Katya Kazakina reveals the methods of art hounds looking for the next big name in art. Using examples of collectors who bought Anselm Reyle and Jeff Koons before their big run ups in price, Kazakina says there’s a new breed of art speculator prowling the galleries:

“To discover artists before they become famous, that’s the thrill for me,” Shariat, 38, says. “It’s like spotting a great stock that nobody else thought of.”

Today, collectors are flocking to small galleries in Berlin, London and New York to play the art market as Shariat does. Rather than paying a few million to $100 million for a Picasso painting, they’re buying the works of emerging artists for $1,000 to $20,000. […] Most artists will never transcend the lower rungs of the market. The key to finding a winner, Shariat says, is research. Visit as many art openings, fairs and museum exhibitions as you can. Talk to dealers, artists and collectors about the art, not about making money from it. Dealers frown on speculators and prefer to do business with buy-and-hold collectors.

Reyle’s an interesting case to mention with some of his paintings trading in London this week for a third of their high-water prices (though well above the prices paid at the gallery.
Art Addicts Prowl for Next Koons in Younger New York Galleries (Bloomberg)