Chad Loweth is a hedge fund manager who has worked at SAC and Diamondback Capital. Like his brethren, he has a taste for contemporary art. He also has the confidence to buy what he likes. This past weekend, he tried to teach his peers how to do the same:

“People would say, ‘I saw so many beautiful things, but can you help me understand why something’s $12 million, $2 million, $550,000 or $50,000?'” recalled Mr. Lowe[th]. “The more people I talk to, the more I get the same response. Spending money on art scares them.”

As an art patron with eclectic tastes, Mr. Lowe[th] said he keeps up with what’s going on at art shows and at auction houses. “Your taste changes the more educated you become,” he said. Typically he tells friends, “Don’t rush out and buy a lot. Do it slowly.”

Mr. Lowe said he also tries to convince friends to buy what they like, “something that will make you happy when you see it every day.” And it helps to get to know the artist whose work you might be interested in. “That way, when someone comes to your house and asks you to tell them about the work, you can,” Mr. Lowe[th] said.

So over the weekend, he invited three artists whose work he collects and who he knows personally—Domingo Zapata, Richard Dupont and Henry Richardson—to bring some of their art and mingle with invited guests under a tent.

“I’d never heard of anything like this,” said Mr. Richardson. “It wasn’t a gallery show and it wasn’t an art show. It wasn’t really with an intent to sell, but just to get people to see the work and do it in a way that was actually fun. It was really a blowout party.” Mr. Richardson, however, brought along four large-scale sculptures, including a 4½-foot orb and a 7-foot twisted column, and wound up selling three out of four of them.

To Learn About Art, Party with the Artist (Wall Street Journal)