The Issue: The art of it
To the walls
I don’t know much about art but I know what I like.” It’s a statement that we hear only too often but is there any truth in it? We fear not. In the past one would never have put anything on your walls that did not have significance, a family heirloom or a piece of art or photography that had a personal resonance, something received as a gift or bought out of passion.
Not anymore, these days we are covering our walls with all kinds of ephemera sold under the misconceived idea that you are buying art when really what you are buying is overpriced interior decorations that conform to a current trend. Once the marketeers convinced us that it was okay to buy a sofa that was a short lived and disposable fashion statement rather than investing in a piece of furniture that would last for generations, they could move on and persuade us to buy the decorative bits in the same way.
What you are buying is overpriced interior decorations
How often do you walk into homes and see the same images on the wall? The white and cobalt blue vista of a Greek island landscape, a wooden pier at the edge of a misty lake, a weirdly familiar image of a pop star in the style of Andy Warhol but a star who achieved fame after Warhol’s death… Yes, all too familiar and nearly all of no or little value once you have walked out of the shop with them. So what do we suggest I hear you ask?
The answer is simple, if you want to retain individuality avoid the high street and the furnishing superstores. Instead head to smaller galleries or independent design outlets where the things available to hang on the wall will be individually created or come in small limited editions. Only buy things that you really love, if you love it when you buy it will always be worth what you paid. If you are lucky it may even increase in value but that is, in a way, unimportant.
There are thousands of talented artists out there making beautiful and exciting work, we suggest that you invest in their talent and retain an air of individuality in your home.
