidated by galleries

Fall to Ala, 2025
Yagazie Emezi
Hannah Traore

The biggest concern among some participants was that they immediately felt intimidated by the experience of visiting a gallery. Decades of perceived cliqueishness—often reinforced by popular culture—have given galleries a reputation as spaces exclusively for the wealthy elite. Some participants weren’t sure who they could approach when they entered a gallery, or whether it was even appropriate to do so. On some occasions, there didn’t appear to be any staffers present in the space whatsoever. “I didn’t feel like I was hosted in any way,” one participant told me.

Traore encourages visitors to remember they’re not alone when feeling this way. “I studied art history. I grew up going to galleries, and often I feel that way,” she told me. “Galleries should be the most accessible art viewing experience; unfortunately, they’re inhibiting in all these other ways.”

That sense of exclusivity can be alienating and is an unfortunate aspect of visiting some galleries, where even seasoned art world participants can feel this way. But Traore notes that galleries are there to be visited. “There’s a reason that galleries are open,” she said. “If they didn’t want people walking in and experiencing the work, then they would have appointments.”

While some galleries may present as intimidating, those which are unfriendly tend to be the exception rather than the rule. “The art world I was introduced to is super inclusive and very diverse,” Traore noted. Knowing the galleries that you want to frequent is something that comes with time, and by visiting as many as you can.

2. Not having the context or knowing how to ask questions

Autoportrait, From the series 70's Lifestyle, 1975-1978
Samuel Fosso
Hannah Traore

Fertile with Memory, 2025
Turiya Adkins
Hannah Traore

No wall texts. No visible list of works. No context. That was how one first-time gallerygoer summed up their visit to me.

While not every gallery is expected to provide museum-level details for their presentations, some participants struggled to learn the basics of the shows they visited. Some spaces lacked handouts or information sheets; others offered only minimal wall labels.

Without context, visitors were left unsure how to engage—or whether it was even appropriate to ask questions.

“The receptionist greeted us, but didn’t offer to answer any questions or anything like that,” said one gallerygoer.

I Make My Way / Enter Into Another World, 2025
V. Walton
Hannah Traore

Traore suggested that visitors come prepared with some questions of their own that can help to break the ice.“There are three questions that you can ask,” she advised. “You can ask about the content of the work. You can ask about the materiality of the work, and then you can ask about the artist.” Example questions might be:

• What materials did the artist use for this work?
• What inspired the artist to make this work?
• When did the artist start making art?

Starting with just one of those often opens the door to a more meaningful exchange. “When you, the gallerist, are excited about the artist you’re showing, you meet someone excited about an artist you’re showing, the conversation is natural.” Asking a simple question can ignite a longer conversation and even a new friendship.

3. Not feeling ‘in the know’

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima and Uncle Ben, 1998
Renee Cox
Hannah Traore

Back and Forth (A Self-Portrait), 2025
Alanna Fields
Hannah Traore

Even when they considered asking a simple question, several participants noted a hesitation about feeling underqualified or lacking the requisite knowledge to be taken seriously.

“I hope I don’t ask about this artist and then [the artist] is the most well-known person here,” one gallerygoer expressed, echoing a common fear of seeming out of place or uninformed.

When I told Traore about this fear, she immediately told me to “remember that no one knows everything.” She recalled one time that she hadn’t heard of the pioneering New York–based artist Joan Jonas and felt embarrassed as a result. But instead of feigning knowledge about the artist, she learned to ask questions first.

No matter where the river takes me the pattern finds consistency, 2024
Noa Yekutieli
Hannah Traore

Gallerists, on the whole, she noted, are more than happy to answer your questions, no matter how basic. You don’t need a degree in art history or a Rolodex of dealers to start engaging with galleries, Traore notes. “You could just be an art lover and be in the art world,” she said. “It’s okay to be honest and say ‘I’m new to collecting and I’m super interested.’”

Trying to fake it, she warns, typically backfires. “It’s when you pretend to know something and then you’re found out, that’s when it’s embarrassing,” she said.

Traore also recommends building confidence by learning about the art that moves you. That way, you will have enough knowledge walking into a gallery that you can feel confident in the gallery and making a purchase.

4. Not knowing whether artworks are for sale

Many participants didn’t realize that commercial galleries are designed to sell art. This is because many galleries mimic the white wall aesthetic of museums, where nothing is for sale. Price tags are seldom displayed.

One participant who visited a blue-chip gallery told me “that nothing indicates that this is art for sale, so how would I feel if I were evaluating a first-time purchase?”

While it can be far from obvious, a useful rule of thumb is to assume that “everything is for sale,” Traore said (though sometimes this is not the case).

That being said, buying work from a gallery is different from simply walking into a shop. Perhaps the starkest difference is that, if you purchase something, you aren’t going to walk out with it. A lot of acquisitions happen after extended conversations with the gallerists, which can be followed by logistical planning with art handlers and shippers.

PILE_030, 2024
Moya Garrison-Msingwana
Hannah Traore

Traore noted that new buyers should feel empowered to ask about price. When she receives enquiries about prices from new collectors, she considers these “the most exciting email to get ever.”

Some galleries may sell work to any visitors, while others want to get to know and understand whom they’re selling to. For Traore, and many other galleries, genuine interest trumps status when it comes to placement. “You just have to care,” she said. “I have to trust that you’re going to be a good steward of [the artist’s] work.”

She added: “You have to be careful and protective of your artist’s work, but I’m not going to tell someone, ‘You’re not a good enough collector.’”

Her advice for anyone interested in buying artwork is to show up because you care—not because you think you need to impress anyone. The art world may still have its walls, but the door is open. What matters is the willingness to walk in.

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Hauser & Wirth will open a Palo Alto gallery in 2026. https://ift.tt/iD5UE3S

Hauser & Wirth will expand its West Coast footprint with a new gallery in Palo Alto, scheduled to open in spring 2026. The space will mark the gallery’s first location in Northern California and its third in the state, joining its existing two venues in Los Angeles.

The gallery will occupy a historic post office building at 201-205 Hamilton Avenue in downtown Palo Alto, a short distance from Stanford University. The early 1900s building features large ground-level windows and will house 2,600 square feet of exhibition space. It will also include a bookshop offering Hauser & Wirth Publishers titles and Ursula magazine.

“California—the defining role its artists, institutions, patrons, collectors, and geographic attributes have played in the evolution of modern and contemporary art—has been integral to Hauser & Wirth’s vision and program since our founding more than three decades ago,” said the gallery’s president, Marc Payot. “Perched in its prime spot on the edge of the Pacific Rim and populated by generations of astute and ambitious patrons of the arts, the Bay Area is a place where we are proud to be creating a new space, an energy center for our artists and the community.’

Architect Luis Laplace, who previously worked on Hauser & Wirth’s Paris location, will oversee the design. Laplace is known for repurposing heritage sites into cultural venues, and his firm has been a longtime collaborator with the gallery.

Program details and the opening exhibition are expected to be announced closer to the launch date. This expansion comes nearly a decade after it opened its major complex in downtown Los Angeles in 2016, followed by a second L.A. space in West Hollywood in 2023. Hauser & Wirth currently operates 17 gallery spaces worldwide, including spaces in Zurich, Hong Kong, New York, and London. This is the first time a mega-gallery has opened in the Bay Area since Pace Gallery closed its Palo Alto space in 2022 and Gagosian closed its San Francisco outpost in 2020.

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At 99, Betye Saar forms a curatorial group to guide the future of her work. https://ift.tt/raVHvc2

Betye Saar, known for her assemblages confronting histories of racism, has announced a new initiative to safeguard her legacy. The 99-year-old artist, in partnership with her longtime gallery Roberts Projects, has launched the Betye Saar Legacy Group, which will serve as a scholarly committee dedicated to stewarding her contributions to contemporary art history.

Saar is closely associated with the Black Arts Movement of the 1970s, and her work frequently challenges racial and gender stereotypes. She began creating assemblages after seeing a 1967 exhibition of Joseph Cornell’s work at the Pasadena Art Museum. For just under six decades, she has created these dense sculptural works built from found objects, family heirlooms, and cultural artifacts, among other materials.

The Betye Saar Legacy Group comprises nine international curators, each with longstanding connections to Saar’s work. Members include Esther Adler and incoming Christophe Cherix of the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA); Carol S. Eliel of LACMA; Carlo Barbatti of Fondazione Prada in Milan; Diana Seave Greenwald of Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum; Elvira Dyangani Ose of the Museu d'Art Contemporani de Barcelona; Stephanie Seidel of ICA Miami; and independent curators Zoé Whitley and Mark Godfrey. Cherix is slated to become MoMA’s director in September 2025.

“Over the years, I have worked with all of the members, and they each have gathered a unique bit of know-how, a particular insight, about my creative process,” said Sarr in a statement. “I look forward to future projects with this special group of individuals that I consider not just colleagues but also my friends."

A Different Destiny, 2024
Betye Saar
Roberts Projects

The group will work closely with the artist, her studio, and Roberts Projects to provide insight into her assemblage practice and long career. It will support curatorial scholarship and oversee efforts to interpret and expand access to Saar’s archive. The group will also work closely with Saar’s daughter—Tracye, Alison, and Lezley—to compile photographs, various documents, and personal journals. Roberts Projects is also leading the creation of a catalogue raisonné of Saar’s work, a project that began in 2016 and will also feature a biography by Whitley.

Digitization of Saar’s archive began after the 2016 exhibition “Betye Saar: Uneasy Dancer” at Fondazione Prada, which laid the foundation for the curatorial committee’s formation. The archive has also supported major exhibitions, including “Soul of a Nation” at Tate Modern in 2017; “Betye Saar: Call and Response” at LACMA in 2019; “The Legends of Black Girl’s Window” at MoMA in 2019; Serious Moonlight at ICA Miami in 2021; and “Heart of a Wanderer” at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in 2023.

Saar—a medalist of the 2025 Art Basel awards—will be debuting new work in Miami this year as part of the fair.. Julie Roberts, co-founder of Roberts Projects, told ArtNews: “She just wants to spend her time making art, gardening, and being with her family.”

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Displaying Art in Your Home https://ift.tt/0zX4DIv

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Loewe Foundation and Studio Voltaire name seven artists for 2025 residency award. https://ift.tt/prfE3SI

London-based project space Studio Voltaire and the Loewe Foundation have announced the seven recipients of the third edition of their joint award. The 2025 winners are Lulu Bennett, Chaney Diao, Jesse Glazzard, Taey Iohe, michael., Shenece Oretha, and Bryan Giuseppi Rodriguez Cambana.

The biennial award supports artists in the United Kingdom with two years of rent-free studio space at Studio Voltaire, where the recipients join a resident community of 50 artists. Winners also receive £5,000 ($6,600) scholarships and professional development resources. More than 500 artists applied for this year’s award through an open call and were reviewed by a panel that included artists Anthea Hamilton and Elizabeth Price. The program is designed to support artists facing economic barriers exacerbated by the ongoing cost-of-living crisis in London.

“In the face of ongoing systemic inequities and deepening precarity, this unique program supports artists to take risks, develop and sustain their practices,” Dot Shihan Jia, curator of residencies at Studio Voltaire, said in a statement. “Each awardee brings a distinct voice and sensibility to the cohort, and their work speaks powerfully to the complexities of the worlds they move through.”

Bennett, who was featured in Artsy’s Queer Art Now earlier this year, creates paintings that land somewhere between a comic book and paintings from the Dutch Golden Age, lush with colors and often featuring her drag persona Samantha Pepys, a nod to the English writer. Diao, who was born in China, explores ideas of desire and labor in sculptural installation and performance, often referencing subcultures such as raves and BDSM. Meanwhile, Glazzard documents working-class and queer communities through intimate text-based and photographic works.

Iohe’s works bridging disability and environmental studies span media, including drawing and moving image. Video artist michael. uses archival material and field recordings to discuss the lived experiences of Black people. Oretha, who was born in the British territory Montserrat, explores the relationship between sound and sculpture drawing on Caribbean traditions and communal listening. Cambana, who moved to London from Peru, creates video and performance works grounded in Afrodiasporic narratives and migration histories.

The previous cohort of award recipients included Babajide Brian, Maz Murray, Emily Pope, Shamica Ruddock, Meera Shakti Osborne, Nick Smith, and Ossie Williams.

Studio Voltaire and the Loewe Foundation will also award a year-long artist residency to one international artist, to be announced later this year. Mumbai-based artist Prajakta Potnis was the most recent recipient of this residency.

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How a Love of Nature Inspired Suzanne Deal Booth to Collect Abstract Ar https://ift.tt/3KVB4qT

“Collecting isn’t just about owning an object: It’s about caring for that object and supporting the artist who made it,” said Suzanne Deal Booth on a recent phone call.

That comment exemplifies her relationship with art, one cultivated over decades spent traveling the world, meeting artists, and learning the importance of cultural heritage. Born in Dallas and raised in Houston, Deal Booth has spent decades supporting art and artists. She approaches her collection as a philanthropic endeavor, preservation effort, and a way to fill her world with beauty.

Deal Booth grew up in Houston and visited museums as a child—but not always for the art. “Back then, on hot summer days, we’d go places for the air conditioning, and museums were often the best place to be,” she recalled. “The Museum of Fine Arts was our playground on a hot day.”

Her upbringing was outdoorsy. Weather permitting, most of Deal Booth’s time was spent in nature, early experiences that taught her the importance of conservation and shaped her love of beauty. “Spending time in nature still fuels me,” she said. “I’ve always been a visual person and have loved things that are beautiful, whether they’re made by humans or found in nature.”

Deal Booth decided to study art history at Rice University after spending a year traveling around Europe in a Volkswagen van when she was 19. “I realized I loved history, and especially the visual interpretations of our contemporary times through artistic expression,” she said. Soon after college, she began to collect art, but in a somewhat unconventional way: working side jobs in exchange for art, when she could afford it. “When I was in my early to mid-20s after college, I did some editing and odd jobs for a print dealer and was paid in prints,” she explained. “And I worked for a gallery in Houston on weekends. Sometimes I opted to be paid in art.”

These early endeavors earned Deal Booth prints by renowned figures like Eduardo Chillida, Jean Cocteau, and André Derain, works she still owns and loves today.

During this time, Deal Booth connected with someone who would change her life: Dominique de Menil. “She was almost like a saint to me,” Deal Both said. “She was wise, and she cared deeply about things—objects and social causes—and she became a mentor to me.”

A collector and philanthropist, de Menil also founded The Menil Collection in Houston with her husband John as a museum to house their artworks ranging from antiquities to modernity, including works by Surrealist artists like René Magritte, Max Ernst, Dorothea Tanning, as well as 20th-century masters like Cy Twombly and Mark Rothko.

Deal Booth met de Menil as a work/study student at Rice University, where the philanthropist was a patron. She soon began working for The Menil Collection and later lived in de Menil’s home when she was a graduate student studying art history and conservation at New York University’s Institute of Fine Arts. “It was her way of helping me,” Deal Booth said. “I got to live with her marvelous collection and be around her and talk about art, our relationships with objects, and why we should care about preserving things.”

Deal Booth herself learned the importance of conservation firsthand. As a student, she had the opportunity to work on an excavation outside of Rome, witnessing the value of antiquities and material culture. She also saw preservation work on the Rothko Chapel and Barnett Newman’s Broken Obelisk (1963-67) while at the Menil. Professionally, Deal Booth honed her appreciation for preservation while working for a decade at the Getty Conservation Institute. Coupled with the lessons she learned from de Menil about philanthropy, these experiences led Deal Booth to establish related awards and fellowships.

These include the Suzanne Deal Booth Rome Prize Fellowship for Historic Preservation and Conservation at the American Academy in Rome, launched in 2002, and the Suzanne Deal Booth / FLAG Art Foundation Prize, co-organized with The Contemporary Austin in 2018. Today, Deal Booth serves on several museum boards, including the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Atelier Calder, American Friends of Centre Pompidou, Ballroom Marfa, and the Menil Collection.

In recent years, she has expanded her stewardship to include agriculture, enology, and biodynamic farming practices. In 2010, she purchased the Napa Valley vineyard, Bella Oaks, and in 2024, added the historic Wheeler Farms winery to her holdings, becoming a leading name in celebrated wine and olive oils. Both are settings where she enjoys placing artwork from her collection as a way to explore how senses can be heightened by both the natural landscape and artistic expression.

Today, Deal Booth’s expansive collection includes paintings, sculptures, and installations by artists like Jasper Johns, Brice Marden, and Yayoi Kusama. “It’s hard to define how I buy,” she said. “I like things that evoke a feeling in me, and I can’t describe that feeling. I don’t limit myself to genre or material; I am driven by curiosity and a desire to be surrounded by beauty.”

She advises new art buyers to follow a similarly open approach: “Be curious; ask questions; and buy what moves you.”

While her collection is eclectic, certain themes do emerge. “I don’t have a lot of figurative art,” Deal Booth said. “I’m drawn more to minimalist art and abstract or atmospheric work. Some of my art does have hints of representation or symbols, but they’re usually abstracted.”

Among Deal Booth’s favorite artworks is a series of terracotta cubes by Mexican artist Bosco Sodi installed at Bella Oaks. “He is a great example of someone whose work made me curious,” she said. “I saw a piece at a gallery, fell in love, and had to know more.”

As she often does, Deal Booth met the artist after seeing his work by chance at Kasmin gallery in New York, where she was considering buying a Lee Krasner painting. “Artists are some of the most interesting characters around,” she explained. “I’d recommend that anyone meet the artist whose works they buy. It adds such a deeper dimension to the piece.”

Another beloved work at Bella Oaks is a mirrored Kusama installation, Where the Lights in My Heart Go (2016). “It creates a kind of forced perspective with the hillside where the work looks bigger than it is,” she said. The mirrored exterior reflects the surrounding landscapes, and visitors can enter the structure and look outside through small peepholes, changing the scale and perspective.

“I love it because I’m usually bringing someone new to see it, and I get to experience their reaction, which is often joy and surprise,” she said. “It’s like the first time you see a total eclipse. You know you’re seeing something for the first time, and you’re in awe of that moment.”

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What You Need to Know About Buying Your First Artwork https://ift.tt/Qa4uWqK

Proof of Purity, 2025
Tianhao 田浩
KB Fine Art

About Joy , 2025
Huang Zhe 黄喆
AAIE Center for Contemporary Art

Do you want to buy an artwork, but you’re unsure about where to begin? You may have a living space in mind or a vague idea of the type of work you want. Perhaps you’ve fallen in love with a piece at a friend’s house or just saw an inspiring exhibition.

This is a place where many first-time art buyers find themselves—excited at the prospect of owning an artwork, but unsure of how to pick the best piece for their needs

The most common advice you’ll hear is to “buy what you love.” While this sounds simple, it can also feel overwhelming, especially given the vastness of the art world, with galleries, art fairs, and online platforms offering a dizzying array of works. How do you know where to start? What if you make an expensive mistake? What does it really mean to “love” a piece: to truly admire an aesthetic or resonate with an artist’s story?

Here, we break down some of the key factors you need to know to feel confident when you make your first art purchase.

How to cultivate your taste

El Fumador 3, 2025
Joaquín Reyes
Isabel Croxatto Galería

A good first art purchase starts with understanding what art speaks to you. It might sound simple, but the sheer variety of what’s out there can make it overwhelming at first. One advisable place to start is by visiting and viewing works at galleries.

“I would always recommend first-time buyers [visit galleries],” said New York–based collector Vikram Ravikumar. By immersing yourself in these environments, you’ll be able to “calibrate [your] eye to what is really good,” he said, making it easier to identify what resonates with you.

Other places to view art include museums or online databases, like Artsy, which feature thousands of artworks for browsing. The more art you see, the more you’ll understand your taste, and you’ll begin to draw personal connections to artworks that resonate. Alia Al-Senussi, a London-based collector and a senior strategist for Art Basel, describes herself as a “collector of experiences,” where each purchase marks a significant moment in her life.

The first work she purchased, an anonymous woodcut print, symbolized her first visit to an art fair, ARCO Madrid. Her second acquisition, a work by Walid Raad at Art Basel, is what she calls her first true art purchase due to its personal connection.

“I consider that the first piece of my collection in the sense that it was about making a considered acquisition of an artist I know, an artist from the Arab world, about being at Art Basel, which I had visited when I was 18 years old not really fully comprehending what it was, and then returned some years later and then with whom now I work, I could never have imagined what the future would hold but that work truly is emblematic of my story,” she said.

But there is no one way to build taste or discover art. With so many galleries, museums, nonprofits, and online platforms, it’s easier than ever to find and engage with art that you love. For more about cultivating taste, read our expert guide here.

Understand which medium and size suits you

Once you’ve narrowed down what you’re into, it’s time to consider what medium and size best fit your needs. Should you choose a painting, print, photograph, or even a sculpture? While these are far from the only mediums available, they are the most popular places to start.

Painting is versatile and ranges from small to large, dramatic pieces. Prints, which are typically sold in limited editions, can provide a more affordable option. Photography is an evocative medium, but be mindful of the edition size and the artist’s reputation. Sculpture offers a three-dimensional presence that can transform a space, but it requires careful consideration of your environment and how you want to display it.

For first-time buyers, prints can be an accessible and affordable option. As Frazer Bailey, founder of the Norwich, England-based gallery Moosey, noted, “a print is a good icebreaker for sure.” These media are easier to incorporate into your home and allow you to start your collection without overwhelming yourself.

If you’re unsure about where to start, reach out directly to the gallery that you’re considering purchasing from. Bailey recalled a collector who initially emailed the gallery to inquire about two prints. “It opened his eyes to how easy it is to buy art,” Bailey said.

What to expect in terms of price

TAAF 40/30 I, TAAF 40/30 II, 2025
Alfredo Gallegos Mena
Saenger Galería

When buying art, it’s essential to set a budget that works for you and to be mindful of hidden costs.

Pricing can be one of the most confusing parts of the art world, because no single factor determines the price of a given artwork. Instead, dealers and auction houses list prices based on characteristics, such as artist recognition, provenance, condition, and medium.

It is important to research prices before purchasing to ensure that you’re paying a fair price for the artwork in question. Varuna Kollanethu, founder of London gallery Ruup & Form, told Artsy, “If a price still feels uncertain, look outward—observe recent sales at fairs, auctions, or trusted secondary platforms.”

To establish a ballpark of what price to expect, research previous sales histories for the artist and similar artworks whenever possible. It’s also worth speaking to the seller in question to understand the methodology behind the price.

Walk in wisdom, 2025
Park Sebin
Gallery Playlist

Midsummer Night, 2025
Tianhao 田浩
KB Fine Art

“Many important works of art in history were purchased well above their market value,” said London-based art advisor Daniel Malarkey. “Equally, you should not overpay for a work that is hyped up without a story and visual strength that would suggest long-term value.”

In fact, Malarkey points out that some of the artists you may be interested in might be more budget-friendly than you think. “Never assume you cannot afford your dream artist,” he said, noting that he often starts discussions with clients from the point of their “OG artist”—the artist that got them interested in buying art

“We start there as a first point of inquiry to understand why they love this artist, and this conversation leads to other artists and ideas in a very natural way,” he said. “Things go from little knowledge to an addictive intellectual discussion and lifetime journey.”

Kollanethu also urged collectors to ask questions about logistics, which can add additional costs on top of the artwork’s price. These factors include everything from shipping, to artwork care, to maintenance.

“Clarify delivery and handling fees, and check whether installation is included or charged separately,” she said. “Ask the gallery about long-term care—how the work should be displayed, cleaned, or conserved over time. Request condition reports, authenticity certificates, and any other supporting documentation. These small steps build confidence and ensure your first and following acquisitions are both meaningful and well considered.”

To learn more about how artworks are priced, read Artsy’s guide here. To understand what goes into artwork shipping, click here.

Knowing where to buy from

Now that you know what speaks to you, the next step is choosing where to buy it. There are four main avenues to consider: auctions, art fairs, online marketplaces, and commercial galleries. Here’s what you need to know:

• Auctions are public sales where artworks are sold to the highest bidder. They often feature rare or high-value pieces, which can be exciting but competitive and difficult to navigate for newcomers.
• Art fairs are time-limited events that host numerous galleries in one place. They serve as a marketplace for artists to gain exposure and collectors to discover new talent.
• Online marketplaces are digital platforms, like Artsy, that connect galleries and artists with collectors from all over the world.
• Commercial galleries sell artworks directly from artists or their estates, offering a curated selection and expert guidance, making them an accessible option for new buyers.

While these are the main purchasing channels—and the most advisable—they are not the only ones. Other places to buy art can include private dealers, project spaces, artist-run galleries, and directly from artists.

Be mindful of trends

ikpalolo (Silence), 2025
Yusuf Akinkunmi Lawal
TAAG Gallery

When exploring the art world, it can be easy to get swept up in trends of what is popular in the art market and the art world at large. Al-Senussi advises new art buyers not to lose themselves in the noise.

“Don’t just jump in because you feel the hype, whether or not it’s because you think somebody is a tastemaker, or whether or not you think it’s because it’s an investment, or it’s popular,” she said. “I do believe that one should trust the advice of others and one should seek it out…but don’t blindly follow others just because it’s a fad.”

Gigi Surel, founder of London’s Teaspoon Projects, a curatorial project hosting pop-up exhibitions, advises that before purchasing an artwork, you should ensure the seller can answer all your questions: “Sometimes [dealers] really don’t know the answers, and that shows they don’t care much,” she said. “If they don’t care, they won’t help the artist’s career grow enough.”

Know that confidence will come

The more you learn about art, the more confident you will become when purchasing it. This is best done by educating yourself before buying, whether through friends, gallerists, artists, or independent research.

Ravikumar first purchased a few works from a bed-and-breakfast in Condesa, Mexico City, where local artists had painted many pieces. Despite these purchases, it took a while before he felt confident. “I went to a lot of openings,” he recalled. “I started to look at a lot of pieces. I made friends with people who have great taste and access to good works, and then I got a recommendation and picked a piece that I really was a little uncomfortable with, but liked.” This artwork was a mishapen bound canvas by Graham Collins, which Ravikumar considers his first collector piece.

The Big Dance (Hand-Embellished, Edition 4 of 10), 2025
Maggie Ellis
ART FOR CHANGE

One of Surel’s most practical tips for new collectors is to pause before purchasing, even if you love the piece. A self-described “impulsive” person, Surel now gives herself a “cooldown period,” taking time to ask questions, understand the context, and ensure the work fits into her collection. She emphasizes the importance of making this careful decision. “My artworks, the ones that I own, I treat them like my tattoos,” she said. “That’s why it’s important to ‘buy something that you love,’ which is a huge cliche. But if it holds a personal element to it, you will never want to get it removed.”

Purchasing your first artwork should be an exciting and enriching experience. Take your time, seek trusted advice, and, despite the cliché, buy what you love.

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Miu Miu to present exhibition by British artist Helen Marten at Art Basel Paris 2025. https://ift.tt/FDdzXOr

Miu Miu will return as the official partner of the Art Basel Paris public art program in 2025. As part of its contribution, the fashion house will debut 30 Blizzards, a new performance-based commission by British artist Helen Marten.

The work will be staged at the Palais d’Iéna, located less than a block from the Seine, from October 22nd to 26th. Conceived in collaboration with theater and opera director Fabio Cherstich and composer Beatrice Dillon, 30 Blizzards will mark Marten’s first live performance. The piece will feature sculpture, video, and movement work to form an immersive choreography.

Marten, born in Macclesfield, United Kingdom in 1985, is known for a practice that spans sculpture, painting, and video. Her work grapples with language systems and ideas of perception, often incorporating rough material, such as wood, steel, and clay, with domestic items. Currently based in London, she studied at Central Saint Martins and the University of Oxford.

Marten was awarded the Turner Prize in 2016 for a series of intricately constructed sculptures made of found objects and mixed materials. She has exhibited extensively, including at the 2013 and 2015 Venice Biennales and the 2016 Biennale of Sydney. Her work is held in the collections of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Tate in London, and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam, among others. She is also the author of The Boiled in Between (2020) and has two forthcoming books: Broken Villas, a collection of essays, and Mud Physics, a volume of theoretical writings.

Last year, as part of its inaugural public program for Art Basel 2024, Miu Miu presented “Tales & Tellers,” a project by artist Goshka Macuga. There, the fashion brand showed footage from its runways since spring/summer 2022, alongside a series of films commissioned by Miu Miu. These films were created as part of the initiative “Women’s Tales,” by filmmakers like Agnès Varda and Miranda July.

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George Baselitz’s first-ever marionette designs to debut in Austria. https://ift.tt/8HmU25Z

Georg Baselitz, the 87-year-old German artist known for large-scale paintings that grapple with the trauma of post-war Germany, has turned his attention to the world of puppetry. For the 2025 Salzburg Festival, Baselitz designed marionettes and sets for a performance of Histoire du Soldat (The Soldier’s Tale), Russian composer Igor Stravinsky’s wartime theatrical piece. The production, performed by the Salzburg Marionette Theater, will run from July 29th to August 3rd. Stemming from Baselitz’s longstanding interest in 20th-century music, the collaboration—his first marionette project—started in 2023. The puppets’ heads are made from crumpled metal foil, each painted a single color, while their bodies are made of cardboard. The resulting characters are aligned with the artist’s stark, expressive body of work.

This experimental production of The Soldier’s Tale marks a stylistic shift from the realism that characterizes the Salzburg Marionette Theatre’s well-known, long-running productions of The Magic Flute and The Sound of Music. The piece was composed in 1918 by Stravinsky and writer Charles-Ferdinand Ramuz, who conceived it for a small touring troupe. The story draws from a Russian folktale in which a soldier deserts the army and trades his violin to the devil for a magic book. Baselitz told the New York Times he was drawn to the piece because it was “very humorous” and “incredibly timely.”

The play, directed by Matthias Bundschuh, features a live chamber ensemble. Following its run in Salzburg, the production will be filmed in partnership with Japanese broadcaster NHK and will tour Europe in fall 2026.

Baselitz, whose career spans six decades, is represented by Thaddeaus Ropac, White Cube, and Gagosian, and his work is in the collections of institutions including the Centre Pompidou, Museum of Modern Art, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

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Japanese Artist Aya Takano Transforms Manga-Inspired Figures Into Spiritual Paintings https://ift.tt/cBNI2kK

Aya Takano has visions: colorful, crystal-clear images that appear suddenly before her eyes. They began in high school, when the captivating but distracting scenes posed a challenge to her schoolwork and social life. Now, at 48, she still sees them, but much less frequently. “I really have to concentrate, and I have to sketch it on paper very quickly before I lose it,” she said on the morning of her solo exhibition, “how deep how far can we go,” opening at Perrotin Los Angeles, where it runs through August 29th.

Inspired by the science fiction and manga comic books in her father’s library, Takano has been drawing since childhood. After graduating from the art program at Tama Art University in Tokyo, she worked as an assistant to Takashi Murakami, the founder of the contemporary anime-inspired art movement Superflat. Shortly after participating in Murakami’s landmark exhibition, “Superflat,” in 2000, she was offered her first solo show with Perrotin. Since 2003, Takano has had 11 exhibitions with the gallery across six different countries. Institutional shows, six-figure auction sales, and collaborations with renowned fashion designers such as Issey Miyake have established Takano as the preeminent female figure in the Superflat art movement. As the artist shifted her practice to reflect her exploration of humanity’s relationship to the earth, “how deep how far we can go” represents her most profound and spiritual vision to date.

For Takano, creativity and spirituality are indistinguishable. This revelation came to her in the wake of the 2011 earthquake and tsunami that devastated the east coast of Japan, along with the Fukushima nuclear plant. In an effort to reimagine humanity’s relationship with nature, she began studying sacred texts, practicing yoga, meditating, and reading across various scientific disciplines. This experience gradually transformed her perspective on life, art, and the more-than-human world.

Takano’s distinct drawing style combines stylistic elements of anime with ukiyo-e—traditional woodblock printing—and nihonga, a Japanese painting technique from the early 20th century that uses traditional pigments, ink, and other materials. But the inspiration for this show appeared to her while she was meditating in a hot spring. “I saw plants, insects, minerals, animals,” she said. “All the life forms on earth, past, present, and future, were together coexisting.” This theme is visible throughout the works in her Perrotin show. There are technicolor oil paintings full of flowering plants, birds, and mammals along the walls and on canvases suspended midair.

Several cardboard cutouts are scattered throughout the space, including one of a towering palm tree, another of a purple, prehistoric fungus, and yet another of an airplane with a human face that hangs from the ceiling. A dotted mural of a double helix wraps around the gallery, which, Takano explained, symbolizes the DNA that holds the information and memories from the time we were in the womb: “If we can access this, we may be able to journey all the way back to a place that feels like the very source of life.”

The artist offers her family history as a starting point in the two paintings on either side of the entrance: beginning, mother (2025) and beginning, father (2025). The former depicts two female figures with large eyes and elongated limbs who represent the artist’s mother and grandmother. On the other side, the painting shows two more figures, representing her father and grandfather. The symmetrical geometric symbols included in both compositions are devotional mandalas thought to hold cosmic power and provide guidance on a journey.

This movement back in time is especially evident in from present to past, a journey to the center (2025). This work is an eight-foot-long landscape collaged with motifs from different time periods: a car dashboard, the façade of a convenience store, pillars from a Mesopotamian ruin, and ancient cave drawings. A close-up of one female figure reveals the braids, tattoos, and jewelry typical of someone at a music festival. Another figure performs a yoga backbend across the center of the composition.

Similarly, the paintings suspended in the middle of the room portray human characters from across history living in harmony with their environments. The sinewy figure in in asia, former rice-farming culture (2025) holds above her head a wooden tea ceremony tray stacked with red-striped cups. Surrounding her are lush green rice paddy fields filled with blossoming flowers, grazing horses, and a large praying mantis. Another canvas, the hill of göbekli tepe (2025), shows a shaman-esque youth encircled by animals—among them flamingos, rabbits, snakes, and a hawk. In her feathered crown, floral collar, and beaded jewelry, the character appears to be from everywhere and nowhere in a world without borders.

The doe-eyed ingénues featured throughout the show are central to Takano’s work. Characterized by slim bodies, bulbous heads, and oblong eyes, they’re often depicted in the nude with pink circles around their knees and elbows. Although they possess feminine features, the artist perceives them as manifestations of energy closer to spirits than to bodies. “Our spirits are undifferentiated,” says Takano. “Inside, we’re all potential.”

Although human figures appear across her work, Takano is especially interested in how we coexist with animals. “We are equal,” Takano said. “We are nature and nature is us.” This is perhaps most obvious in the painting in africa, a person lives a life being one with a cow (2025). This large composition portrays a human figure reclining among various creatures—a lamb, a billy goat, a duck, a cat, and a cow—and foliage, including oversized palm fronds, oranges, mushrooms, melons, and ferns. For Takano, it’s part of her responsibility as an artist to show her audience alternative ways to interact with nature. The world presented in this exhibition is not an escape from reality, but rather a fantastical vision of the future. “Think about skyscrapers,” she said. “They were once only a fantasy inside someone’s head.”

Takano’s latest work builds on her spiritual practice of yoga. In particular, she is inspired by her understanding of the chakras, which she describes as the body’s “spinning wheels of energy.” This is why, in the second, smaller gallery, there are seven square paintings, one for each chakra, in luxe, tufted velvet frames. In each, a miniature figure demonstrates a different yoga pose against a backdrop of jewel-tone patterns and botanical motifs. Natural mats are arranged on the floor in the gallery for viewers to try a pose or take a moment to rest. “This is my invitation,” said Takano. “Come join me on this journey toward the heart.”

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Waddington Custot to open a new location in Paris. https://ift.tt/qQ7hX9C

Waddington Custot has announced it will open a new gallery in Paris this October. The London-based gallery will open a permanent space in the city’s 6th arrondissement, coinciding with Art Basel Paris 2025, which runs from October 22nd to 26th.

The new gallery will be located at 36 rue de Seine, in the former home of Galerie Lansberg in the neighborhood of Saint-Germain-des-Prés. The 200-square-meter space features natural light and sits in the heart of a neighborhood long-associated with Paris’s contemporary art scene. It will be led by Isaure de Roquefeuil, who has worked at Waddington Custot in London for nearly a decade, and Antoine Clavé, a Paris-based gallerist and grandson of artist Antoni Clavé.

The inaugural exhibition will focus on the Les Nabis, a group of post-impressionist French painters active between 1888 and 1900. This show will be followed by a group exhibition of contemporary and modern artists, aimed at fostering an intergenerational dialogue.

Founded in London in 1958 as Waddington Galleries, the gallery became Waddington Custot in 2010 following a partnership between founder Leslie Waddington and French art dealer Stéphane Custot. Custot assumed full ownership in 2015 and expanded the gallery’s operations to Dubai that same year. The Paris location will be the gallery’s third venue.

Waddington Custot is known for its programming of Nabis and Photorealist painters, with an inventory that includes work by Josef Albers, Jean Dubuffet, Hans Hartung, and Pierre Soulages, among others. The gallery represents several contemporary artists and estates, including Peter Blake, Fabienne Verdier, Pablo Reinoso, and Bernar Venet, the latter of which was the subject of a solo show in London, “When Steel Dreams of Code.”

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Amy Sherald cancels Smithsonian show over censorship concerns. https://ift.tt/Pz7taes

Amy Sherald has canceled her forthcoming solo exhibition at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery, citing concerns over censorship. The artist, who is best known for her 2018 portrait of Michelle Obama, said she learned that her 2024 painting Trans Forming Liberty—a depiction of a transgender woman posing as the Statue of Liberty—might be removed to avoid provoking President Donald Trump.

The show, “American Sublime,” was slated to open at the National Portrait Gallery on September 19th and would have marked the institution’s first solo presentation of a Black contemporary artist. Organized by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the traveling exhibition includes approximately 50 works, including Trans Forming Liberty. It is on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art through August 10th.

As reported by the New York Times, Sherald addressed her decision in a letter sent on Wednesday to Lonnie G. Bunch III, the secretary of the Smithsonian. “I entered into this collaboration in good faith, believing that the institution shared a commitment to presenting work that reflects the full, complex truth of American life,” she wrote. “Unfortunately, it has become clear that the conditions no longer support the integrity of the work as conceived.’’

The Smithsonian responded in a statement to the Times, saying that it “strives to foster a greater and shared understanding….Unfortunately, we could not come to an agreement with the artist. We remain appreciative and inspired by Ms. Sherald, her artwork, and commitment to portraiture.”

As reported by The Washington Post, White House stafferLindsey Halligan characterized the painting’s removal as a “principled and necessary step” in enacting the administration’s vision for national institutions. That vision has brought about numerous disruptions at publicly funded cultural institutions since President Trump took office earlier this year. In January, the Smithsonian shuttered its Office of Diversity following Trump’s executive order ending DEI initiatives in the federal government. In March, another executive order tasked Vice President J.D. Vance with overhauling the Smithsonian. Soon after, the president appointed himself as the chairman of the board for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

In May, Trump announced on social media that he had fired the National Portrait Gallery’s director, Kim Sajet, calling her “a strong supporter of DEI.” The Smithsonian responded with a statement asserting that it retained control of personnel decisions. Nevertheless, Sajet resigned weeks later.

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