What do you picture when you think of an art collector? Does something particular spring to mind? I used to picture a room at Sotheby’s Auction House, dark wood, dark Oriental rugs and society’s upper crust dressed to the nines bidding seven figures for oil paintings and exquisite vases. I have an active imagination. But the point is, art collecting used to feel out of reach to me, and I’m sure I am not alone.

Realistically, (not just to justify the whole Sotheby’s thing) the thought of owning artwork can be daunting - how do you decide what to buy? How do you know what type of artwork you like? Where will it fit in your house? Can I even afford it?

It can be daunting, but the good news is, it doesn’t have to be. Access to art, artists and to becoming a collector or expanding your collection can take on a million forms. At Green Hill Center for NC Art it is our mission to provide that access and our current Private Collections exhibition, along with Richard Ritter: 40 Years of Glass and the concurrent online Richard Ritter Auction, are great showcases for how art has come into people’s lives turning them into…collectors.

We’ve gathered the stories of collectors, many of whom have ties to the art and artists who have been associated with Green Hill Center for the past 35 years, to share. Some of these collectors have hundreds of pieces, others, one or two. The variety of their stories is a testament to how diverse the definition of an art collector can be. I’m an art collector - a fledgling one - but a collector nonetheless. Are you? We would love to hear from you, if you have a collecting story; funny, touching, 50 years ago or yesterday, share with us what collecting art means to you.

Enjoy our Collectors’ Stories - !