Discover The Other Art Fair - Creative City Sydney

The Other Art Fair (10-13 September) is where you can buy directly from local emerging artists, not yet represented by a gallery and maybe even discover future stars. The artists will personally showcase their work over four days, with mediums spanning installation, sculpture, printmaking, painting, video works and photography.

Participating artists have been carefully selected by a committee including artist Mikala Dwyer, collector Dr Dick Quan, art advisor Virginia Wilson, curator Meg Robson and Biennale board member Paris Neilson.

Savage Civilization by Sung-ah Jun from collective Reissue Korea

We asked Fair Director Emilya Colliver to give those looking to cultivate their own art collection a few tips on how to get started.

Her advice comes with three years of experience running art consultancy Art Pharmacy, which will also have a booth at the fair if you’d prefer to drop in for a chat in-person.

Don’t be intimidated: Start by visiting galleries and museums, big and small, and spend time just looking. Meet and engage with the artists – say hello! Get them to talk to you about their work, this will help you better understand the meaning behind it.
Think about medium: Decide if you are going to limit your collection to a medium, theme or category. By narrowing your focus, you can become more knowledgeable, quicker. Don’t buy from IKEA or Freedom – support local artists!
Start small: Consider an etching, a limited edition print or a work on paper. Never underestimate smaller artworks, especially works on paper, as they’re often the geneses of larger works. Paper can be considered inferior to canvas, but it also usually costs much less.
Collect with passion: While it’s an exciting prospect to think that the artworks you buy could increase in value over time, let the heart rule, not the head! It may come as a surprise that the biggest art collectors buy with their eyes, not their ears.
Budget: Art collecting can become an addictive pursuit, so try to set yourself a realistic annual budget and do the best you can to maximise results. Herb and Dorothy Vogel – a postal clerk and a librarian – are two modest people that just loved collecting art and eventually filled their one-bedroom, Upper East Side apartment with over 4,782 works by some of the biggest names in history. So starting small and on a budget can produce big results!

Colliver also gives us a tip-off about five up-and-coming artists to keep an eye on:

Yeliz Yorulmaz:Turkish artist currently working in fabric and installation under the tutelage of well-known artist Mikala Dwyer
Sherna Teperson: Produces interesting installation/mixed media work that you might not have seen before
Danielle Emery: Creates pocket-sized, diorama-like delicate works with tins and oil paints
Tyrone Lane: New Zealand artist who captures Australian culture in a unique way with incredible detail
Kim Leutwyler: Archibald finalist whose work explores broader social issues.

The fair’s associated program will include live performances, music, workshops and walking tours (all smoothed over with a DIY gin cocktail from Young Henrys).