AO Journal

Trends in Collecting for 2020

As we bid adieu to 2019 and welcome the decade of the 2020s, there is no better time to look ahead to the trends of the future…. namely, buying, collecting, and investing in antiques and art.

Trend Number One:

While the stock market has been at an all-time high, collectibles still vie for your dollars as an attractive investment. A major piece of art can be a long-term purchase that increases in value, and experts predict that prices in gold, jewelry, silver, gemstones, exotic woods and coins will be favorable. 

 

Galerie Gaudium’s Grete Jalk Lounge Chair, circa 1950

 

Three rattan paneled forged iron Emperor’s Screen from Cox London

 

Trend Number Two:

As antique stores and retail shops are on the decline due to increasingly high rents (case in point: Manhattan’s Barneys recently closed its doors), online shopping will be the dominant platform in both buying and selling. The ease and convenience of shopping, the vast array of items available coupled with the confidence of buying from a reputable seller make online shopping the perfect go-to destination.

 

Trend Number Three:

Mid-century Modern will continue to be the favored choice, particularly among minimalists and millennials with Art Deco running a close second. 18th-century antiques will enjoy their time in the spotlight as 200 plus years of beauty and age will be an appealing factor to many discerning collectors. House Beautiful magazine predicts furniture made of cane, wicker, and rattan will make a big impression in the next decade, and designers will continue to look to the past and mix vintage modern and 18th- 19th century pieces in their interiors. 

 

Art 1900’s Art Deco enameled copper Vase by Camille Fauré

 

Ernst Barlach Bronze Christ Mask with light gold patina from Art1900

 

Trend Number Four:

Architectural Digest forecasts that “small antiques will be the new black.” As many leave their McMansions for condos and townhouses, oversize armoires and massive murals will give way to smaller, more intriguing investment pieces.

 

Trend Number Five:

As indicated by sales at the recent Art Basel show, minimalist and figurative works of art may will be replaced by abstract paintings of bold colors, layered canvases with a mix of intricate patterns in the years to come. Pundits predict the use of metallic gold and silver finishes in sculptures, and art will be on-trend as well.

 

Modernity’s Contemporary Abstract Painting by Sven Hansson, Sweden, 1900’s-2000’s