Buying Fine Art From A Gallery: Brick And Mortar, Auction Or Online

You would like to make a change by adding accent to the beauty of your home without the expense or disruption of remodeling. What better way to do this than to add a decoratively framed painting or high quality print, or perhaps to add a lovely silver or bronze sculpture by a famous artist to enhance the décor of any room of your home. An unusual or unique work of fine art would certainly capture the attention of anyone who enters that room. Now the question is where to find the ideal unique work of fine art that will blend perfectly with your tastes and home décor at the most reasonable price.
Whether you are looking for that perfect original painting, high quality lithograph, giclee or heliogravure print, bronze sculpture or any other work of fine art, you must now decide where you can get the best value for your money. Should you visit an art gallery, attend an auction or search online? There are advantages and disadvantages to every option, so let's take a look at some of those differences.

• If you live near one or many art galleries or if there is an auction that is taking place nearby, you might enjoy wandering about and looking through their selections. The big advantage here is having the ability to examine the artwork in person. However, many people do not live in an area where the art galleries or auction houses are abundant, so they might be limited in the opportunity to find a work of art that is most appealing and would appropriately add accent to your home or office decor. An online search does not give you the ability to see the artwork first hand, but you would certainly have a far greater selection of fine art, including rare unusual and unique paintings, high quality prints and sculptures by famous artists that you might not find when confined to the limited offerings found at a brick and mortar gallery or auction event. A greater selection from which to choose gives you the opportunity to find what truly appeals to you.

• You can overcome the disadvantage of the inability to examine the work of art firsthand when making a purchase online by ensuring that the return policy is favorable in the event that you are disappointed with the artwork once it arrives at your home. When purchasing from a brick and mortar art gallery, the return policy must be carefully determined, since most do not allow returns unless the artwork was damaged in shipping. Purchases made at an auction (online or in person) never allow returns. All sales are final. So, when purchasing from a brick and mortar art gallery or at an auction, you must be certain that you will love that beautiful painting, print or sculpture in your home or office. If not, you will suffer a great deal of buyer's remorse and be burdened with having paid for something with which you are unhappy or does not complement your home décor once you got it home. Although many online fine art galleries also declare sales to be final, not all do. It's just a matter of doing your homework to find one that has a liberal return policy.

• Purchasing from a brick and mortar establishment means higher costs to the buyer. There are overhead costs, such as rent, heating costs and far more. These costs are obviously part of doing business for these galleries, but naturally it is the buyer who must cover those costs which are built into the price of the artwork in order for the company to survive. The more unusual, unique or rare a painting, print or sculpture, the higher the price will be boosted. Purchasing from an art auction has its built-in costs, too, but that added cost is made clear to the art collector or buyer. An auction company will include a buyer's premium of anywhere from 10% to 20% that is automatically added to the price of your fine art purchase. This buyer's premium will be imposed by some online sites as well, so it's very important that you read the fine print or ask the right questions before you make any purchase of fine art.

• Another expense to consider is the shipping and handling costs. If you are purchasing from a gallery or auction which you are attending, you can certainly take your art purchase with you, if feasible. If not, there will certainly be a charge to ship, including insurance costs to you, the buyer. If you purchase online, you may or may not avoid shipping costs, although it is possible to find a rare fine art online gallery that will offer free shipping and handling.

• Lastly, the buyer will have to pay sales tax on the purchase whenever selecting that beautiful unique painting, high quality print or silver or bronze sculpture from a brick and mortar gallery or auction house. Since fine art is rarely insignificant in cost, the sales tax can take a big bite out of your budget. The only way to avoid this cost is to purchase the artwork from a dealer that does not have gallery or run an auction in your state. If you purchase your artwork from an online gallery, you usually can avoid the sales tax which can be a substantial savings.

In reviewing the three options, you certainly can see that, although you might be able to see the work of art firsthand at a brick and mortar art gallery or live auction, the final purchase price will cost you the most for your final artwork selection. Your artwork will carry with it one or more of the following additions: overhead costs, buyer's premiums, shipping costs and sales tax. You also will probably be subject to a final sale policy of no returns. On the other hand, by purchasing from some online galleries, your costs may not include these extra charges. Your money will go directly toward that unique work of art that you love and which appeals to your home décor taste. This will not only make the unusual or rare artwork that you chose for your home fine art collection more affordable, but it may allow you the ability to stretch your budget to purchase a piece of art by a famous artist that you might not have been able to afford had you purchased it elsewhere. Shipping may or may not be free, but a search for the right online fine art gallery will find you that benefit as well. Don't ever underestimate good customer service either.