Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a “collection” as “an accumulation of objects gathered for study, comparison, or exhibition or as a hobby.” Historically, most collectors fit into that last category, accumulating automobiles that interest them as a leisure pursuit. More recently, there has been a growing number of people buying special cars as a financial investment. Although these individuals circulate within the hobby, they are not collectors in the most basic sense. Collecting is generally driven by one’s emotions, be it passion, intrigue, wonderment or the like. In the case of automobiles, pleasure not only comes from possessing something rare, historically significant or […]
Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a “collection” as “an accumulation of objects gathered for study, comparison, or exhibition or as a hobby.” Historically, most collectors fit into that last category, accumulating automobiles that interest them as a leisure pursuit. More recently, there has been a growing number of people buying special cars as a financial investment. Although these individuals circulate within the hobby, they are not collectors in the most basic sense.
Collecting is generally driven by one’s emotions, be it passion, intrigue, wonderment or the like. In the case of automobiles, pleasure not only comes from possessing something rare, historically significant or exotic, but also from experiencing the article in motion. I have been accumulating, driving and racing collector cars for more than 30 years. Other than family, friends and patients, the car hobby has been the most enjoyable part of my life.
My focus, if I can call it that, has been on limited-production post-war sports cars. I have never concentrated on a particular make or model, and have collected cars from multiple continents. Certainly, there have been well-defined areas of particular interest such as coachbuilt Italian sports cars from the 1950s, particularly those bodied by Zagato and Rocco Moto. But I have also gone down the rabbit hole of low-production Japanese sports cars, American specials that raced in the 1950s, American streamliners built both for the salt flats and superhighways, and even hot rods.
What holds my collection together and differentiates it from a bunch of cars jammed in a warehouse is the connectivity each machine has with me — not a connectivity linking each car. The sports cars in my collection are rare, beautiful and benefit from design and engineering excellence. Several of the cars I have acquired over the past four decades have been found languishing in sheds, lost to time and in need of total restoration. Reintroducing these cars to the world, many decades after they went missing, is one of my collecting themes, and represents a particularly rewarding part of my automotive journey.
In my view, the absence of rigid guidelines, such as “all Porsche,” has allowed me to assemble a diverse yet still cohesive collection focused on one simple premise: I collect what I fall in love with. Moreover, the range of my collection has brought with it a wide landscape of enthusiasts from various pockets of the hobby. Which highlights the most important point: In the end, what I’m really collecting is experiences and friendships. — Mark R. Brinker, SCM Contributor
How one would start a collection is an interesting question. My belief is that most collections start very small, with an individual passion. Some stay small, and some grow quite large. The growth depends on motivation and resources.
People tend to collect what they like; I don’t know of anyone who collects what they don’t like, and what drives that passion can vary widely. It can be the make of a car, a type of car, a geographical part of the world or even a color — someone might love Porsches, but only white Porsches.
Whether or not a group of objects becomes a collection depends on the individual’s desire to organize them. I also believe the objects should be researched (having an educational component tied to them), maintained and organized, not just a warehouse filled with stuff. The better a collection is presented in an organized fashion, the more likely it will be received positively by the public. — Jeff Lane, Founder, Lane Motor Museum
Collecting is a universal human attribute. Indeed, it connects aspects of human culture. Why do we collect the things we do? This has been an imponderable question since time immemorial. Given the role of the automobile as historical artifact, cultural expression, psychic manifestation and even connection to the collector’s own past, automobile collections are as varied as the collectors themselves.
Moreover, cars are one of the most ambitious and complex things to collect. Cars engage our individual tastes and predilections with that complexity. They reflect our love of history, aesthetics, technology, mastery, fellowship, nostalgia, even competition. So, what makes us choose the cars we do? Can we detect fundamental differences in the motivation of collectors that explain why so much treasure, time and effort is devoted to this activity?
Well, we can. Let’s start with motivation. How do we explain the broad differences in collections that range from Mopar muscle to steam cars? Researchers suggest that collections are based on three mechanisms: nostalgia, fetishism and systematics. We collect to remind ourselves of our past — nostalgia. We collect to satisfy an internal need — fetishism. Or we collect to describe a specific field — say, the evolution of British sports cars in the 1950s. Most amateur collecting is a mix of these motivations.
Some of our collection is based on the urge to explain. This is the way that museum curators collect. Other aspects of our collection may be based on owning cars we loved when we were kids. That nostalgic impulse takes us back in time to create a collection that is important to us because it reflects us; it’s a collection of “me.” And finally, we may own a car because owning it makes us feel good about ourselves: say, Steve McQueen’s Porsche 911. In the end, the glorious variety of cars means that there’s always a seat that fits. — Miles Collier, SCM Contributor and Founder of the Revs Institute