| Did you ever wonder why art is so valued in our | | | | good return on investment. As long as people will pay |
| society? And it's been that way all through the ages of | | | | to see it, they are satisfied. |
| mankind. Yes, each age and each tribe has it's own | | | | Of course, one of the most popular reasons for |
| style, but every age and every tribe we know of, has | | | | purchasing art, especially paintings, is to cover up that |
| valued art. | | | | blank space on the wall. In some neighborhoods I've |
| After all, unlike food, gas, clothes, and water - art is not | | | | lived in, it is the number one reason. |
| something that we need. For most of us, art is | | | | Many hobbyist art collectors will buy an artist's original |
| something that we buy with our dwindling disposable | | | | pieces as a potential investment opportunity. In a sense |
| income. But why? Well there are many reasons: | | | | this is a little like playing the lottery, especially when |
| One of the most common reasons people buy art is | | | | sourcing works from new and unknown artists. While |
| to enhance their home decorating. A beautiful painting | | | | enjoyable, as one learns more and more about art, this |
| can make a world of difference to a stark, empty, | | | | sort of collecting can be quite addictive. The good thing |
| white wall. A unique piece of sculpture can make a | | | | is that your investment potential improves as your |
| remarkable and transformative addition to a dull corner. | | | | knowledge improves with your extensive research. |
| The right art can beautify any environment. | | | | Have you ever bought a piece of art simply because |
| Some people buy art as a sign of status. Imagine | | | | something in it uniquely captures your own personality. |
| showing off to your friends a recently acquired | | | | Somehow it's as if the artist, in that one art piece, is |
| Picasso original. Imagine the gossip and admiration that | | | | speaking to or for you. And it simply connects to you. |
| would surround you and how many of your peers will | | | | Even if you've never been attracted to a piece of art |
| now see you as a person of stature, a person of | | | | in your life. |
| class. | | | | And lastly, there's the "I wish I had said that" form of |
| The purists among us will simply buy art for its beauty. | | | | art collecting. This is where the artist has expressed |
| These people when they look at a beautiful work of | | | | something in such a unique or outrageous manner that |
| art are simply taken into another world. They can | | | | you really wish you had thought of it first. But owning it |
| literally stare at the same art piece over a period of | | | | is the next best thing. I would suspect that a large |
| days and each time come away with new insight as | | | | percentage of those that are drawn to political works |
| to its meaning. | | | | of art fall into this category. |
| Museums buy art to attract visitors and tourists. Their | | | | As we've seen, people buy art for many and varied |
| concern is not with beauty so much. They want to | | | | reasons. And that is why art and artists will be around |
| make sure that any piece of art they buy will be a | | | | as long as there are humans on this earth. |