The Denouement of Art Collecting: How Belief, Risk, and Investment of Collectors Impact the Historical and Social Development of Art Movements

This research takes a historical form. The goal is to find and interpret thematic issues and common threads in determining what influences the collectors in the study to purchase specific works of art, why they make these purchases, and how their choices impact the advancement of society and art movements. The consequences of these purchases are substantial in that history is being made and trends are being established. This is accomplished by developing a conceptual framework that includes exploring how interest in the unconventional develops from the Medici era through the 19th to 21st centuries. The study provides a foundation from which to understand trends and social impact in art through interpreting the personal letters and publications of collectors and analyzing existing art collection practices that have shaped and influenced the future of art. Factors considered in the arguments go beyond time to include location and space and how these impact the collections. Acceptance of the unofficial is part of the impetus associated with building collections, as seen in the choice for the study of collectors Cosimo de'Medici (1389 -1464), Lorenzo de'Medici (1449-1492), Ferdinando de'Medici (1663-1713), Gertrude Stein (1874-1946), Peggy Guggenheim (1898-1979), and Francois Pinault (b. 1936). Risk taking and creativity are necessary characteristics of the collector. Recognizing talent, potential, and value contribute to the success of the collections and the artists. Blended styles result as various painters develop personal relationships with patrons and with one another. The ideological reactions and implicit ideals of the movements are examined. Collecting art is an art. Collections define art history and the development of art movements. The connections of time are essential. Consider the possibilities that if there had been no Medici then there might have been no Picasso; if there had been no Gertrude Stein and Peggy Guggenheim then there might have been no contemporary art. Exploring how collectors change the course of art reveals how private collections set standards by which intellectual dialogues impact the advancements of society.