5 Reasons to Buy Original Artwork

When buying things for our homes, budget plays a huge part. Prioritising what to spend money on is a fine balancing act and you need to make sure you are getting the most from your hard earned wages.

Artwork may seem like a frivolous investment but actually it could be more important in your home than you think.

My husband and I invested in original artworks before I worked professionally as and artist and i’m glad I did for the following 5 reasons.

1. Colour

It is widely accepted that colour affects your mood (you can find a blog about choosing colour for your home here). This is true in all aspects of life. You buy from brands who use colour theory to convey certain emotions and values through their graphics. You buy clothes, emulsions, carpets and other homewares that have been designed with the Pantone colour trends in mind. All of these colours are chosen because of how they make you feel,

I’m not suggesting you think of an emotion and pick a colour before you go and buy a piece of art. That would be daft. No, you should buy a piece of art because of how it makes you feel.

Original artworks will have the purest version of the colours that were chosen specifically by the artist to represent a moment in time or an idea from their head. While reproductions can be very good (especially giclees but not print on demand), they still do not possess the impact of the original. Having said that, a giclee is a good alternative if your budget does not allow for an original.

2. Dopamine

Right, I’m circling back to the emotions again. You’ll find this is a big theme when I talk about art. I create art because of the way it makes me feel. I buy art because of the way it makes me feel, what it reminds me of and the day dreams that I have when looking at it.

Happy memories triggers dopamine, which is a natural substance that makes us feel good and it makes us want to repeat the experience so that we get the same hit. That’s why I keep going back to the seaside - it makes me feel good and I get that dopamine hit. I can’t always be there but I can have art on the wall that brings back the memories.

3. Atmosphere

You spend more time in your home than anywhere else - especially if, like me, you work from home too. Because of this, it is very important to create an atmosphere that makes us feel good, feel relaxed, feel motivated - whatever you want to feel.

An original piece of artwork will bring it’s own atmosphere with it that cannot be replicated in a reproduction. No matter how good the reproduction process is, you will not get the same energy and surface quality but more of that in reason 5.

4. Durability

The fact of the matter is that original artworks will last a lot longer. This is for a number of reasons.

The quality of the inks and paints that professional artists use contain higher quality pigments. These pigments stain the surface of the paper or canvas and have serious staying power, This means that there is minimal colour fading over time. This is further strengthened by the quality of the paper, canvas or board and the preparation that goes into them.

Poster versions of an artwork will look great to start with but will fade and discolour in sunlight, the paper will deteriorate over time and become very fragile.

5. Detail

This reason is by far the biggest one for me but that’s because I’m a details person.

From a distance, you may not be able to tell the difference between a good giclee and the original but get a little closer and the difference will be huge!

Many details will bel lost in reproductions. When ink is applied to my Lino blocks, there are bond to be textures transferred and slight differences in the ways the ink has mixed. When I press the print by hand, I will pay careful attention to problem areas and apply extra pressure to ensure the best transfer. A painter will apply pressure to the brush and paint in sophisticated ways to create specific marks that all add up to their visual language. Ceramicists smooth by hand and incise in their own way. None of these details and marks can be shown in a machine reproduction.

Copies have gotten better over time but they still lack the sharpness and textured details of the original.

Obviously, I am a massive advocate of buying original and straight from the artist too because that’s my livelihood. I’m gonna throw a 6th reason at you now and that’s STORY! When you buy direct from an artist, you can ask all about how the piece was made, what the story behind it is, where the inspiration came from and how long it all took. This all adds to the atmosphere and excitement of the buying. You do not get that when you buy a poster from IKEA.

So What’s the Verdict?

What do you think? Have I convinced you or do you think I’m talking nonsense? Let me know in the comments.

And, of course, if you’d like a peek at my original artworks then head to my shop here.