Last Snow.HRI often wonder why someone chooses to purchase original art.  As a plein air painter and teacher I meet a lot of people , who show an interest in purchasing art. It had me wondering what triggers someone to make that purchase.

Based on my own decisions to buy or not buy original art, I have come up with some arbitrary guidelines which I might be following. First and foremost a painting must move me in some way. Either it triggers a memory or creates an emotional response in me. That feeling must be a strong one. It has to pass the scrutiny of the next consideration: Cost. Can I afford this work of art and will the joy it brings me outweigh the sacrifice I will be making by purchasing it. I then might think about whether I have a place for it. Can I find a prominent location where I will see it and enjoy it regularly, or will it be forced into a closet or on a rack with the rest of my art. And then, for me, there is the guilt factor. Will this purchase affect someone else negatively. If it passes all these factors I would purchase it. But should that be all that goes into this process.

Sir John Gilbert wrote “….. Pictures are consolers of loneliness and a relief to the jaded mind, and windows to the imprisoned thought; they are books, histories, and sermons- which we can read without the trouble of turning over the leaves”

And Edgar Payne, speaking about art, said, ” Mankind needs distraction from the material and commonplace things of life. We seek solace in those things which bring peace to the mind and relaxation to the body. More than all, we desire through the expression of feelings and emotions, understanding with our fellow beings.”

Is it fair to say that art exceeds the common and ordinary and as such exists on a spiritual level where one connects to another in ways one can’t place a value on.

What are your thoughts?