24 october 2021, Oscar van Gelderen
Ask an Art Collector... Wouter Berteloot
What do art lovers like? Where do they buy their art and, most importantly, what do they buy? Every Monday an enthusiast tells about his love for art in this section. This week it’s IT manager Wouter Berteloot (age 46).
What does art mean to you?
A good work of art gives you a high. In fact, it is an addiction, where you are always looking for the next shot.
Were you exposed to art while growing up?
As a child I drew a lot myself and attended the drawing academy for years. After my studies I already followed what was happening in Antwerp in terms of contemporary art and I frequented the galleries. Even though I didn't have the money to buy a work of art yet, by looking a lot you learn what is good and what is not.
Where do you read about the latest developments in the art world?
Musicians are usually the first to know which new bands are worth checking out, the same is true with the visual arts. Artist run spaces and group exhibitions curated by artists are my favorite places to discover new artists. Other collectors are also a good source of information.
Where do you prefer to look at art?In real life, at any rate. I always want to see a painting live before I buy it. In recent years, you increasingly have to decide on the basis of a PDF that is sent around right before the opening of the exhibition.
How often do you buy art each year?
Too much and yet not enough. About once a month. There is an oversupply of editions. So I became extra strict about that. I would rather buy one unique work than five editions.
Where do you do your buying: in a gallery, at an art fair, at an auction or online?
Usually in a gallery or, in the event an artist isn’t represented by gallery yet, from the artist himself.
Is it important that you and your partner always agree on a purchase?
I sometimes ask for a second opinion, but in the end you have to follow your own feeling, otherwise you will make purchases that you will later regret. Over time you just know when to buy a work. You walk into an exhibition and immediately see that one work that you simply must have. If it's already sold, I'd rather not buy anything than buy a work that I don't have the same crush on.
Do you have a special relationship with any one gallery?
When I started collecting, the selections Base Alpha Gallery, Maes & Matthys, Stella Lohaus Gallery and trampoline made helped me a lot. These day I mainly follow artists and I am loyal to them rather than to a specific gallery.
If you had an unlimited budget, whose work would you buy?
Do you have an hour? First a Willem de Kooning from the early sixties. Then something by Neo Rauch, Paul McCarthy, Meredith Frampton, Gerhard Richter, Philip Guston, Martin Kippenberger, Bill Traylor and Giorgio Morandi. I already own works on paper, but I won’t have trouble finding a place for a large canvas by Kati Heck.
Who are your favourite artists?
Tom Poelmans, one of the best abstract artists of his generation, now mainly makes figurative work. I find the works where those two worlds meet most exciting.
What Amber Andrews does with oil pastels – a blast of colour and a sideways look at art history – is just fantastic.
In a time where everything has to be figurative, Natacha Mankowski makes abstract paintings with homemade oil paint.
