SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, March 10, 2016 (Gephardt Daily) — Selecting art for the home can be an exciting adventure and a source of enjoyment for years to come.
But it can be challenging to figure out exactly what your personal taste is, how it will fit in with the rest of your interior design plans and how to exhibit the art to the best effect.
Diane P. Stewart, the owner of Modern West Fine Art gallery in Salt Lake City, said the key to art collection is to only buy what you love.
“Never buy art as an investment,” she said. “If it turns out to be a great investment, that’s a bonus. You must buy what moves you, not what moves the market.”
“Your eye will develop and your sophistication will grow, the more you study, view and experience art. And best to view lots of different kinds of art. The wide and deep looks, will inform every purchase.
“I love to move my art around. New hangs seem like new art. And I like to shake things up and add contemporary pieces to a staid room. My tastes have evolved, as is usually the case, to more modern and contemporary artists. But to me, you can’t have great space without great art. I also like doing something unexpected with the art in a room ─ an unusual hang or placement of a piece can be quite wonderful.”
Salt Lake City-based artist Jann Haworth said the key to art collection is to celebrate the unique.
“Here is something I always want to ask: How long is it since you bought something unique, I mean only one like that thing: this hand thrown pot, piece of jewelry, painting, patchwork, hand woven rug, Native American work ─ that is made by a local artist? Last month? This last year? Well, in the last five years? Never?”
“Celebrate unique because not only do you get something to treasure, you enable the artist to go on making more groundbreaking unique things that define part of the amazing good fortune of being here.
“Don’t look at the price before you think how this piece makes you feel or before you really take a deep look at it. Don’t take a photo of it. Don’t let the camera get in the way of your gaze or your brain. Once in a while, you will see something you love so much you want it to be part of your life. OK, you have to look at the price tag.
“Let’s suppose it is way way out of your ability to pay. Contact the artist anyway, not to bludgeon them down on the price, but just to say you really love their work. That means a lot. Artists work in a vacuum ─ kind words are very valuable. See if the artist makes prints, smaller works, or might consider staged payments if you are really stuck on a particular piece.”
Haworth said the way to develop personal taste is to let your heart lead. “What is considered bad art in one decade can become the ‘good’ art of the next and FOR sure the reverse is true,” she said.
“Go with what you love and don’t worry about what anybody else thinks. It’s like clothes; be individual; in ten years time you may still be in love with what you first saw in the work or you may have moved on to something entirely different.
Haworth said that when it comes to picking her own art: “I steal the work of my children. They kinda owe me. And I have some very nice artist friends who have given me things I treasure. Yeah, right, but what have I bought as I am so willing to advise. I’ve bought little paintings, prints and drawings from Gallery Stroll Exhibits. I’ve bought wonderful hand blown glass. Native American weaving and jewelry. Local fashion from the Craft Fair. And of course gelato from Mark England.”
For more on Modern West Fine Art click here. For more on Jann Haworth click here.
Excellent story hang what you like. Seems simple but NOT so much if you know collectors.