Gallerie Michael of Beverly Hills presented a panel of four highly experienced collectors at the 2012 Los Angeles Fine Art Show this weekend. They described serious art collecting programs as an effort to build communities of taste and as a meaningful pastime that also builds value over time.
Bernie Sullivan collects paintings of the Barbizon School, almost all landscapes portraying the French countryside. He advises other collectors to plan a strategy and execute it with discipline. A veteran of the printing business, Sullivan’s familiarity with principles of illustration art helped him to develop appreciation of fine art.
Attorney Tom Holliday has built a collection of drawings and paintings by American artist Mary Cassatt, who
studied art in Paris and benefited from exchanging ideas and techniques with many of the most creative French impressionists. Like many attorneys, he recommends attention to detail, quality control, and planning for the future. In particular, he recommends carefully planning of gifts and loans to museums that prepare for the different circumstances that can arise with a museum collection.
Dr. Tim Collins, a local chiropractor, introduced his Picasso collection, a good example of matching most art patrons’ ideas about collecting art. Collins has focused his collection entirely on works by this renowned 20th Century master. By collecting different artists’ proofs and prints of the same design, his collection portrays the craftsmanship Picasso employed to achieve artis
tic renown.
