When it comes to gift giving and you believe 'it's the thought that counts', aspire to be environmentally conscious, support your local economy and art scene, here are 5 reasons why art makes the best gift:
5 Reasons Why Art Makes The Best Gift
- Buying and giving art shows thoughtfulness. It shows you cared enough to not buy the same mass produced stuff anyone can buy.
- Giving art is environmentally friendly. Art is not mass produced and has less of an environmental impact compared to mass produced consumer products.
- Giving art has the potential to support your local economy. Every artist is a small business and artists live and work in virtually every community. Buying art directly from local artists or commissioning them for a custom piece helps their small business and your local economy thrive.
- Buying and giving art demonstrates real meaningful support for the arts. If you think The Arts are important to human culture, then put your money where your mouth is and buy art from local artists.
- When shopping for kids gifts, buying and giving age appropriate art related gifts can be inspiring and educational for them and the whole family.
All that said, you might be thinking art is too expensive to be the best gift idea when shopping on a budget, Well, not so fast.
Contrary to conventional wisdom, there is a ton of cool, affordable art for sale.
Today there is a huge supply of original art available for purchase between $50 -$5,000. You simply need to know a bit about where to look and what to look for.
Here are some pros tips on how to shop economically for cool art:
- Don’t believe the hype. Art doesn’t have to be expensive and you can buy contemporary art for $50 and up. You can even find amazing art objects at flea markets for mere dollars.
- When buying art as a gift, don’t worry about art's value, collectibility or long appreciation. That's for snobs. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and art is fundamentally an emotional purchase. Simply gift art you think your receiver will enjoy looking at everyday. It’s that simple.
- Artists love selling directly to buyers, so purchase art directly from artists whenever possible. Also, did you know art galleries generally mark-up art 100% and keep 50%? Buying art directly from the artists saves you real money and keeps the money in the artist's pocket where it belongs.
- It's easy to purchase art directly from artists. Simply contact them via email or social media. Most artists these days have websites, Instagram profiles, Facebook pages, etc. Additionally, find where artists live in your community and go visit their studios. If you live near a city, there may be an arts district where artists have studios. Ask about art walks, studio visits or simply knock on the door — artists love when potential buyers come knocking!
- Buying original artworks created by more established artists will generally be costly. Conversely, less established more emerging artists will generally be less expensive. Of course, size and complexity matters too. Larger, heavier more sophisticated works will likely be more expensive than smaller less complicated works. Then again, a banana duct taped to a wall just sold for $150,000 at Art Basel Miami, so there are exceptions to every rule!
Limited edition art prints and designer toys are priced between $50-$500 and make great gifts.
The next time you need to give the perfect gift, make it thoughtful and give the gift of original art! To help you shop, here are some excellent websites for you to find and purchase original art works that are affordable and contemporary:
