The Art of Collecting Art

A week ago I went on a cruise and wouldn't you know it, there was ART! Park West is partnered with Royal Caribbean and they have art auctions and art seminars. Plus, the Park West staff was friendly and loved to talk art, which made it a great experience. I made some friends, but I have no idea if I'll talk to them again (I did give them my art business card, so they could contact me if they wanted to).

But one of the art seminars I attended was "The Art of Collecting Art" and it reinforced some things I already understood. Here is a summary of what I absorbed.

1. Collect what you love.
Don't go out and buy something just because it will be work gazillions later on. In the meantime you will despise it. It's better to fall in love and pass it on to your children and children's children than to buy it just to flip it.

2. Is it real?
Make sure that you are purchasing your art (original and reproductions) from someone reputable. Stay away from foreign countries where it's common to have fake reproductions created, shipped, or sold.

My husband and I actually collected some art at the art auctions. Every artist needs to have something other than their own art hanging up at home.

New Giclée Prints Available

I have some new giclée fine art prints available! These are each a limited edition of 25 prints, so if you would like on of your own please message me! Sizes and prices are below (shipping is not included in prices).

"Redwing" 

$30 

image is 6 ½" x 8" with approx 1" border 

"St. Paul Pickup Man I" 

$22 

image is 5" x 7" with ½" border 

"Summertime" 

$22 

image is 5" x 7" with ½" border 

"Two of a Kind" 

$22 

image is 5" x 7" with ½" border 

"Summertime"

"Summertime" 

5" x 7" 

Watercolor 

SOLD 

Here is a nice little painting I finished yesterday. When I posted an in progress photo of it, I was immediately sent a message by a woman in Maine who wanted first dibs at the original. And last night all the "t's" were crossed. I will be sending it to her tomorrow. :-)

But back to this particular painting, the original reference photo had the cowgirl riding down a long dusty gravel road. She was leading an extra saddled horse and in a line up of many more riders. I took the photo back in 2009 on my Horse Trek (I rode 185 miles over 8 days through the Cascades from Scotts Mill to Dufur - all in Oregon). The cowgirl had a purple flower in her palm leaf and I thought it would be perfect for her to be riding through a peaceful field of lavender flowers with velvety green trees as the background. It reminds me of summer and the warmth and peace of it all. There was lots of snow here just over a week ago. I'm ready for summer. Are you?

Happy Valentine's Day!