"Buy something that you love"

During the Art Basel Fair my friend and I attended a public talk dedicated to art investment. Kate is actually working at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, more precisely the European Court of Human Rights. However, due to my brief introduction into contemporary art, she was inspired to try art writings herself. So I am glad to provide my blog as a platform for voicing her opinion.

«Buy something that you love» - That is the motto with which a discussion with one of the world’s best known art collectors David Mugrabi was marked during a talk on «Investment? Collecting? Speculation?» during the course of the Art Basel.

The Mugrabi family are well-known collectors of art. The name of their family is a sort of reference marque - whatever Mugrabi buys ultimately becomes popular, and expensive!

David's father, Jose Mugrabi, started collecting art by accident at the beginning of the 1980s. At that time everybody was crazy about impressionists, Cezanne and Picasso. When Warhol, Pollock and Lichtenstein were not that feted, Mugrabi Senior started actively buying the next generation of artists. Apparently, it was a good decision. It is no secret that prices for Warhol's masterpieces / of these artists have drastically increased over the years. These were very lucrative investments. Today, the Mugrabi family owns the world's largest collection of paintings of Andy Warhol, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Tom Wesselmann, George Condo and Damien Hirst.

David Mugrabi himself was involved in art from a very young age. Unlike his father, he is not just collecting art, but he also has an art education. He can speak about a work for many hours placing it in its historical context and discussing what the artist might have been thinking. But in his opinion, all that information is not that relevant. The secret of Mugrabi's success is simple: buy what you like, buy what you want to own. Once you see the picture, you don't have to explain it to anyone else, you just have to feel whether you like it or not. This is something that is inside of you.

Mugrabi does not identify himself either as a collector or a dealer. He doesn't buy art to speculate. Mugrabi advises not to focus on a particular period of art, and he also recommends that if you want a particular piece, feel free to spend a little more than it is worth, and be afraid of overpaying. Although he considers today's market to be rather expensive: there are quite a few collectors, as well as many brilliant artists. The 21st century art field is a broad one.

So who is the next Picasso? Unfortunately, When people ask him who to buy Mugrabi does not specify any particular artist. But when people ask him how to invest, he shares one simple formula: invest 50 per cent of your assets in established artists — those who have good track record. Put 20 per cent on promising young and popular artists, and the remainder in works of twenty completely unknown artists. One or two of them should become popular and so will cover all your investments over time.

As collectors, the Mugrabi family has become a brand. The philosophy is all simple: buy what works for you, buy something that you love.

Kate Melnik.