Some collect old baseball cards. Others, maps and travel guides from cities and countries they’ve visited. For more, vintage stamps, left-behind maps, and forgotten trinkets accumulated from estate sales and thrift shops over the years have helped launch an interest in collecting that’s uniquely personal.

Most, however, collect artwork. It is, perhaps, one of the only hobbies that filters and purifies itself every decade, if not every year. Art, much like the artists who create it, fluctuates: modern, classical, impressionist, Renaissance, minimalist, and so on and so forth. But collecting contemporary art has become an interest unto itself.

As the Observer writes, “Contemporary art affords an opportunity of expression something about ourselves that our choice of sofa can never convey. Despite promises to create signature environments, many interior designers skip the authentic character, history and tastes of their clients for the latest trends. Yet there is one obvious way to imprint personality.”

There is a wealth of money in art, due in large part to the fact money cannot reflect taste. Art, instead, can. In a deeply personal assessment of individual likes, dislikes, and unknowns, the Observer set out to inform the general public what amassing an art collection could and should look like if done correctly.

The full guide and how-to can be found here at the Observer.