How To Choose Art

Choosing art is a personal but exciting decision that gives you freedom to explore your own tastes while appreciating the variety of art available. Much depends on the space you are choosing art for.

Art chosen for a show home is often conservative- requiring mass appeal for potential buyers, while choosing art for your own space gives you the chance to get creative! Bedrooms generally inspire either calm restful palettes or deep intense colours. Figurative drawings or art nudes can convey intimacy and eroticism in a bedroom while bright colour palettes and drawings of faces tend to be more popular in kitchens.

Living rooms vary in size-  large paintings can be statement pieces or dominate the room, depending on your personal taste. To add art to a small living room without overwhelming it, display several smaller paintings or drawings grouped together.

Monochromatic rooms can give you the freedom to choose a varied art collection. A room decorated in just one or two colours makes an art collection containing drawings, paintings, acrylics, watercolours, classical and modern art look eclectically curated if they all feature similar colour palettes.

Classical art or modern art with a classical feel is timeless and a good choice to display in a room which will be visited by many people, as it will not fall foul of fast moving art ‘trends’. Conversely, abstract art is also a popular choice in well-visited rooms, for abstract art focuses on shape, form and colour- none of which go out of style!

Colour is a language all of its own and while trends come and go, the mood paintings evoke usually remains the same. There are exceptions to the rule but yellows tend to be uplifting, greens and blues  calm and restful, reds are passionate and attention grabbing. The shades between black and white can be stark and bold, or delicate depending on the medium used. Take the difference between intricate figurative pencil drawings and large abstract art on canvas, painted with acrylic.

While each finished painting or drawing has its own character, so does the medium used. Acrylics can be bold and intense while watercolours retain a translucent dreamlike quality. Pencil drawings and abstract paintings which show movement and brushstrokes connect the viewer to the artist- making you a part of the creative process. The choice of medium depends on individual taste.

Being unsure of your artistic tastes need not be an obstacle; in fact, it’s a wonderful opportunity to explore art! Look through our art collections take time when looking at paintings. You may not know what draws you to a particular piece but that’s the fun of choosing art! The most important factor in choosing art is finding which art speaks to you.