Are you an art collector?

Breezy

SOLD

I sold a painting yesterday. Woohoo! So I was thinking about this whole buying and selling art thing. The collector who bought Breezy said she had been in the gallery several times and every time she came in she gravitated to that one. It pulled her in and she decided she couldn't leave without it. 

Some folks think collecting art is only for fancy people. Art collectors are the ones investing in blue chip art - the pieces done by very famous people and sold at very famous prices. We see those amazing numbers when auction houses report their sales - $10,000,000 and up for one painting. But that's another universe. Most of us regular people don't have the funds to invest in blue chip work. 

Sometimes people wonder if a lesser known piece that they're interested in could have the potential to be a big seller in the future. Is this painting a good investment? I think there's a better way to approach buying art. To me, an investment in art means an investment in my environment, an investment in my mental health, an investment in a spiritual connection, an investment in my home decor, an investment in beauty!

It's about love. Pure and simple. If you buy art it should be something you fall in love with - something you want to live with in your home because it makes you feel good when you look at it. Anyone can be an art collector. We start collecting art when we're children. Were you a kid who picked up rocks and stuck them in your pocket to take home because they were pretty? Did you save certain leaves in the fall because of the gorgeous colors? Did you press flowers in a book because you couldn't bear to let them go? I was. I was an art collector then and now. 

Anyone can own original art. I paint more than I collect but when I do buy someone else's art it's because I want to look at it - all the time. If you love an artist's work and have a strict budget, look for smaller pieces they have available. That usually means a smaller price. You could also ask about a payment plan. Many artists are more than willing to work something out with you. Please don't think that art collecting is a game you can't or shouldn't play. Please don't think collecting art is about dollar signs. It's about love and making your surroundings a place where you want to be. It's about letting an image take you on a mental or emotional journey. It's about an investment in yourself.

 

New Horse Fever and More

 

What a crazy year! I'm happy to say I'm fully vaccinated and ready for life to be "normal" again - whatever that means. I'm still painting, doing commissions, and working Gallery B so maybe normal will just mean wearing a mask less often. 

I've painted another horse. This time it's for the 20th anniversary of Horse Fever. It's called Home Sweet Home and it's part of the Giving Collection. It's one of 3 horses that will be going to a lucky raffle winner June 4th. The tickets are $100 and available at  Marion Cultural Alliance. The proceeds from the raffle benefit the arts in Marion County. Very cool! Is anyone surprised that I painted nests all over this horse? 

After painting the horse, me and my co-owner friends have also been incredibly busy doing a bit of a refresh in Gallery B. The walls have fresh paint and there's new carpet on the floor. We've also brought some new friends in to share our space. Welcome to The Graceful Gardener, Pen and Ink, and Grated & Cured. We've also added new artists to the gallery so if you're in the area you should definitely stop by.

New pretty space!

I have lots of new work to share so I'll just start with the three below. I also updated most of the pages here so click on a tab above to see more. My abstract work seems to be influencing my landscapes. I still love realism but these are fun too. I felt the need to loosen up and play more. I've also started adding colored pencil to the canvases - swirling round strokes layered between glazes of acrylic. 

Sparkle

8x8

The painting below was inspired by a tall stand of trees at a local park. It just sold at the Signature Gallery in Tallahassee to a lovely gentleman who called to tell me how much he appreciates my work. That call made my day! It's such an honor to have someone spend their hard earned money on something I created and then to have them call and tell me about it, well, that's just plain wonderful and I'm so grateful, not only to him but to the Signature and staff.

Soaring

36x18

SOLD

Relaxing

12x12

We have a long weekend coming up. I hope you find time to relax and also remember all the men and women who served our country and paid the ultimate price. 

Peace and love,

C

The Art of Arranging Art

What do you do when you have a big blank wall and a lot of paintings or photos to hang? How do you arrange them? It looks like a daunting task but really, it's something to have fun with. It doesn't have to be stressful. Here are a few tips to get you going. 

 👉 It's all about the planning. Start with the largest painting first and then arrange everything else around it. 
 
 👉 To make a plan lay each piece on a sheet of paper larger than the painting or frame and trace around it. Cut out the shape of each painting and use them to tape an arrangement on the wall. This way you can play with the arrangement without poking holes all over the place. It's much easier than hanging and rehanging the work.

 👉 Be aware of spacing between the artwork. You don't want to have them too close together because it can look cluttered. Also, don't hang work too close to the edge of a wall or too close to the corner of the room. 

 👉 Do you have a theme? Think about style and color combinations. You want things to coordinate but not everything has to be matchy matchy. You can mix photos and paintings, different types of frames and different content but you don't want things to clash either. It's nice if there's some kind of connection between the pieces but it's not absolutely necessary. If you love your collection, then by all means you can make it work. 

👉 Small pictures are great fill ins for groupings. Having different sizes and shapes makes for a more interesting arrangement.

I have a series of works that I painted based on aerial views of the Florida coast. I used photos I took from the plane as we approached Tampa Airport. In the pictures below I arranged 7 of these paintings in different ways. Sometimes hanging a series can make a real impact. 

The paintings in this series are different sizes ranging from 18x24 down to 11x14. Here I placed them in a pretty formal and symmetrical arrangement. Just like art, the style of arranging art is purely subjective. Some folks prefer symmetry and some don't.

 

The one below is a looser arrangement but still balanced. Even though no two paintings line up together I still think it works. The overall shape makes an arch over the seat. 

The next two arrangements are more structured. Some of the paintings are lined up in a row and they're more symmetrical.

This last one is like a circle of paintings. Again, nothing is lined up in a row but it feels balanced and could still work.

Finally, for this last picture I used some different work. This one mixes large and small, framed and unframed paintings. Matchy matchy is not the goal. Balance and loving the art on your walls is the goal. Take pieces you love and want to look at all the time, start with the placement of the biggest one first and then use the smaller ones in a group to balance the weight of the larger one. This wall looks good as is but it also leaves room for some possible additions. I hope you find these little tips helpful. Just have fun and play with your arrangements.

Wait! One last tip..... use your cell phone. When you have your size templates taped to the wall take a picture of the arrangement. Then try some other arrangements and do the same. Then you can compare the different ways of showing off the work and pick your favorite.

 

Looking Forward

Black Thread Woven

11x14

"Everyone needs time to develop their dreams. 

An egg in the nest doesn't become a bird overnight."

Lois Ehlert

Good Monday morning! What are you dreaming about right now? Painting is my dream job so all my dreams right now are about people. I'm dreaming of visiting my children and grandchildren and squeezing them with all the love I've got. I'm dreaming about not worrying about a virus. I'm dreaming of gallery openings and people laughing. I'm dreaming of hugging my friends and sharing a pie over a 3 hour lunch in our favorite pizza place. I'm dreaming of being at the beach, playing in the surf with the kids. 

It's all about friends and family. I'm looking forward to the dreams coming true.