Following a successful season for the Australian art market last year, collectors should feel confident about the direction it will take in 2016.
Menzies Art Brands will be testing the waters with the first major art auction in Melbourne on Wednesday,   March 23. 
The company is excited about its prospects and fine arts specialist Tim Abdallah claims the   March sale always derives a great deal of support from collectors eager to see what is on offer after a lengthy break from the   November sales.
While the company is still busy assembling a quality range of paintings for auction, two examples should leave collectors rubbing their hands with glee.
One is Jeffrey Smart's Panel of Studies for Autobahn in the Black Forest 1979 - featuring one of his best-known subjects. Although the painting carries a conservative $140,000-$180,000 estimate, a related work sold in 2011 for more than $1 million.
Collectors held their breath when Smart died in 2013 and, as a result, prices for his works briefly sagged. However, good results (including a record price) since have restored his position as one of Australia's leading artists. Another interesting work with a similar estimate is Rick Amor's The Attic Amphora (The Lamp) 1994, oil on linen diptych painted when he was relatively unknown. Now Amor has confirmed his place among the greats of Australian art and Menzies anticipates a new auction record for this imposing and typically brooding image.
As a lead up to the Menzies   March sale, collectors - particularly those wishing to break into the art market - might like to take a look at Mossgreen's Melbourne auction of the late Jennifer Phipp's estate, on Sunday,   February 28.
Many of the works carry estimates of under $1000, but several are much higher including Ian Fairweather's Village Landscape 1954.