The date or event is uncertain in my memory regarding the moment I awakened to the inexpressible allure of art. The magnetism has since evolved to a ravenous appetite, an insatiable charisma, as much a charm as an enticement. It was fortuitous that my first house was so small that I had limited space to hang art.  I did however commission a local artist from the Village of Clayton to create a multi-coloured square pane to replace a small glass porthole window in the drawing room.

Art is normally the last thing one buys, the first to be sold. Its portability is yet another of its advantages, one which is customarily aligned with an important provenance; that is, the record of ownership of the work of art or an antique used as a guide to authenticity or quality. My experience is that, apart from those who make a business of trading in art, the preference of the collector is rather quickly evident from the initial glance in his drawing room. For example, one of the earliest promotions of an art collection is an acquaintance with a particular artist whose work one admires.  This leads to what can only be described as repeat renditions of similar topics.  It is naturally the very reason an artist – or group of artists  – is recognizable even though it contributes to refinement and near duplicity of expression. The biology borders on the slur, “You’ve seen one, you’ve seen’m all!”

On occasion one lands upon a private collection which is dynamic, meaning that the work of a variety of artists is displayed.  In such case the collection is very often modern, even at times challenging, as the collector seemingly seeks to render his or her own exorbitance or oddity to the collection. Frankly though I find some modern art so challenging as to be unsettling. My primary and preferred conversance is with what is comforting, not disturbing; but for those who wish to capture the feel of an art gallery, a modern or any other topical collection is understandable.

For some art is no more than wall hanging or accessory; that is, decoration. The latter embraces pieces like rugs, sculpture, carvings, millefiori, crystal ornaments, brass paperweights or clocks. Yet where the collection is mixed and of good quality, the artistic presence is enabling and enhancing (though otherwise it fades to mere paint or obfuscation). A not uncommon exposition of art is that found on a console or the closed top of a (seldom used or tuned) grand piano; namely, a collection of family photographs most of which typically are in black and white often having the sepia additive expressing antiquity, with a moulded sterling silver frame to augment the appearance of heritage.

sepia | ˈsēpēə | noun a reddish-brown color associated particularly with monochrome photographs of the 19th and early 20th centuries • a brown pigment prepared from a black fluid secreted by cuttlefish, used in monochrome drawing and in watercolours.

Art like almost anything else requires a measure of maintenance. If paintings are allowed to remain exposed to morning sunshine they inevitably fade and crack. It is one of the critical elements of art that it is thus subject as we are ourselves to aging and the atmosphere. Hanging onto the lineage or substance of art is ultimately no more profitable than imagining a feature in the heavens. Thankfully though much of art has proven it will outlast us. We condition the deterioration of art with words such as patina, an impression of both aging and polish. In some cases cleaning the face of the work of art is helpful and desired, removing dust and darkness.

Historically I have found that devoting one’s resources to a particular work of art which nourishes one’s soul is far better than merely attempting more economically to fill space. Naturally the process is slower when shackled with intense merit as a prerequisite. But the evolution of the acquisitions will profit from the dalliance by investing the capital with heightened and altered meaning. Something as simple as the change of colours will significantly amend one’s artistic perception. Art, being itself an evolutionary process, commands a similar audience. It is for this reason that one may outgrow a particular art form or style, just as most of us have evolved in our choices of music. Art is a meditative hollow, the avenue of spiritual wandering and sometimes sudden expressiveness.