Why would I want to start Collecting Art? Finding Joy Through Art

First off, art should bring you joy. That's the main reason you would want to collect anything.

The second reason is to improve your living or working space - in order to bring you more joy.

If you've ever looked around a room in your home and felt like something was missing, that might be your cue to start collecting art. And I really mean this—it's a journey. Building a collection takes time. It twists, turns, and often surprises you.

When you're first drawn to a piece, it's not so different from being drawn to a person. There's a pull you can't quite explain. Pay attention to it. Spend time with it. If you let that feeling grow, you can build a connection to the work that lasts for years.

This is Part One of a In this series of articles I'm going to cover three main topics:

Why would I want to start “collecting” artwork?

Where can I find quality artwork?

Who should I be collecting?

Now, let's jump into the first topic - Why would I want to start collecting art?

If you're looking to refresh a specific room but you have no clear direction for what you want, you can use artwork to create a style and design around the piece.

Your Assignment This Weekend: Pick your favorite object and discover WHY you love it.

Pick an item you love. Any item (preferably inanimate, but if it's your dog or cat or significant other, who am I to judge). Examine it, touch it, really LOOK at it. What is it about that object that makes you happy? Is it the color, texture, or a significant memory?

I'm going to give you an example of how an item can drive the design of a room; let this example guide you in your own experiences. Hypothetically, let's imagine that I went on a trip to a seaside village. While I was there, I went on a boating excursion where I saw a spectacular sunset and purchased a hand-built pot in a brilliant shade of purple. Now, when I got home, I put the vase on a shelf, and it matched nothing else in the room - that's okay. But every time I look at the vase, I remember the hypothetical trip.

This vase is a reminder, and it sparks joy. With that in mind, imagine I went to a local arts festival and found a landscape photograph that reminded me of the colors I saw on my trip to the sea (though the photo was taken in Oklahoma). I can then start pulling colors out of the photograph to choose pillows, throws, and frames for small snapshots on the end table(maybe one of these is from my trip). I can also use the purple from the vase to find a lamp with a similar palette. At the next art event I go to, I find a hand-woven basket by an artist from that same seaside town - so I snatch it up!

How does this help me when collecting art?

This situation could play out in several different ways. But the moral of the story here is that you can build texture, interest, and color in your home that help tell your personal story through the life you've lived - and it can be done with things you love, not an item from the Target home goods section.

Want to read more? I have the FULL GUIDE available to download! Click here to get my guide to Create a

Private Art Collection, One Masterpiece At A Time.

 Stay tuned for the next installment in this series about "How to collect art" and if you haven't already - subscribe to my email list for alerts when new artwork drops and you'll get first access to new pieces!

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