People have been collecting objects they find beautiful, powerful, or valuable for as long as there have been people. We sent our dead into the afterlife with tombs filled with treasures. We looted conquered civilizations. We purchased, bartered, and stole art to build vast collections and museums.

Collecting is part of who we are.

An art collection has long been equated with success, stability, and cultural sophistication. Unfortunately, collecting art has always been sexier than making it. In a strange way, collectors often get more out of art than artists do. 

Art collecting has traditionally been associated with high-net-worth individuals and seen as a symbol of wealth, culture, and refinement. But beyond status, collecting also creates community. Communities inevitably form around collecting, and those communities bring more than enjoyment, they influence value.

We live with art every day.  It brings joy, inspiration, and a connection to the hand and mind of the artist. Art carries stories, intentions, and histories.  These are qualities bonds and stock certificates simply don’t have.

Most people were introduced to collecting by someone they admired. Collecting is contagious. Rarely does someone walk into our studio alone to buy art. They bring a spouse, a friend, an advisor. It is as though they need someone to help justify buying the thing they love.

And often, the greatest returns on an art collection aren’t financial at all. They show up in the relationships you build, the artists and communities you support, and the legacy you leave behind.

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Resources:

• “Collecting Art: Why 36% of Investors Collect Fine Art - and 6 Reasons You Might Want to Start”. Maddox Gallery. Blog. August 21, 2025. 
• Dillon, Andrew. “Why Do People Collect? The Psychologist’s View”. Art Basel. Blog. January 3, 2024.
• “Investing in Art: What to Know About Turning a Passion into a Purposeful Wealth Strategy”. RBC Wealth Management. Investing. Blog. May 2025.
• Pinto, Erik. “Buying Art Your Love: Why Personal Taste Should Drive Your Collection”. Medium. The Motivated Artist: Art, Money, and Mindfulness. Blog. May 6, 2023.  
• Sorokowski P, Luty J, Małecki W, Roberts CS, Kowal M, Davies S. “The Collector Hypothesis : Who Benefits More from Art, the Artist or the Collector?” Human Nature. November 15, 2024.
• Thompson, Erin. “Why People Collect Art”. Aeon Magazine.  August 23, 2016. 
• “The Advantage of Art as a Passion Investment: 4 Key Benefits and Pleasures of Investing in Art”.  Maddox Gallery. Blog. December 3, 2024.
• “Who Buys Artwork, and Why?”  RevArt. Blog. April 18, 2023.

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John Bishop Fine Art is an art business run by visual artist John Bishop. John is based in Houston and he is an abstract painter and illustrator, a blogger, a vlogger, podcaster, and creative writer. John posts a weekly blog/vlog/podcast that creates a community, a conversation, between creatives in all sorts of fields at all sorts of levels.  

John Bishop: http://www.johnbishopfineart.com

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