Art and Interior - a "Market Niche"

When I started this blog I never thought of being unique with the theme "Art and Interior" - I only thought it to be quite a nice and entertaining idea. Of course this little blog is nothing spectacular and my intention was not presenting only top notch interior designs - this is the job of those who are exclusively working for a special clientele.

My intention rather was to present ideas of a working artist who goes a bit further than just finishing a piece of art, selling it and never caring for where it is going to or in which environment it would settle. I am sure there are quite a few artists out there who do care but either they are not talking about it or they do not want to make it public so that the examples could be seen by a broader audience. I think this is a big mistake.

Admittedly - I am talking about my own art work exclusively at the moment - not about other art that could be placed in certain rooms - but this is not the point. The point is that I think that most people feel intimidated by art and therefore feel inadequate to judge where a piece of art could look good and where it is just out of place not to talk about craftmanship and lack of professional execution. I am not talking about art you might have found in a flea market (I love flea markets and art that can be found there) - I am also not talking about art bought by collectors for millions of bucks and not meant to embellish the walls of a small family home - I am talking about art that has a reasonable price, that represents professional workmanship, originality and uniqueness and that creates an emotional relationship with the buyer.

I am sure that exactly emotion is the most common impetus for buying art without knowing at that point of time in which environment it would settle in. Second place takes probably the wish to find anything that fits in a certain room above the sofa or the mantle of the fireplace. That is perfectly acceptable. What sense would it make to buy a painting only because you like it and then you have absolutely no place where it would fit? And even worse - you buy a painting and the place you have found for it is an awful match. Very quickly you would regret having bought the whole thing and curse the impetus that has made you buy art. This does not help the art in general nor the next artist.

And here we have the dilemma. Most people who care for art - or visit a museum or an art opening from time to time - feel what they are drawn too but they don't trust their own judgement. So for proper room design they either consult an interior designer or an art dealer/gallerist. But why not the artist her/himself? Wouldn't it be more appropriate and right to go to the source, to consult that person who knows the most about a certain art piece? And why are artists so reluctant to consider their work a product that needs the same introduction, a certain "maintenance" and care as any other sophisticated product?

I very much hope that my little blog here contributes to seeing art as something available and approachable and not something mysterious and detached. I think the more examples you see where interior design and art are creating a unique entity the more confident people will become to make their own decisions. And maybe the more real art (not the cheap prints, posters and reproductions) will find its way into the homes of people who just have an affinity for aesthetics...

Btw - if you happen to know of any blogs which cover the same subject - art and interior - let me know. I would like to add links!