Art As An Investment In The Industrial North Of England - By: David Tatham

Those who are considering art and investment in art from the industrial North of England will doubt be aware of the famous scenes from the region by LS Lowry, but there are also modern artists such as Angela Wakefield producing urban landscape scenes. No form of investment offers guaranteed capital growth, and the dictates of fashion must mean that the market for art is more volatile than other forms of investment, such as the stock market, or government and corporate bonds. Nevertheless art investments could play a part in a balanced portfolio of holdings, and unlike holdings in stocks and shares they represent an asset which can provide substantial personal satisfaction to the owner when displayed in the home.

Works of art such as the industrial scenes painted by LS Lowry in the early twentieth century are perhaps the best known examples of urban landscapes from northern England, and of course there were many other works produced in the region at that time. Modern artists such as Angela Wakefield now produce representations of contemporary urban landscapes.

Wakefield is a native of Accrington, and a graduate of the Fine Art University of Central Lancashire. She has been a professional artist since 1999 and her urban work includes scenes from her county of origin (Lancashire), and from neighboring Yorkshire, as well as from London and New York. She has also painted scenes from England's Lake District (Cumbria).

People invest in art for two reasons: enjoyment of art, and a desire for capital growth. The enjoyment factor is for many people a key difference, distinguishing art investments from the ownership of other types of investment such as stocks and shares.

Firstly not many share owners frame their stock certificates, and hang them up in their home for the enjoyment of themselves and their guests. Art therefore offers a form of investment which provides a a great deal of pleasure to the owner for as long as they hold it. It also provides further pleasures (and undoubtedly some excitement) in the act of visiting galleries, finding out about artists, and choosing which works to buy.

Secondly, choosing the right artist, and buying their works at the right time, can yield considerable profits as that artist becomes more popular, but of course the downside of this is that choosing the wrong artist can lead to losses. It must therefore be considered sensible to make any art purchases as part of a balanced portfolio of investments.In a balanced portfolio an investor will hold a mixture of high risk, medium risk and low risk investments.

The art investor should do the same, either using his own judgement, or enlisting the help of a professional, to determine the risk class of his art purchases. In most cases the sensible strategy would be not to spend money which you cannot afford to lose on little known artists, and to balance art purchases with other more secure financial products such as unit trusts and funds specializing in government and corporate bonds.

Art and investment in art from the industrial North of England can form part of a balanced portfolio, and the ownership of art provides pleasures to the owner which cannot be matched by holdings in stocks, shares and other financial product

About the Author

David Tatham, fine picture dealer for over quarter of a century, has an extensive knowledge of Lowry's life and work. Signed, prints and paintings can be seen and purchased from the website. http://www.lowry.co.uk

Article Directory Source: http://www.articlerich.com/profile/David-Tatham/67295

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