How to Buy Original Oil Paintings

Oil paintings on canvas tend to be the hottest selling art pieces in galleries around the world. Many painters are moving away from oils, but there are many artists still working in this medium, and plenty of collectors who covet this type of artwork above all others. While other art forms have turned into fads the power of oil paintings on canvas endures in the market. Seeing as the trend doesn’t show signs of stopping, these pieces of artwork stand as a great investment. However, you don’t want to go into the sometimes intimidating world of buying art without knowing as much as possible beforehand. Once you get a good handle on what you’re looking for you’ll be able to buy a painting that you’ll be able to treasure, and potentially make a hefty profit on, if that’s your game.

Instructions

1. Become familiar with the appearance of canvases versus other materials on which artists often paint. Many paintings are done on paper, or on wood. When framed, it can be difficult to decipher whether or not a painting has been created on a piece of paper or on the sturdier, thicker canvas that most artists prefer. Be sure to ask the artist and/or seller whether or not the piece was created on canvas.

2. Become familiar with the appearance of oil paints when painted on canvas. It can be very difficult to tell the difference between oils and acrylics, and even a trained eye can miss the differences. However, oil tends to look wetter when it dries than acrylic paint does. The best way to find out the medium of a painting is to ask the artist or seller whether the painting was done in oils.

3. Determine what style of painting you’re looking for, and your price range. You may want a specific style, figurative or abstract for instance, a particular color scheme, or a particular size painting. This will allow you to narrow the field when you’re looking for oil paintings.

4. Decide whether you are buying an oil painting as primarily a decoration, or as an investment. If you are purchasing a painting as an investment, like many art collectors who often gravitate toward oil pieces, you will want to focus more on the career of the artist than you will if you are buying the work as decoration.

5. Visit galleries and other shops that sell oil paintings and compare paintings and prices. Begin to make a list of possible purchases, being sure not to buy anything too hastily. Visit online art sellers as well, just make sure they are a trusted vendor.

6. Negotiate the terms of your purchase once you’ve selected a painting you wish to buy. Determine when and how the painting will be delivered to you, and under what terms you are to make the payment for the work.

Tips & Warnings

• If you wish to purchase an original oil painting make sure that you are not looking at a print. Prints can often look very close to actual paintings, and you should inquire of the seller whether or not the piece is an original.