In today’s society visual art has become accessible to all. Its function has expanded. It started off mainly as part of religious and magical practices. In Europe it spread from churches to wealthy homes, and later on it found its way into galleries and museums.
Since industrialization and mass production commercial art has become an ever-present reality in our daily lives: we see all kinds of advertisements in public places and in the media. Graphic design decorates all packed products on the shelves of stores from where they make their way to our homes.
Today art is used in such a variety of ways and on so many levels that art has truly part of everyone’s life.
A number of rich people see art as an asset. Some of them look at it in an objective way and purchase great art for investment purposes. Their choices are not restricted by finance. The best among contemporary oil painting, and the finest of canvas art, are at their fingertips. They know art is like real estate; it goes up in value with time. With the originals, the value continues to grow, once the artist has passed on.
Middle class people relate to art more subjectively. They buy it like wine: they choose a good bottle of wine, but not the most expensive one. It’s a matter of personal taste within the right price range. They may buy a quality print by a recognized artist or an original painting by a budding artist. The market is enormous.
In my childhood home we had a galore of oil paintings on the walls: landscapes in the lounge and still life in the dining room, black and white charcoal portraits in the foyer. Dad loved them all. I used to look at the dead fish on the platter and wonder why we had to have that particular painting right where we had our meals.
Most of the paintings did not appeal to me at that time. I used to prefer the prints, which I found in large wall calendars dad was given by his international business associates each year. My favorites were paintings by Renaissance artists and French impressionist oil paintings such as by Renoir and Degas. I found copies of Japanese oil paintings very fascinating as well.
As I grew up my taste widened a lot. Today I really appreciate the paintings I received from home after my parents passed away. I could not have bought such paintings with my tight budget. Art products had been mere luxury to me for many years.
I believe I am not the only one who used to think they could never afford to buy art, although they loved it. The market is there for everyone. Today we have a vast range of affordable products in art stores. We need to seek in order to find the ones that suit our taste and budget. Let’s have a treat and buy art. It adds character and enhances the atmosphere of our homes.
