Alain Servais and His Collection: A "Platonic" Relationship

Alain Servais stopped following his heart a long time ago. The 56-year-old takes collecting seriously. Feelings, much less speculation, play little part in his choices: for Mr. Servais, art is an intellectual and philosophical pursuit. He has bought hundreds of works but prefers installations and digital creations to paintings and drawings, whose market dominance he deems anachronistic in the age of the Internet and new technology. In his collection, famous artists—Sherman, Richter, Kruger, Holzer—mingle with younger or emerging ones—Versteeg, Papadopoulos and the team of Broomberg and Chanarin. Like many collectors, Mr. Servais feels the need to show their work to the public, which he does in his old nearly 9,700 square-foot loft in the Schaerbeek area of Brussels. What guides your choices? The first thing I ask myself is this: is there any chance it will seem as interesting 30 years…