Name: Michael Elmenbeck
Occupation: Co-founder of CFHILL Art Space and Bon Magazine
Location: Stockholm, Sweden
Started collecting in year: 1990 at age 18
Number of artworks in collection: 200+
Name of collection: None
Instagram: @michaelelmenbeck

How did you become an art collector?

A girl in my class worked extra in a gallery, and I went there every day to visit her and eventually bought a lithograph for 250 USD to make her boss happy. I was then very much into hip hop and graffiti and this surrealist artist from 1934 reminded me of hip hop.

How would you describe yourself as an art collector?

I have from day one been driven by passion, when I see something I like, I cannot sleep or think until I have it. My first really expensive artwork was so expensive, I did not even have money for an apartment at the time. It was a Keith Haring oil on canvas back in 1993, I was 22 years old, and it was 50.000 USD. Today it is probably worth two million USD.

What was the first artwork you purchased?

Axel Olsson, a very well known Swedish surrealist, a lithograph. My mom owns it today. Most of the artwork I bough in the beginning, like Dali lithographs and local flea market stars are with my mom today.

What is the main motivation behind your collecting?

To bring meaning to my life. Nothing gives me more pleasure than art, but also, nothing gives me more frustration than having troubles getting the artwork you want and love, because you are living in Stockholm and not New York, or because you are not wealthy enough to be considered important by big galleries.

Describe your collection in three words.

International. Eclectic. Personal. And I have to say emotional too.

Nothing gives me more pleasure than art, but also, nothing gives me more frustration than having troubles getting the artwork you want and love, because you are living in Stockholm and not New York, or because you are not wealthy enough to be considered important by big galleries.

Is there any particular type of art that appeals to you or anything that unites all the works in your collection?

I like when it looks new and feels new, like something you have not seen before.  A new shape, a new idea, or just a new name. 

What considerations do you take into account before you buy a piece of art?

It is very simple: Do I love it? Can I afford it? If the artwork is 50 000 USD or more, I do research before I buy. If it is less expensive, I go with the flow, and sometimes I look at the walls in my home or offices and think: do I want this in my storage or do I want to look at it? If I want to have it on the wall, I always buy it.

What do you enjoy the most: The hunt associated with collecting art or the joy of ownership?

Is that not the same thing? I hunt and fight to own it, or to potentially own it. I would never fly to Basel or New York to visit galleries or art fairs just to look at art, it is the knowledge that you can buy the art that drives me.

How important is it for you to meet the artist behind the artwork?

Not that important. However, after we had Marina Abramovic for lunch at our art space CFHILL last week, I felt like I wanted to buy more of her art, so I guess meeting the artists could affect you.

Do you have a desire to have your collection shown?

Not really. I have shown it a couple of times, only with the ambition to inspire people and have them understand how it is to live with art, and give people the courage to start collecting. 

What are the wishes for the future of your collection? What would you like to see happen to it?

I hope my collection will continue to grow with great works. I also plan to sell some of the works that have been in storage too long so other people can enjoy it. Second life goes for everything today, not just clothes or home products.

What work of art do you wish you owned if the price tag did not matter?

Gustav Klimt. Egon Schiele. Jean-Michel Basquiat. A mural Keith Haring. 

How do you know when you stand before a truly great piece of art?

Your heart starts racing, and you start looking for the person working at the gallery, or you want to tell the artists right away or the person next too you. It makes you excited, impressed, and happy. 

What is the best advice you have given or been given in terms of art collecting?

Since art today is so connected with money, I always tell people never to invest but to see art as money you spend to become happy, like a great holiday, the perfect burger at The Grill in NYC or that Panda painting with glitter by Rob Pruitt, it always makes you smile.