Art is not always for the Novice Buyer but it can be!  If you are a beginning collector and like a painting in the $100 to $300 range you should feel free to buy it and enjoy it!  When considering purchasing paintings of greater value, it comes into play that the artist can be researched by finding out whether he is a listed artist in many of the top reference books such as Who was Who in American Art, Edan Milton Hughes, Artist's in California 1786-1940 and even Davenport's can give you a general idea of whether and artist is listed and what auction range the artist sell's in.  When deciding to buy fine art in excess of $1000.00 shall we say as an example, it can be researched by auction history as to what prices an artist might bring.  Here is an example of how an artist's prices can change with regard to the period and example of art.  Louis Ritman painted impressionist paintings inspired by his trips to Giverny, France between 1910 and 1915.  Ritman's work in this early period can be worth in excess of $500,000.  He later went into Post-Impressionism and his works from the 1930's forward are worth a fraction of his impressionist works.  Also, when buying many artist's have typical pieces they paint.  For instance, the famous Californa artist William Wendt is famous for his landscapes.  If Wendt had done a portrait on an atypical day, the value would obviously be less because it would be considered atypical of the artist's work.  I would recommend to the beginning collector or novice collector to study the market by perhaps attending some local auctions and watching what things sell for and perhaps buying reference books.  You can also seek the help of an experienced art dealer for help when searching for fine art.  Of course, Ebay is a great place to find hidden treasures and let the search begin! Jennyarts