Sunday 20 April 2008

For the Soul


Sometimes you see a piece of art that makes your heart stop. And you know you don't have to defend your taste or choice to anyone, because very clearly the piece is somehow speaking directly to you. The above is "sheltered" by Shira Sela. Casually scrolling through Poppytalk a couple of weeks ago there it was. I took a sharp breath, and, using a little of my meagre Etsy earnings, soon it was framed and living here. And I'm glad. This I got for me, from my earnings, and those earnings supported an artist. That feels good.


When Mr. S. and I were Double-Income-No-Kids, we got for ourselves a piece of art from local artist Sheila MacDonald Roberts for precisely the same reason - we saw her work and it stopped us both in our tracks. This we considered a good omen, and it came home as a wedding present (for us :-)


When the beauty in our home comes from people that we know or local artists, it enriches us all the more, for these objects have those extra ties, that extra story behind them. I did the art-prints-of-all-the-artists-i'm-supposed-to-
think-are-important-and-reflect-my-true-inner-nature in university, and while I agree with an old professor of mine that prints of "great art" should not be frowned upon because they bring beauty regardless, wouldn't it be even better if the money from our hands went directly to those who worked so hard to create pleasure in this world?


I love Shaun Downey's work. Quite frankly I could never afford one of his oils, but a couple of years ago I went to the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit with a mission to find something to commemorate a turn in my life. After a long afternoon I lucked onto his booth and after humbly asking him if he had anything in my price range, he kindly directed me to a box of sketches. I was stunned with the one above.

Someone else local whose work I love is Peter Schacht. He does these works with acrylics on wood:


Being a former farm girl, I'm really, really in love with the one on the bottom right. I ache for it, I pine over it...


The narrative in these is amazing, and I never get tired of looking at these little postcards. They'll be framed and hung, I think. It's the best respect I can give his work without being able to afford it. Affordability does not have to be a barrier to beauty.

And these days it easy to find. Think your local arts and crafts fairs. Think Etsy. There's Tiny Showcase, which supports artists and gives to charity. There are a million different places where you can find something to nurture your soul and support an artist directly...

Or hey, make it yourself, right? :-)



p.s. One of my friends is of the opinion that the art is our house is a little, well, depressing. But that's just the living room (and personally I find them comforting....). But anyway, there's plenty of thrift store flowers and landscapes in the rest of the house :-)

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Wow, those are some awesome pieces you have in your home. I love them all, and I can see why you do, too.