Nabeel, 40, is a self-professed art aficionado who never misses an exhibition. Apart from his regular job as an investment banker in a multinational bank, he likes to personally invest in art and his own collection comprises artworks by old masters (inherited from his parents) to up-and-coming artists whose work he has acquired quite cheaply. Over the years, some of them become popular and famous on the local and international circuits which increases their worth and their investment value.

So collecting art is a hobby-cum-business for him as he can live with his selected favourite pieces for years, proving his credentials as an art buff who is widely admired for his deep aesthetic sense and profound knowledge. When asked how art is different from other forms of investment, such as real estate, stocks, bonds, mutual funds, hedge funds, gold, the foreign exchange market, etc, he explains that when investing in art, one has to have a potent mix of shrewd business insight, personal taste and analytical expertise to determine the potential talent. Also, one must pay attention to critics’ opinion.

His is not an isolated case as there are many others like him who are getting into this volatile world as investors and are making good money as well.

Nadeem Ansari, a young IT professional who also works as an art dealer endorsed all the above-mentioned factors, “When I buy a painting I always look for a credible artist who has a steady development record as you don’t buy an artwork you buy an artist. I also conduct an online survey about his educational background, studio, versatility, imagination and finally ambition. I always make it a point to meet the artist personally to gauge his potential.”

“You don’t buy an artwork, you buy an artist,” says a young collector, who is internet-savvy, widely travelled and well informed with tonnes of disposable income to spend on his passion and business

It’s not for the impatient; it is not like worth of the artwork will increase overnight. You have to wait for the considerable amount of time, say, two years to a decade. As someone once famously commented, art is like real estate which takes time to appreciate in value, he adds.

But purists feel that this approach to art is destructive. Niilofur Furrukh, a seasoned art critic and co-founder of NuktaArt, says, “These young people take art as a part of their overall image branding. It becomes a part of their lifestyle and often they talk about their art collection and foreign trips in the same breath. The core idea is to blatantly flaunt their riches.” Secondly, the focus on the rising value of the artwork while ignoring many critical issues on the ground which creates a serious disconnect between the artists and collectors, she adds.

Now the question is whether is it financially viable to invest in art keeping in view all the horror stories we hear on and off about fake art that is circulating in a large number. Zohra Hussain says to minimise the chances of acquiring the fake art it is always better to acquire the work of living artists, especially the emerging ones, buy your collection from a reputable gallery, and, finally ask for a ‘Letter of Provenance’ which will increase the worth of your purchase and will be easier to find a buyer later on.

Riffat Alvi, director of the VM Gallery, Karachi says that the potential buyers, especially the first time customers, are very concerned about the artist and his future prospects. The other significant change is that people are now switching towards young artists and buying their work in droves, especially miniature art.

The other major factor which has influenced the art market is that overseas Pakistanis come and buy art and they usually seek the art galleries’ advice. They like to purchase art from its country of origin because if it goes to the international auction houses its price will increase manifold and will be out of reach.

Considering the fact that there is new interest in Pakistani art internationally and relatively younger artists are in great demand, odds are that the value of the artworks will appreciate over the years and bring rich dividends to the collectors. Consequently collecting art will become a heady cocktail of love, taste and good returns.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, June 15th, 2014