Dear Lee,

I was flipping through the “How to Spend It” section of the Financial Times newspaper when I recognized a piece of 3-D art in a photo. It was a six-figure “I wish I could afford it” piece I had seen at Art Basel in Miami a year and a half ago when I interviewed the American artist, Beth Katleman, for an “On the Road” column (Kovels newsletter, March 2012).

The Financial Times photo accompanied an article about the latest trend in design, 3-D wall art. From a distance, Katleman’s 3-by-5 1/2-meter piece looks like traditional toile wallpaper. But the white figures are actually small playful porcelain sculptures molded from groups of dime-store figures and toys. Close inspection shows the sculpture is not a joyous scene, but a statement about life that includes a murder and other dark deeds. The Katleman wall sculpture pictured in the article is priced at $225,000. (At Art Basel, I asked Katleman if I could buy one of the small figure groups that made up a large scene, but only the whole “wallpaper” was for sale. I realized then that this was a new form of art.)

All collectors remember the “one that got away.” I sadly remember the major pieces that were beyond my budget: a Lucie Rie bowl, a very long ad for a railroad that pictured a whole train, a Bakelite bracelet, an original Disney cel sold at the opening of Disneyland. But then I congratulate myself for recognizing new trends in the collecting world.

If you go to shows and flea markets, you eventually learn to spot some of next year’s favorites—the great buys everyone will be looking for. Buy one if you can afford it. I still long for a Martinware bird (weird 1873-1915 English art pottery) that I couldn’t afford at $1,000 years ago. Every Martinware bird I have seen since is always just a little too expensive, and now one can cost more than $15,000—permanently out of my reach.

Still, even if you can’t afford something you spot and love and know will be hot next year, you can brag that you had the talent and taste to recognize trends and values. And you’ll undoubtedly enjoy those rare days when you buy something that others laugh at—a something that turns out to be a valuable treasure in just a few years.