Be art smart and make your home beautiful
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JANESVILLE — If you want trendy, try IKEA or Target.
Every season those stores and others like them come out with a new line of wall art and matching accessories including picture frames, wall clocks and elaborate, multi-pronged candle holders.
And everything from the framed print to the wall-mounted mail basket “goes together.” You’ll feel fabulously trendy—until styles change.
Why not go beyond trends to create an original home with original art?
Collecting art isn’t only for the rich and near rich. It’s for people who want something other than the ordinary, whose houses or apartments are expressions of personality, not paeans to Pottery Barn.
Still need convincing? Here are five common five things you need to know about collecting original art.
1. How will I know what’s good?
You’d have to take a course—or rather several courses—in aesthetics to make that determination.
Instead, consult your mind and heart.
“You want something that speaks to you, something that’s timeless for you,” said Alicia Reid, owner of Raven’s Wish Art and Framing, 101 W. Milwaukee St., Janesville.
In other words, buy what you love.
2. How do other people get started?
“Sometimes people start by looking for a piece to go over the couch,” said Reid. “Or maybe they’re looking for a certain size or theme, and they see all the choices there are and it just sort of takes off.”
Many people never go into galleries because they’re convinced they won’t find anything under $500.
An elegant ceramic piece can run between $35 and $50. A framed canvas, watercolor or collage can start at $50.
Even small works can have big impact.
3. Where should I go?
In Janesville, Raven’s Wish and Artisan Locale Gift Gallery, 6 S. Main St., offer paintings, watercolors, wood and metal work, tapestry, pottery and glass.
The Cottage Garden Gallery at Rotary Botanical Gardens, 1455 Palmer Drive, now offers works by local artists.
Finally, don’t forget the ongoing art display in the lobby of the Janesville Performing Arts Center, 408 S. Main St.
4. Should I pick something that matches the curtains?
Matching is nice, but drapes, furniture and wall colors change. When those do, the work will still be a part of your life.
5. My husband likes barn art. I hate barn art, what should I do?
You have two options:
First, try to find barn art that suits both of your tastes. Instead of a pallid or nostalgic barnyard scene, find something that exudes energy.
Second, reframe a pallid scene to give it eye appeal. This is an extra expense, but the right frame and mat can transform an image.
Nov 9, 2011 at 9:05 p.m.
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To clarify, Raven's Wish is at 101 West Milwaukee (on the corner of Milwaukee and River Street).
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