It is no secret that I like buying antiques for investment purposes. But lately I've also been exploring the idea of investing in future antiques. I define future antiques as contemporary artwork, jewelry or other objets d'art available for relatively modest sums of money that have a good probability of being highly desirable in the future. In theory, buying undiscovered masterpieces for low prices when they are new and then waiting two or three decades should lead to massive profits.
Of course, this strategy is easier said than done. The real problem is determining what will be considered desirable future antiques and what will be considered mediocre. However, we do have a roadmap to help guide us - The Antique Sage's five rules for determining an antique's desirability. Portability, quality of materials and construction, durability, scarcity and zeitgeist are the five distinct aspects that help define investment grade antiques. Luckily, these rules apply to new artwork just as reliably as century-old antiques.
These guidelines do leave a lot of room for interpretation, though. Many future antiques will score very highly on some of the five factors while lagging in others. So how is the forward thinking art connoisseur or investor supposed to choose?
In my opinion, quality and zeitgeist are the two most important attributes to consider when looking for future antiques. Quality is a fundamental attribute for antiques. We are looking for items made from the highest quality materials available. In addition, we want our future antiques to be crafted with the greatest care by artists of the highest skill level.
Zeitgeist is a little more complicated. Zeitgeist can loosely be thought of as the prevailing artistic milieu of a given time or age. Motifs, styles and subject matter are all hallmarks of zeitgeist. All art produced in a given time and place will reflect the cultural backdrop of that period regardless of the individual training or personal preferences of an artist.
We shouldn't forget the role of the artist when scouring the internet for future antiques, either. I have found that many of the best contemporary works of art available today are often created by self-taught or non-traditionally trained artists operating outside of the established artistic community. This is sometimes referred to as outsider art or folk art. As an added bonus, informally-trained artists often charge less for their works than traditional artists.
Artists without formal training can have unique and fresh approaches that result in groundbreaking, visually distinctive work. This can manifest itself in what I term the "It Factor". When I am sorting through a large number of works, the ones that have the It Factor make me stop and exclaim "Wow!" The It Factor just means that an artwork, for whatever reason, is truly exceptional.
In order to get a better idea of what I've been talking about, let's briefly examine a few specific examples of items that I believe will become future antiques. The first piece is a contemporary nephrite jade pendant that I recently featured in an Antique Sage Spotlight post. This exquisite work of art was hand carved by a self-taught artisan jeweler named Alif Ballangrud who lives on the coast of Oregon. This breathtaking jade pendant exhibits all of the five elements of antique desirability, and really exudes the It Factor. Perhaps best of all, this magnificent jade carving is for sale for the surprisingly modest price of only $425! I have no doubt that this one-of-a-kind piece will be much more valuable in a couple decades.
Another work that I think has a high probability of ascending to the pantheon of future antiques is another one of my Spotlight posts - a 2011 drypoint print by Mariko Kuzumi. This lovely nature-themed print deftly juxtapositions vibrant color with monochromatic lines to create a compelling work of contemporary art. The artist, Mariko Kuzumi, lives and works in New York City, but I feel that her Japanese heritage really shows through in the work. In any case, for only $200, this contemporary drypoint print is a marvelous piece with great future potential.
Future antiques don't have to be conventional art, though. For example, there has been a renaissance over the last few years in poured silver bullion bars. Most silver bars produced by refineries today are struck or extruded, methods that lend themselves well to mass production. But a tiny portion of the precious metal community has banded together and begun creating vintage-style, hand-poured silver bars. Half collector's item, half silver bullion, modern poured silver bars represent an attractive and unusual precious metal investment.
One of the premier makers of these new hand-poured silver bars is Backyard Bullion. Backyard Bullion, also known by the acronym BYB, is a self-taught craftsman who started off in his backyard with a simple blowtorch and crucible. But he has since evolved into a top-notch fabricator of poured silver bars.
These superb silver bars are available in a variety of shapes and sizes, but they all share a level of care and attention to detail that is only available in the finest of hand-made future antiques. Some BYB poured silver bars are even hallmarked by the Edinburgh Assay Office in Scotland, a fact that will undoubtedly positively impact the future desirability of these objets d'art. While BYB artisan-poured silver bars already sell for healthy premiums over the spot price of silver, I strongly suspect they will appreciate briskly in the years to come nonetheless.
Of course, every investing strategy has its drawbacks, and investing in future antiques is no different. By trying to divine the future popularity and demand for certain types of art and antiques, you run the risk that misjudging the market. Maybe that artwork you purchased directly from a promising artist ends up being ignored and shunned for no good reason. Or perhaps your fine antique is finally appreciated for its great style and compelling quality, but only after several decades has elapsed.
Because of this uncertainty, buying future antiques should be considered a higher risk investment strategy, like investing in micro-cap stocks or high yield bonds. As a result, I would strive to limit the exposure of these works in your investment portfolio to reasonable levels. However, if done intelligently, buying the antiques of tomorrow, today, can reward the patient tangible asset investor with phenomenally high returns.
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