this page last updated: 03/05/2020 01:28:11 PM

Hi Lydia : )

Here is a basic outline answering your questions about how to organize, design and develop your own art collection space.

When a person is left alone to choose paintings they like, they will more often than not choose paintings which compliment each other. Also, since their taste will be apparent in each selection, the entire grouping of the collection itself will tend toward a unifying consistency which is very authentic and pleasing.

While you were in my studio, you may have noticed that each corner presents paintings with different subject matter which I have grouped by unifying colors in order to give people ideas about how to build an arrangement that includes complementary paintings of diverse style.

Generally, one strong piece is used as the focal point while smaller paintings are arranged around it in order to repeat and expand on various aspects of the core piece by carrying over such elements as color, style, and compositional phrasing. These ancillary works are chosen to enhance the overall effect of the collection without competing with the focal piece.

Such arrangements are quite successful when using my watercolors in conjunction with works from other artists and in other mediums. My watercolors hang well with other works of art and photography.

Certain of my paintings are singular subjects, or possibly limited explorations of a special artistic expression. These paintings are usually not repeated, but I also create a range of thematic interpretations that are readily recreated with specific alterations to suit a collector’s needs.

However, within the various subject types and themes, there are always certain works that are understood to be hors category due to their distinctive but hard to define passages. The tree you referred to is certainly one of those instances.

In any case, all of my paintings are solo efforts and the “essence” of any individual work can never be truly duplicated. Also each person’s specific response to a painting is itself individual and precise.

My art is constantly evolving and it is never created in a vacuum.

Each watercolor is the embodiment of a multitude of ideas, explored avenues, unfortunate error, and wonderful happenstance that conflows into every new piece.

Daily circumstance along with my persistent observation and absorption of the sights and sounds around me (not to mention the learning experience taken from all of my previous watercolors) are contributing factors that combine into each new painting experience, and this defines the process which creates each watercolor.

Therefore, it is impossible to go back to a given place in time and recapture what initially “sparked” an idea and led to the ultimate realization of each exploration. Also, you are correct that a painting you see today will most certainly not be here a few months from now.

In light of that, I often hold paintings aside for a small deposit for people who realize they have a strong personal connection with a special painting. I also offer a layaway plan.

As for designing your own collection space, treat the wall (in fact the whole room) as a compositional space—itself like a painting.

Given your experience as a musician, you might rather think of the room as a song.

The elements of composition, design, and artistic expression which add meaning and interest to a musical piece are the same as found in visual art.

My husband is an accomplished musician, and years ago he would come with me to one of my watercolor classes because my teacher (the seminal watercolorist Ed Whitney)
discussed watercolor composition in ways that could be perfectly applied to music.

Balance, contrast, and rhythm in movement are key.

In music it is the progression of sound and cadence that moves. In graphic art it is the eye that moves. In both, the same development that draws a line through episodic structure and textural contrast should always combine to engage, instruct, entertain, and/or shock the observer.

Each section of a wall or room should flow to the next through use of unifying bits and pieces. There should be an introduction, then variety in shapes and sizes directing the viewer from one focal point to the next. The same elements of ebb and flow used in musical composition should be found in the well presented collector’s space.

Each work should of course exist in its own space, but it should also be well integrated with the surrounding works in order to provide cadence, pause, and resolution. One painting may be the focus and hold the gravity of interest, but it will also act as a springboard to send interest to another painting which might provide a stop and redirect interest to the next element of the composition.

Of course all these elements also exist in each particular piece. As a caution, please do not take this discussion as a demand for linearity. The overall process is very much stochastic and cognitive. You may trust your own instinct and be confident that what you choose will find its own level of continuity.

After all, you are designing a space for your own enjoyment and to suit your own needs. It is unlikely that you will ever need, ask for, nor accept, outside criticism in order to restrict your own vision. Plus, not one of your choices should be considered as the last statement in any regard. This will be a process of exciting discovery and learning.

To give yourself a point of departure, merely take a look at the things you currently own. Often people are already wearing the same colors that they are comfortable living with!

Most importantly, it is your home and your space. Your own comfort and enjoyment is foremost.