You want a new piece of art for your living room. You want some color, but you’re afraid that a still life painting of a bunch of flowers will get boring fast. It doesn’t have to match the décor—in fact, art can be a lot more interesting if it doesn’t -- but you can choose some wonderful and affordable pieces of fabulous art that will truly enhance the atmosphere of your room.

Love the beach? Want a painting that will help you remember that special trip and you’re sick of same old seashells and lighthouse posters? Or something to commemorate the picnic with your family, in that beautiful field watching the sunset over the hills? The clouds and low light made everything look misty and strange...

The key is art: abstract landscapes. Color and shape, artfully composed, can make you think of a special time and place and yet it may mean something completely different to another person.

Warm, mysterious, interesting, moody, dramatic, dreamy, powerful, quiet, calm… the fun with an abstract landscape is that it is what you want it to be. A hill, a cliff, a waterfall. The ocean, a field or a far-off forest. Like pictures in the clouds, it’s your world to think about.

Sometimes a painting’s title can give you a clue what the image is in the artist’s mind, but  if it’s on your wall, you can think of whatever you want. The best thing about art is that the true meaning depends on the viewer as much as the artist’s intentions.

Originals are nice if you can afford them, but a giclee print on canvas or even a quality poster nicely framed can be just as meaningful, and a lot less expensive. Perhaps you were overwhelmed by a painting in a museum, the poster will remind you of those feelings. If it makes you think, and you enjoy it then whatever you hang on the wall is art. And, it can match the sofa if you want it to. 

Until next time!

--Elaine Bothe

 

First image (top): James Lavadour, “Blue Black,” 2009. Representation by and image courtesy of www.pdxcontemporaryart.com.

Second image (above right): Gerhard Richter, “Large Eifel Landscape,” 1969. Image courtesy of www.gerhard-richter.com.

Third image (above left): Mark Rothko, “Untitled (Violet, Black, Orange, Yellow on White and Red),” 1949. Available as a poster at www.allposters.com.

Last image (at right), Curtis Phillips, “Sepia Study,” 2007. Image courtesy of www.artnet.com.