INSIGHTS & GUIDES
A closer look
at collecting.
What should you ask before buying a work? What can its history tell you? How do you care for it once it is yours? Our notes and guides explore the questions behind collecting.
2026
I’ve always felt that one of the greatest pleasures of collecting art lies in everything that surrounds the work itself. The discovery of an artist, the history behind a painting, the conversations it provokes and, ultimately, the experience of living with it.
Yet the art market can sometimes make what should be an enjoyable pursuit feel unnecessarily complicated. Through these pages, I hope to explore the artists, ideas and developments that interest me, alongside the practical questions that come with collecting, and offer a little more clarity to a market that doesn’t always make itself easy to understand.
Jonathan Ludlow
Founder & Director, Ludlow Art Consultancy
Before you buy
October 2026 · Jonathan Ludlow
The best acquisitions often begin with a simple conviction: you have found something you would genuinely like to own. Perhaps it is an artist you have followed for years, or a work you encountered entirely by chance. That initial response matters, and it should never be lost beneath the practicalities of a purchase.
Yet collecting well also means knowing when to ask questions. Understanding a work’s provenance, attribution, condition and place within the market can be just as important as the attraction that first drew you to it. The circumstances of the sale, and the responsibilities that come with ownership, deserve consideration too.
These questions need not make collecting complicated. They are simply part of ensuring that the pleasure of acquiring a work is matched by confidence in the decision.
What a work’s history can tell you
October 2026 · Jonathan Ludlow
The history of a painting can be almost as compelling as the work itself. Its passage through private collections, galleries and exhibitions may reveal changing tastes, forgotten relationships and, occasionally, remarkable encounters with history.
An exhibition catalogue, an old photograph or a dealer’s correspondence can help establish where a work has been, who owned it and how it was understood at different moments in its life. These discoveries can enrich our appreciation of an artwork, but they also matter when considering an acquisition.
Not every history is complete, and gaps do not necessarily suggest a problem. What matters is distinguishing what can be established from what remains uncertain. A compelling story may add to a work’s appeal, but it is careful research and credible documentation that give that story substance.
FURTHER READING: GETTY →
EXPLORE COLLECTION ADVISORY →
Living with works on paper
October 2026 · Jonathan Ludlow
There is a particular intimacy to works on paper. In a drawing, the artist’s hand can feel remarkably present; a line reconsidered, a passage left unfinished or the faintest trace of an earlier idea can reveal something of the creative process.
Yet works on paper are not simply studies for larger paintings. Drawings, prints and watercolours can be complete and extraordinary works in their own right, offering collectors an enormous range of artistic expression.
Their delicacy is part of their appeal, although it also calls for care. Light exposure, framing materials and the conditions in which a work is displayed can all affect its preservation. With thoughtful presentation and appropriate specialist advice, these works can be enjoyed as part of everyday life while remaining properly protected for the future.
FURTHER READING: CANADIAN CONSERVATION INSTITUTE →
EXPLORE COLLECTION CARE →
Collecting guides
Practical introductions to working with LAC and finding your way around the market.
ART ADVISORY →
BUYING & SELLING PRIVATELY →
INSIDE THE ART MARKET →