Why Art?

Every artwork brings a unique experience to its owner – whether it evokes creativity, inspiration, conversation, or memories.

ART is a visual language which plays a large role in communicating with others about who you are, or we are as a society. You know the expression: first impressions are lasting. Many times, upon entering a home or a business, it is the artwork that makes that first statement about you or your home. HOW? You may ask. Subject matter, styles, scale, colors, placement all create a mood or set a tone in your home as well as indicate a lot about your thinking and or emotions.

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There are many reasons why people choose art – some of those include:

????????????????For Investment

????????????????To Complement the design of their home

????????????????For Fun

????????????????To create a Memory of someone or a place

????????????????As a Hobby

????????????????For historical reasons

????????????????For Beauty or Nature

????????????????On an impulse because they liked something they saw

????????????????To Increase Oneself knowledge and challenge our thoughts

????????????????To protest

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Having studied to be a painter, I have an interesting view from the inside as to what art can mean, sometimes how difficult or easy it can be to create and the challenge to produce “good art”. Regardless of the media, it is a form of self-expression – often a safer way to protest – which portrays how we perceive the world around us both real and imaginary. So, if art is self-expression – how do we know it’s worth?

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The definition of value in art is highly disputed in the art world as the elements of art value are numerous and often rather subjective. For example, what makes art valuable? Does this concept only have to do with the price? Does it reflect the symbolism of art or rather the quality and fineness of its material? Does the person who commissions the piece determine if a piece has value according to their own standards or satisfaction?

The elements that determine the value of art have certainly changed. In the past, the question about what the value of art was were more easily determined by taking into consideration the materials used, the purpose served, the dimensions, the notoriety of the artist and of the commissioner. Not all of these indicators have changed, but today there are certainly additional factors which complement those. Recently, an art piece?Comedian?by Cattelan sold for $150,000, a price that totally exceeded the cost of the banana and a strip of duct tape which were used to simply tape the banana on the wall. I can’t help but wonder what happened when the banana went bad.

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My own experiences have been varied over the past 25 plus years and in that experience, I have learned one thing in particular regarding selecting art with clients.

The more I know about them, their vision, their reasons for wanting art, where they wish to place a piece or pieces, who is their audience and what do they like, the easier it is to fulfill that vision with them and make certain what they are choosing creates the right outcome for them.

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If you are an art enthusiast, your knowledge of the art world may be very strong. For others wishing to invest, often seeking the guidance of a professional may be a good idea. Whatever your reason is for procuring art work, let the choice you make speak to you - your emotions, intellect, curiosity, memory, sense of beauty, and of course your heart. Art makes our lives more enjoyable.

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??????????A DAY WITHOUT ART IS LIKE A DAY WITHOUT SUNSHINE