Don't try to buy art as an investment. Buy something you really love because you're going to have to look at it again tomorrow. And an investment can go up or down. Buy something you really adore, you really like, and you want to live with. And if you decide some years later you don't want to live with it anymore, sell it. Get out.
Laurence GraffArt is like an avalanche being poured down your throat. You know it's going to crack, eventually it's going to go out of fashion. I wish there was much less happening. I wish there were fewer art dealers. I wish there were fewer auctions. I wish there were just two auctions a year.
Laurence GraffI wish there were fewer art dealers. I wish there were fewer auctions. I wish there were just two auctions a year. It's just too much. And at the end of the day, if you're a dealer and a professional, fine, that's your business, that's all you do. But as an individual, if you're not a dealer and it's not your business, you need time for these things. You need time to study what's happening. You need time to understand the market. You need time to go to a museum. You need time to see a show. You can't go to one every day. It's becoming a trend.
Laurence GraffI can't draw. I can't paint. But what I can do is tell somebody else what to do. I'm a creator. I can tell an artist what to do. I can be behind the artist. I have the eye, so I can move things around. I can put stones together. I can match them.
Laurence GraffDon't try to buy art as an investment. Buy something you really love because you're going to have to look at it again tomorrow. And an investment can go up or down. Buy something you really adore, you really like, and you want to live with. And if you decide some years later you don't want to live with it anymore, sell it. Get out.
Laurence GraffI went to an auction in the late '70s and bought a small Renoir. People said, "Why did you buy a Renoir that size?" I said, "I can put it in the safe with my diamonds." And that was a true story. I bought it to put it in the safe.
Laurence GraffUnfortunately, some of the young talants are becoming fashionable. And anything that's fashionable can become unfashionable. So one has to watch that. And it's very easy today because there are so many events - art fairs, gallery openings, etcetera. In fact, that's another thing that concerns me, the quantity of gallery openings. In my office in London, I get back after a week, and I have 30 invitations. It's too much.
Laurence Graff