Quick answer…. NO!!! If there is one thing that someone can say that can grate on the nerves of any artist or art dealer, it is that. Now, if we are talking about decorating your second home or your condo in the city or your kid’s dorm room, then perhaps those could be exceptions. But for most of us, there is just one place we really call “home”, so it is this that I am talking about. I am going to break this down from a few different perspectives, because I have dealt with this from several roles. First and foremost, I am an artist, but I am also a collector, I have represented artists, and I was also a decorative artist for ten years…a contractor.

Artist- Are you kidding me?? I haven’t worked this hard for this long to finally reach a point in my career where I am finally painting and creating ONLY what matters most to ME, to have some designer come at me with color change requests! I am creating solidly meaningful work, and while I hope that it resonates with most people, I fully expect that they can also take it or leave it! Add a little more blue to match the drapes? NO. A bit more yellow to match the throw pillows? NO. No No No!! This is not why I am doing what I do. I am not a contractor. I am an artist…and all that that implies.

Collector- I have spent the last twenty-five years of my life amassing a collection of works that I adore, and heartily connect with; a collection that I am so very proud of. I have moved several times over these years, and all of the art has relocated with me. Decorating my home has always been around my art, and not in any single instance has it been the other way around. At this stage of my life, the only consideration I can truly make, in terms of art purchases, has only to do with the size. I have no more wall space to hang anything! But art to decorate or “complete” a room? Just not something I’ve ever had to think about. So I suppose if I were the kind of person who would have that thought, I would be the kind of person that would hire a designer to fill my home with work that matches each room, and “makes sense”. I get that. We all want pretty homes. But I think that, because I am an artist first, I have a very natural tendency to want to feel a visceral connection with the work that will be surrounding me for the rest of my life. And that’s just it…art is not disposable to me. I will not change it from home to home…this is it.

Art dealer- Truth be told, I only did this for a very short time, because once I realized how much it would take away from my own personal art career, I simply had to rule it out. Besides I think I am much more effective and true to my own spirit and passion as a supporter and patron of the arts- particularly local artists and artisans. (So make sure I know who you are, artists!) At any rate, though, I did in fact have some interesting collectors when I had my gallery, but it was the “agents” for the collectors that really got me rumpled. And handling them was a very delicate matter. They are of course doing what they are supposed to be doing; creating a beautiful and harmonious space for their clients. And I had to do mine, which was to accommodate as many whims as I could to place the pieces of art. Emotion had to be out of the equation, because the collector has hired this agent to make selections for them. And while I, as a collector and artist, could never do this, I am grateful to these people for not sending their designer to Pottery Barn or Bed Bath & Beyond for lovely, licensed, cellophane-wrapped “art”. They ARE looking for real art.

Decorative artist- I had sold a couple of paintings while I was in high school, but when I was done with school, making a living was tantamount to pretty much anything else. I was living on my own, supporting myself, and I had to make enough money to scrape by…and I wanted this to be as an artist. My teenage idols of Jasper Johns, Gerhard Richter, Frank Stella, Keith Haring, and so on, were not going to teach me how to do this, so I plugged away on my own. I got out the phone book and started dialing. I began calling big companies downtown and asking if they would like me to create a painting for their office or lobby. Most said, “no thanks, kid, but good luck…”, but I got a few. What it did lead to was their designers. Revelation: big companies use designers. It was this that got me to the place of creating what the client needed, and this became anything from a painting to murals, faux finishes, mosaics, sculpture, you name it! Whatever they wanted, my answer was yes, because every single day that I saw a paintbrush in my hand was a good day- and I was grateful.

And that is the bottom line. I am grateful. No, the art does not need to match your sofa, but by whatever cosmic light you end up looking at MY art; hoping to purchase MY art, living for however long with MY art, I am grateful. So thank you.

. . . . and, the choices you make, your overall aesthetics, and your love of fine art will connect the room better than any matching upholstery.