5 Questions with Trusted Advisor Spring McManus

Nov 12, 2025

Meet Spring McManus, a well-respected art advisor with a keen eye for emerging talent and a deep passion for supporting artists in their careers. With over a decade of experience in the art world, Spring has mastered the art of blending creativity and strategy to connect artists, collectors, galleries and institutions in unique and impactful ways.

In this exclusive interview, she shares when she advises clients to take risks, how to stay strategic in the impulsive art fair environment, common misunderstandings about blue-chip art, and more.

1AN: You’ve organized exhibitions by icons like Joan Mitchell and Frank Stella. What’s something most collectors still misunderstand about blue-chip art and how value holds, or doesn’t hold, over time?

Spring McManus: Not all Picassos are created equal… It is just as important to understand when the artwork was created, the subject and what was happening in the artist's life during the time of production. These all play into the value of an artwork, and it all fluctuates depending on timing of current exhibitions, supply and demand, as well as cultural relevance. When an artist’s works challenge or inspire new generations, values go up. Blue-chip artists like Joan Mitchell or Frank Stella have had moments of renewed focus that reinvigorate demand, but they’ve also experienced quieter cycles.

For years, George Condo’s early works had been overlooked, which created an interesting opportunity for my clients who collect his work in depth.  The market focus had been primarily on the cubist portraits or progressions, but over the last few years, there has been a shift with more collectors paying attention to the early works. Now that there is a major retrospective at the Musee d’Art Moderne de Paris highlighting the significance of his early work, I imagine these works will have increased demand, driving prices higher. I am always looking for opportunities like this.

1AN: Well then, it’s good to have access to someone like you with your finger on the pulse! Because even seasoned collectors can fall into patterns and just buy more of the same. How do you push clients to evolve their eye or take risks while still maintaining their trust?

Spring McManus: When I am helping clients build their collections, I am always introducing them to artists that relate to those that they already collect. For example, if a collector is interested in the stars of Surrealism, like Magritte and Dali, I might introduce artworks from Remedios Varo and Valentine Hugo, or Arshile Gorky, and show how these works also connect to contemporary surrealists like Julie Curtiss and Ariana Papademetropoulos. I am always looking for the threads that rhyme visually or create conceptual or historical links.

1AN: That makes sense and I can see how that would help ease anxiety in evolving one’s tastes.  But growth in collecting often requires deeper engagement with the art world beyond transactions. Can someone build a meaningful collection today without being connected to institutions, residencies, or philanthropic networks?

Spring McManus: I encourage collectors to engage with cultural institutions because this is where we learn, discover, and understand art within context. Museums and artist residencies are where ideas are shaped, supported, and sometimes amplified, before they reach the market. This part of collecting is foundational. Supporting institutions is also integral to sustaining the ecosystem that allows artists to grow, experiment, and be seen. Part of my process as an art advisor is taking clients to studio visits, residencies and museums. These experiences deepen their connections with artists and their understanding of process.  In Miami, I support the Fountainhead Artist Residency, the International Women’s Committee of the Perez Art Museum Miami, and the Collector’s Committee at the ICA, which all foster communities of people passionate about visual arts.

1AN: That’s amazing. Speaking of Miami and looking ahead to art fair season, even the most disciplined collectors can get caught up in the frenzy. How do you help clients stay strategic in an environment designed to spark fast, emotional, sometimes impulsive decisions?

Spring McManus: Frenzy is never the right state of mind to buy art. Art fairs can be completely overwhelming and honestly just too much. But I never want to dismiss the possibility of a “love at first sight” moment because when it aligns with knowledge, research, and context, that’s where the magic happens. My role is to slow down the frenzied pace and help clarify goals and priorities before we walk into a fair together, so decisions are rooted in the larger narrative of the collection. When a new discovery happens, we note it, follow up, research, and look again.

1AN: I like this calm, yet strategic approach. The Miami fair ecosystem has exploded between Basel, Art Miami, SCOPE, Untitled, NADA, plus countless satellites. With so many options, which fairs are worth a collector’s time?

Spring McManus: There are too many fairs and too little time. It’s impossible, and unnecessary, to see everything. I guide my clients toward a few that offer the strongest balance of quality, curation, and discovery. I focus on the fairs that consistently present strong, thoughtfully curated works: Art Basel for its museum-caliber presentations and global gallery programs, Untitled and NADA for their highly-curated selection of emerging galleries and artists, and Design Miami for the cross-disciplinary dialogue. The goal isn’t to rush through every tent; otherwise, it becomes visual overload, and nothing resonates. I always encourage a slower, more intentional experience that allows space for looking, thinking, and feeling. When you take the time to truly engage with the work, the fair transforms from a whirlwind of booths into meaningful moments on the journey of buying and collecting art. 

Connect with Spring here.

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