But why the change? Was it that, in an art scene increasingly driven by fads, drawing became du jour simply because it hadn’t been for a very long time? Or were other, less obvious factors at work?

In fact, the re-emergence of drawing was far from market-driven, and its increase in profile a far slower process than any newly voguish status might suggest.

To understand something of its current impact, it’s necessary to look back at the closing years of the 20th century. A time when, to the eyes of many, the art scene looked very different indeed.

Throughout much of the 1990s visual austerity and a certain restraint governed the work of a new wave of artists; many of them British, many high-profile.

Figures such as Darren Almond, Damien Hirst, Martin Creed, Rachel Whiteread and a re-discovered Allan McCollum typified an art scene driven by hands-off, conceptual practice and stringent theoretical undertow.

Even artists whose work, by contrast, seemed more ludic and theatrical – Maurizio Catellan, the Chapman brothers, an ever-enduring Jeff Koons – shared a taste for slick, expensive, mechanized output. And in fact, looking back, there’s a certain synchronistic poetry to the fact that Marc Quinn’s ‘Self’ portrait, a principal icon of the era, quite literally froze the blood.

Further tendencies underpinned the general sense of pristine, chilly surface. Graphic design in the late 90s exulted in the hard edges of its newly perfect digital genesis, while on a popular level, serious flirtation with ‘minimalism’ induced homeowners to replace comfort with pristine surface and spacious void.

Clearly, any attempt to rapidly define a moment in art history is doomed to over-simplification. A vast array of artists stand in lush counterpoint to Hirst’s surgically steely cabinets or Whiteread’s pale, negative spaces. The work of Peter Doig, Marlene Dumas, Daniel Richter and Jörg Immendorf – to name just a few – all manifest an obvious delight in exuberant mark-making or absorbed, painterly gesture.

Yet it’s certainly true that what generally made the headlines – the dissected sheep, the on/off lights, the unmade beds – were essentially ‘conceptual’ works that side-lined direct artistic intervention. And it’s also true that, with the internet truly coming of age in the ’90s, such highly publicized aesthetics became instantly and widely accessible for the first time in any history. In the mass public eye, art had gained a hard, new edge.

Yet elsewhere, a wildly contrasting vision was being far less well documented. On America’s West Coast, in particular, the long-gestating seeds of a brimming alternative scene were beginning to bear considerable fruit. Its influences were multiple and diverse, yet shared the fact that all lay well outside the contemporary mainstream.

In LA, for example, the ‘underground’ drawings of Ray Pettibon – linked initially to the rock scene then distributed through short-run zines – had garnered fervent admirers throughout the late ’70s & ’80s. A major exhibition in 1992 succeeded in raising his profile both throughout the States and abroad.

Yet Pettibon’s work was merely the best-known facet of a burgeoning counter-culture. One which, since 1986, had found a major advocate in the now legendary La Luz De Jesus gallery in downtown LA.

This space, located incongruously above an offbeat gift store, focused entirely on artists whose backgrounds and influences sprang from an array of popular cultures such as illustration, folk art, comics and tattooing. And this output, crucially, tended towards an intricate figurative craftsmanship more closely associated at the time with illustration than so-called ‘fine’ art.

The gallery and its stable of artists proved a speedy and influential local success, and in 1994, Juxtapoz, a magazine founded by Robert Williams (himself an artist and friend of famed underground artist Robert Crumb) also began to showcase this growing wave of alternative art.

Utterly at odds with the rarefied, theory-led aesthetic dominating contemporary practice at the time, this new sensibility came to be regarded as a movement. Its roots and position were defined by not just one label, but two: Low-Brow, or Pop Surrealism.

Resolutely populist – bordering, even, on kitsch – its appropriation of popular style and content within a fine art context questioned long-held assumptions regarding the parameters of art itself. Revisiting the earliest tenets of Pop Art, it nevertheless totally dismissed that movement’s later associations with Warholian mass production.

And in San Francisco, too, similar trends were at work.

In the 1990s a group of artists including Chris Johansen, Clare E Rojas and Barry McGee emerged to form a distinctive new scene. Their work, though sharing much with the Low-Brow phenomenon, differed in several important respects and became known as the ‘Mission School’ in recognition of its essentially San Franciscan flavor.

Local influences contributed to a more whimsical, looser approach to image-making than LA tendencies at the time. Street art such as graffiti formed an intrinsic part of the scene, but was generally refined into a figurative rather than textual medium. The legacy of underground comics pioneered by the likes of Robert Crumb was also evident in cartoon-like characterization and a witty, humorous edge.

More importantly still, while painting lay at the heart of the Low-Brow movement, drawing was much more widely adopted by the Mission School artists.

In a nod to the hand-drawn agitprop and pyschedelia of ’60s Haight-Ashbury, they revived techniques such as detailed patterning, hand-lettering and découpage. Materials, too, were frequently unconventional; ball-point pens, markers, recycled paper, wood or metal all found a part in the Mission School look.

This ‘regional’ distinction was clearly underlined in publicity for a 2000 show at LA’s New Image Gallery:

SAN FRANCISCO DRAWING SHOW curated by: Alicia McCarthy and Chris Johanson. May 19 – June 17, 2000.

Straight out of San Francisco, drawings of over 15 artists will be exhibited …. Currently there are important artistic trends developing out of San Francisco. Drawing is at the root of this development.

Meanwhile, however, America’s East Coast found itself forced (for once) to gradually acknowledge a nexus of creativity occurring elsewhere. While many commentators, curators and gallerists became increasingly aware that some kind of real cultural shift was taking place, others seemed slow or simply unwilling to recognize its impact or legitimacy.

Yet the growing appeal of Low-Brow and related work – especially amongst a generation of new and emerging artists – was undeniable. New galleries opened to deal exclusively in the genre, and Juxtapoz, along with many of its featured artists, began to acquire a cult following. Its international distribution and the broad reach of the internet helped ensure that this new sensibility filtered beyond the US.

The ‘unofficial’ Californian scene gathering pace in the ’90s was intrinsically linked to a rejection of prevailing artistic practice – the notion, as Fred Tomaselli later put it, “…that people are a bit tired of the over-rationalism (sic) of the art world, this idea that you can get to everything through the cerebral.”

Yet its ethos was otherwise hugely democratic and unifying, a statement of validity for neglected or side-lined art. There can be little doubt that its emergence provided an impetus behind the current interest in drawing.

But this interest – and with it, the resurgence of a particular kind of artistic engagement – was not, of course, solely confined to America’s West Coast.

Elsewhere in the States, Laylah Ali’s first major show of meticulously patterned, faux-naif works took place at Chicago’s MOCA in 1999 (she had been featured, along with Chris Johansen, at New York’s Drawing Center in the summer of 1998).

Julie Mehretu, likewise emerging towards the end of the ’90s, fused painting with drawing in a myriad of complex mark-making, while Canada’s Royal Art Lodge, formed in 1996, produced whimsical drawings, paintings and objects reminiscent of the Mission School’s output.

In Europe, similar trends were also underway. As the 20th century drew to its close, Sweden’s Jockum Nordstrüm was gaining recognition for his beautifully rendered, twisted tableaux of far from ordinary life. Switzerland’s Marc Bauer produced vigorous drawings that exemplified the medium’s strength, and in Britain the hand-drawn zine was adopted by Olivia Plender, albeit in a highly polished form.

While drawing, obviously, had never disappeared entirely from the gallery, these artists represent just a few of those contributing to its rapidly growing visibility towards the end of the ’90s. A resurgence now so evident that, though prompted by certain definable factors, it nevertheless seems organic, almost essential; a phenomenon that quite possibly identifies as well as answers very current needs amongst today’s young artists.

And what are they?

Well to start with, drawing is cheap. For those struggling with the high costs of studio space and materials, it’s a medium that’s financially viable as well as a manageable means of production.

What’s more, it’s hugely inclusive. Everyone, at some point, has experienced the act of drawing at some level, a participation which affords even the most casual observer a sense of involvement in the medium; a visceral engagement in its use that conceptual art forms often lack.

Yet despite this refreshingly egalitarian glow, it also appears that much of today’s output seems directed towards highly individual, even arcane expression, a practice exemplified by intricate, almost obsessive mark-making.

On the one hand, this wholly supports an ethos by which today’s artists seem to demand an intimate, personal and evident engagement with their art.

Painstaking detail and labor-intensive mark-making represent artistic endeavor for which the artist alone is responsible. No third-party construction teams, no assistants on hand to dab a brush as directed. This art is about making in the purest possible sense.

A parallel explosion in use of craft elements – beading, glittering, collage, embroidery – as well as the growing popularity of zines and artists’ books – mirrors this quest for hands-on, highly personalized involvement.

Yet more intriguingly, demands for creative ownership may well serve needs besides a revision of artistic involvement.

Art, of course, has always been about reflecting and interpreting the world, but the early 21st century seems to have experienced a particularly profound re-appraisal of exactly what the world involves. The outlook is an uneasy one, marked by a growing sense of schism and dislocation, and in particular, the notion of circumstance veering out of control.

To return briefly to Pop Surrealism, true to its ’surrealist’ label the movement is marked by subversion of apparent reality. Typically, this takes on disturbing, anxiety-ridden form; bio-morphed figures inhabit scenarios laden with threat; an undertow of violence is darkly enhanced by imagery plucked from childhood.

And importantly, unlike Surrealism, which investigates the interior spaces of the human psyche, Pop Surrealism obliquely focuses on physical, actual realities. Those genetic hybrids, ruined landscapes and constant simmer of threat don’t merely exist in our nightmares. They’re with us now.

The movement itself may have had its day as far as the art market is concerned, but the zeitgeist it portrays is clearly here to stay.

Consider, for a moment, Jean Dubuffet’s famous description of L’Art Brut

“Those works created from solitude and from pure and authentic creative impulses – where the worries of competition, acclaim and social promotion do not interfere – are, because of these very facts, more precious than the productions of professions. … we cannot avoid the feeling that in relation to these works, cultural art in its entirety appears to be the game of a futile society, a fallacious parade.”

Though written in the 1950s, the proclamation reads now like a perfect manifesto for the kind of anti-establishment art scene we’ve been discussing. Yet quite apart from epitomizing a ‘purer’ alternative to the mainstream, the kind of art Dubuffet describes now carries connotations far beyond those of his original assessment.

The ’simplicity’ of naïve or folk art harks back – in popular nostalgia at least – to carefree, less complex times in which a sense of place and purpose were clearly defined. It’s little wonder that its revival coincides with acute apprehension regarding our own, turbulent times.

By contrast, much outsider art is clearly associated with not belonging – a characteristic most evident in its embrace of art produced by the mentally ill.

Yet here again there’s a definite connection. Such work often originates through its use as a therapeutic tool; a fact that throws interesting light on the intricate, involved delineation of much recent drawing and painting. Indeed, in its conspicuous efforts to order, pattern and negotiate space, such complexity provides almost casebook examples of conflict-solving Gestalt.

More interestingly still, a significant proportion of contemporary practice doesn’t just seek to interpret complex realities, but actually sets out to create them through construction of highly personal, alternative worlds.

Paul Noble’s well-known drawings of fictional ‘Nobson Newtown’ are devoid of human figures, yet imbued with visual invention and idiosyncratic textual comment. A clear intention is to provide a reflection of the mind of their maker: as Noble himself puts it, “town planning as self-portraiture”.

Other artists’ fictional worlds provide similar arenas for grappling with issues that echo or parallel our own.

Michael Whittle, a recent graduate from the Royal College of Art, creates intricate drawings melding religious iconography with motifs garnered from heraldry, alchemy and science. The resulting images, snapshots of impossible states, underpin the artist’s own desire to “make sense of reality” while also investigating “… man’s attempts to come to terms with existence”.

Camille Rose Garcia (whose practice, though largely identified with painting, includes much drawing) is well known for deceptively enchanting visions of what amounts to a near-dystopia. A recurring cast of characters battle to save or destroy a poisoned, dying world. The baddies, unfortunately, seem to be winning.

Art today appears to be grappling with a spiritual, political and therapeutic function that arguably, it hasn’t reflected quite so clearly for centuries. And the fact that drawing, the most immediate and spontaneous of mediums, forms a vital aspect of the interpretation of a complex world should come as no surprise.

Postscript: Drawing right now – who we’re liking

The energy of the California scene continues apace, with San Francisco still arguably the epicentre of new drawing – check out the wonderful work of Sara Thustra, Sacha Eckes, Andrew Schoultz and Simone Shubuck (a San Francisco native, though now resident in New York).

LA practice remains particularly diverse, but artists who make exciting use of drawing include Travis Millard, Adam Janes and Gina Triplett.

Elsewhere in the States, we enjoy the work of Carter, Aurel Schmidt and UK-born Dominic McGill (best known for his epic, 65ft ‘Project for a New American Century’).

In Europe, Richard Höglund produces interesting drawings informed by semiotics, and in the UK, artists of note include Sarah Woodfine and Adam Dant (the latter have both been recipients of the Jerwood Drawing Prize.

Most exciting of all, newcomer Laura Oldfield Ford’s creates large-scale, beautifully rendered drawings with astute political commentary at their core, as well as the cult zine ‘Savage Messiah, an extraordinary foray into the psycho-geographic terrain of London.

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Religious Themes

Contemporary Christian paintings incorporate a wide variety of themes. Some fine art adheres to the iconic imagery seen in religious art throughout the ages – what some might call literal Biblical interpretations. These iconic themes include the Annunciation, the Adoration of the Magi, the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, the Stations of the Cross, and the Virgin Mary. Saints are also popular iconic themes in contemporary God art.

Some artists go back to before Christ’s birth; indeed, to the creation of the universe. For example, contemporary fine artist Anthony Falbo’s Genesis Series depicts the first book of the Bible. Through Falbo’s paintings, the creation of the universe unfolds as though it was happening today. Through his abstract style, you can see light emerging, the separation of day from night, the firmament rising, the land appearing, the vegetation blooming, the living creatures coming forth, and the hand of God touching the hand of man.

But just as God created both light and darkness, contemporary Christian artists depict both good and evil. From the shame that Adam and Eve felt after disobeying God in the Garden of Eden to both overt images and subliminal messages of hell, artists depict the darker side of humanity.

A Variety of Styles

Today’s Christian artists employ styles and media as varied as devotion itself. For example, some artists may paint in an Impressionist style, using bold colors, loose strokes, and thick dabs of paint to bring a scene to life. Others express themselves through cubism, the art form that rearranges pieces of objects in such a way that the person seeing the painting gains new insight into the object represented. Still others paint in an abstractionist form, stretching, enlarging, or magnifying figure and form to shed new light on everyday subjects. Some artists, like Anthony Falbo, combine forms like cubism and abstractionism into what could be termed “cubestraction,” and produce remarkable pieces.

Exhibiting Our Devotion

Christians today are embracing contemporary artists by purchasing both original works and limited edition reproductions. Fine art with a spiritual theme – whether it’s the birth of Christ, the creation of the earth, or other “God art” – serves as a reminder of the Creator’s presence in our lives, as well as His importance to our safety and well-being. It also keeps us mindful of the need to express our devotion, to spread the Word of God, and to be thankful for the gifts He has bestowed upon us.

Chris Robertson is an author of Majon International, one of the worlds MOST popular internet marketing companies on the web. Learn more about God Art: Christian Themes in Art.

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Contemporary art, also known as modern art has long been a producer of such experimental and innovative displays. Names such as Van Gogh, Monet and Modigliani stand as a testament to the truly unique perspective in visual arts and what it means to both be an artist and to define art itself. That perhaps is the foundation of art. What defines art? By whose standards do we gauge a particular piece and declare it to be worthy of the name and worthy of a purchase for a private or public collection.

Consider some of the pieces that have caused quite a stir in modern times. Pablo Picasso’s first foray into the use of cubism, peculiar pieces of work presenting the human anatomy from several perspectives yet all of which are combined into one form caused a mixed reaction among critics. Like champagne, cubism is one of those things you either love or hate, there is simply no in between.

Oliver Payne and Nick Relph were innovate thinkers of the contemporary art world. They are called video artists and their work is featured in such galleries as The Institution of Contemporary Arts in London, England. Their progressive combination of modern technology including photography and videography in the production of modern art has earned the artists an eternal and well deserved niche in contemporary art culture.

The use of digital technology in art is now dominating art culture and has done so with the advent of digital computer animation in the way of such children’s productions as Pixar’s A Bug’s Life and The Lord of the Rings. A good decade and a half of digital technology in art has come to pass and the public and critical response has been entirely positive, a first in art history. Is it art? It is contemporary, sophisticated art that is unparalleled and doubtless will be for some time.

Author Hugh Parker

Picture Photos on Canvas is a blog about photos printed on canvas and everything that relates including general photography and photo shop tips so if you want the scoop on the buzz visit us by clicking photos on canvas
Thank you,
Hugh Parker

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Traditionally, an artist’s older works garnered higher bids and more frenzied requests. However, painters like Brice Marden are changing the status quo with a whole collection of recent, sought-after work.

The top 10 contemporary artists, whose works sold for over $5 million at auction, are as follows: Lucian Freud, Jasper Johns, Jeff Koons, Brice Marden, Bruce Nauman, Robert Rauschenberg, Gerhard Richter, Richard Serra, Frank Stella, and Cy Twombly. Other artists (in the $1 – $4 million range) to look out for include: Chuck Close, David Hockney, Ellsworth Kelly, Anselm Kiefer, Claes Oldenburg, Robert Ryman, and Wayne Thiebaud.

Jasper Johns, one of the highest paid modern artists, can’t seem to keep up with the demand. He paints two projects each month (which will sell for no less than $1 million), but the waiting list is still long. Entertainment giant David Geffen paid $40 million for “Gray Numbers” a few years back and New York City’s Metropolitan Museum of Art allegedly paid over $20 million for “White Flag.”

John’s colorful paintings touch upon Americana themes — with lots of flags, maps and targets – with subtle messages that affect every onlooker differently. If a collector is fortunate enough to find a Jasper Johns in an art auction house, then there’s no telling how much it’ll sell for.

One can’t help but wonder about what accounts for the noticeable trend towards modern art? Most of the buyers (42%) at the Sotheby’s contemporary art auction continue to be Europeans, with the US trailing at 19%, and Asia / Middle Eastern sales at 12%.

It seems that the high price of the pound is hurting many Americans more than the credit crunch, but London’s weekend auctions saw many advances from interested Indian and Chinese buyers looking for a piece of cultural heritage. For instance, two bidders fought over Yue Minjun’s “Execution” for six minutes, which finally sold for a record breaking $2.93 million. Likewise, one of Putu Sutawijaya’s paintings (“Silent Road”) sold for $350,000 (11 times its estimated price) at the Borobudur Auction!

The art world is changing from the traditional swanky event, complete with fine wine, cheese and fashionable attire – to one of sitting behind the computer screen, credit card in hand. While it may seem impersonal to some, it’s advantageous to others, who have the ability to hop between sites, checking the fair prices for the particular work they’ve got their eye on. After browsing online catalogues, art lovers can get a good idea of what’s available in the up-to-date marketplace, and then make the best purchase later at a contemporary art auction.

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In case you posses more than one item of contemporary are and you would like to hang them for show in your home, try grouping them in a way that will create an interesting look and maybe even a connection between them. Let’s say you have a smaller sized art piece you might want to just frame it and put it somewhere like a shelf or a small side table. Just to make sure you understand that not all art needs to be hung on a wall. You have many options, there is always the possibility of leaning it against a wall or maybe an easel you just have to make sure the piece of art doesn’t block the way. Also make sure that the art piece’s size matches the theme so it looks in place.

You can also tell a story with your art or even including helping accessories to convey your point across to the beholder.  While making the story you want the details to flow together and match with the surrounding decorations. While you do the above you will create a certain look and the look with contain the mix of the art and the decorations.

Make sure that once you have hung the piece of Contemporary Art on the wall make Lighting Enhance it to bring more of the people’s attention to it. There are endless ways to display Contemporary Art in your home.

I am a contemporary artist living in Naperville, IL. Painting is not only my profession, it is my passion! It is a tangible way that I am able to share with others a piece of my life and who I am. I paint with oil and acrylic and enjoy the contemporary, abstract and landscape but mostly enjoy the combination of these three. My work is a source of great pleasure for me and for those who have already purchased my art. I paint using only high quality fine art materials.
You can find me on:

http://www.dinasoker.net

http://www.dinasoker.blogspot.com

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It is fortunate enough to win various institutional patrons. Besides, public funded museums, there are commercial galleries, private collectors, corporate patrons and contemporary art museums. The artists run spaces has also been taken an important role in sale of their works. Thus they are supporting themselves, though there are grants and awards for them. There exists a symbiosis between public museums and commercial galleries. The commercial sector, often, earns maximum profit on the works of the creators who has been popularized by extensive exhibition by public sector. Besides, to enhance brand values, often corporations lend their premises or house at their premises exhibitions. Moreover, support of these organizations is evident in sponsoring awards and building up ware house of contemporary creations. Endeavors of these business houses on collecting plethora of corporate art are quite encouraging. Thus it is gaining popularity, too.

Which Art is Contemporary and which is not – institutional viewpoint

* Creations after 1960’s and 1970’s to till date are counted in the category.
* Crafts like paintings on ceramics and textile designs have strictly been excluded from the category.
* Creations by present day self-taught painters and sculptors, though lack historic inheritance, is literally contemporary.

Prizes

There are several prizes on this practice. The most eminent ones can be enumerated as follows:

1. Named after J. M. W. Turner, Turner Prize is for British painters and sculptors under 50 years of age.

2. Whitney Biennial exhibition is for less known American enthusiasts, arranged in New York City by Whitney Museum of American Art.

3. Hugo Boss Prize is annually sponsored by the Hugo Boss Clothing Company for individual or group working on any medium from anywhere of the world and it is administered by the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum of New York.

4. The most coveted Dutch prize is Vincent van Gogh Biennial Award for Contemporary Art in Europe. It has been initiated by The Broere Charitable Foundation and hosted by Stedelijk Museum of Amsterdum.

5. The Winifred Shantz Award for Ceramists is awarded by the Canadian Clay and Glass Gallery of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada.

6. Each year, Ricard Prize for French painters and sculptors under 40 years of age is bestowed by a committee of French Collectors.

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The need for textiles, combined with our desire to embellish the world around us, has given rise to a huge range of fabric based art, everything from basic colored cloth to complex woven textiles. Tapestries and wall hangings have long been one of the most accomplished forms of this art, having a history dating back millennia, and artists from almost all cultures have contributed some form of textile wall art.

Recently tapestries and wall hangings have enjoyed a rise in interest, with many people looking beyond traditional options for wall decor. The tactile nature of tapestries, combined with their long history, has made them once again a choice for the discriminating home improver.

Contemporary tapestry design

Although there are a vast range of traditional designs available, a more recent development is the growth in contemporary art as a basis for modern tapestry designs. Because of the nature of the modern weaving process almost any design can be successfully incorporated into a tapestry, providing the weaver has the skill to do so. This has led many contemporary artists to consider wall tapestries as an alternative medium to framed canvases and prints.

The range of artists who now license their original work for tapestry wall hangings is impressive, and growing. Leading contemporary artists such as Malenda Trick, Elizabeth Brandon and Stewart Sherwood are now being introduced to a whole new group of art lovers.

Encompassing a vast range of subject matter, from modern cityscapes and impressionist inspired landscapes, to idyllic coastal scenes and fantasy art, these contemporary works of art are adding a new dimension to fabric design, marrying traditional weaving techniques with modern, vibrant images.

Although prints enjoy a unique position in home décor, paintings and designs from these popular artists are increasingly exploiting the unique qualities of woven textiles. The tactile nature of wall hangings adds depth and texture to these already impressive works and makes a distinctive alternative to framed art often bringing alive the designs in ways not originally planned by the artists.

Modern textile art

Additionally many textile artists who use fabric as their main medium are enjoying a renewed prominence in the art world. Rather than plying their art in paintings there are a growing number of artists using tapestries and other types of wall hanging as their primary medium for expression. Modern artists such as Ulrika Leander, Monique Lehman and Elda Abramson combine their artistic vision with the depth and range available through fabrics to create a new, modern twist on this ancient art.

Many of these textile works of art are abstract in nature, often employing bold colors and striking, modern designs that incorporate the weave of the fabric as an essential part of the design to create a depth not available with traditional materials like canvas. As a home décor option they can add a splash of color to brighten up a room, and often become a great focal point in almost any setting.

Like abstract art prints, contemporary tapestry designs often allow art lovers to take more of a chance with their wall décor choices. Unlike a traditional painting, where the subject matter can be too modern, old-fashioned, fussy or just plain wrong, contemporary art allows us to concentrate more on the hues and tones of a piece to match the ambience of a room. Because of this they often afford a great deal of flexibility when decorating, adding to the reasons so many are looking towards contemporary tapestry art for their wall décor choices.

An ancient appeal

Contemporary artists are increasingly attracted to tapestries and textiles primarily because the individuality of the weaving process makes each piece produced a unique work of art unlike any other. In a world driven by mass production art lovers are often drawn to the uniqueness of wall tapestries as an antidote to the monotony of many other options.

Now, despite their ancient origins, many people are again looking towards tapestries and wall hangings as an answer to their modern home decor aspirations. With an ever growing range of options the choice has never been better for art lovers.

Godfrey Bazalgette writes extensively on art, history and tapestries & textiles.

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If you want to make money from investing in a contemporary artworks, it is vital to buy early in the career of an artist who is destined for success. It is usually necessary to wait for lengthy periods of time for the artist’s art paintings to gather momentum over time and increase in value. It is better to purchase when the economic climate has been weakened as prices are lower and sell when the market is strong. These are factors that all need to be considered when investing in contemporary art paintings.

Anyone can invest in contemporary art paintings. Of course it depends on your budget and what you are looking to invest in. The best way to go about investing is to do your due diligence and research first. The best places to research are the auction houses, such as Sothebys and Christies. There are others, however these have been the largest auction houses for a long time and they are worth checking. Other galleries that specialize in contemporary art are worth researching. These galleries are in every major city and most regional areas also have galleries. Local media sources are also good at identifying the galleries specializing in contemporary art. There may be a local arts section in your paper or a city publication outlining the galleries. It is well worth going to the opening nights of some of these galleries and talking to people. It will take some time to get a handle on the market, so don’t rush into anything, just enjoy contemplating the works and the right piece will come along.

When you are looking to collect contemporary art paintings that will give you significant returns, it usually involves a gamble on emerging or upcoming artists and it involves time. These artists can usually be found exhibiting themselves or are represented by cutting edge galleries in major cities or regional areas. Once again, this involves research and going to contemporary exhibitions. The dividends can be huge, however it usually takes decades for this to occur. It usually takes time for any artist to be recognized by their peers, the art scene/world, the media and to become the next big thing. For many artists, this never happens, therefore it pays to research first.

The broad scope of contemporary paintings are defined by their genre and the era in which they were created. Some consider them to commence from the 1960’s and 1970’s up until the time we live in now. They can also be defined as artwork that is currently contemporary to whichever age we are living in. Pop art paintings were most contemporary in the1960’s just as Abstract Expressionist paintings were in the decade before that.

Here is an example of how contemporary artworks increase in value, sometimes in a phenomenal way. The Financial Times recently reported that in 1986, an anonymous collector bought a 1962 Andy Warhol painting ‘200 One Dollar Bills’ for $385,000. This sounds like an expensive investment. In November 2009, it sold for $43.8m at New York’s Sotheby’s auction house. There are many such examples of amazing returns on investment. An outlay of $385 000 may not be possible for everyone, however there can still be significant returns over time if a new collector purchases for hundreds of dollars rather than hundreds of thousands.

The contemporary art market has been affected by the recent economic downturn. This has been evidenced in gallery closures, reported downturn of sales at auction houses and an overall decrease in sales. However, the Financial Times heralded a positive change in the contemporary art paintings market with this recent sale of the Warhol, 1962 Warhol painting for $43.8m.

It is an ideal time to invest when the market has undergone a downturn. There is much greater chance of investing with significant return if the market has been weakened by the economic climate. According to many speculators and analysts, this has been the case for contemporary art paintings for the last year. Savvy investors can become avid collectors in a market such as this, as the returns can yield much higher dividends in the future. As reported by the Financial Times, collectors are just starting to pay big dollars again for contemporary art paintings, so now could be considered a prime time to invest in your future.

About the Artist: Cathy Condon is an Australian artist based in the UK and Europe who works primarily in an abstract style. Her blog, http://www.catharticgallery.com chronicles her life as a traveling and working artist in the world and her day-to-day influences and impressions.

Cathy Condon

http://www.catharticgallery.com

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A gallery exhibits art for the enjoyment of others, with the added bonus of being able to purchase their favorite pieces when the exhibit concludes. This means that the gallery changes frequently, depending on how often shows are conducted. A gallery often puts together a show based on the work of one individual artist with the option of work from other artists put together. Visual art is the most common form shown in a gallery, with paintings being the most popular. Artists who are sculptors or photographers are able to display their work as well. Unlike museums, galleries typically collect a commission from each piece that is sold. Rarely is admission charged, although there are some galleries that prefer to do things that way. Sometimes artists are supported by grants, and they are able to win awards and prizes. The Guggenheim Museum in New York presents the Hugo Boss award every other year to an artist or a group of artists working in any place anywhere. Hugo Boss clothing company sponsors this by presenting the winner or winners with a $100,000 check.

Contemporary art is a term used to describe the modern era of art. Though there is speculation, it is thought that art developed since World War II until present day is considered contemporary art. There is no reference to a specific style of art when discussing contemporary art. It is exhibited in many ways. There are contemporary art galleries, publicly funded arts organizations, contemporary art museums, or by the artists themselves. Most contemporary art galleries are found grouped together in certain districts of bigger cities, although medium sized cities are known to have one or two galleries for local artists. Corporations are becoming more and more a part of the contemporary art world by organizing and sponsoring local art galleries, and even displaying some inside their own walls.

Contemporary art galleries have been criticized because of their showing of art that is not considered by others to be art of this form. Art created by common people is literally what contemporary art is, but there are always skeptics somewhere. Contemporary art can be at odds with the world at times because of what is thought to be art and what is not. Respected galleries and other institutions are under fire because of the thought that they do not share another point of view. It goes back to the age old question of what is art, and what constitutes it to be so. It doesn’t stop those ambitious artists out there who want to get their work out there, though.

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Human creativity, along with the need of expressiveness, can be present to any contemporary creation that critics would define as an artistic attempt. As Picasso, the great Hispanic painter, has once pointed out, “art is something that makes people move towards a certain direction in life, or even conceptualize things from a different perspective, which they would have never consider before, if an artful creation had not revealed its mere existence.”

Although people reactions against contemporary art seem to vary at some point, the underlined significance of the medium can be categorized as unanimously appreciated. The element that makes contemporary art popular is the freedom to react upon the message one interprets when viewing an artistic creation. For instance, modern music expressions, like rap songs, have won tremendous acceptance among youth, as this form of expressed emotions, directly relates to their need to counterfeit conservative views.

Moreover, contemporary art has become easy to be understood and appreciated by the masses, as it can be released in numerous copies, for example music disks or books, in order for the audience / readers to acquire it. This kind of mass production of art forms has made art attainable, while preserving its unique values. Original paintings once bought by few prosperous people are today accessible, through galleries, to many other groups of admirers who can obtain the object of their desire easily and less costly.

On the other hand, contemporary art critics discuss the difficulty of the vast majority of people to translate art forms, as it is created for the sole appreciation of the few artists that can relate to fellow-artists works. This is true in some cases, when the creator needs to express an idea that cannot be recognized by those who have not engaged themselves with some kind of artistic occupations. Although these instances are present, they cannot be considered the rule, as art creators want to be appreciated by as many people as possible. The feeling of an artful existence is directly related to the need of understanding. Thus, nowadays contemporary art symbolizes the feelings not only of few artists, but rather the ideas of entire groups of people, even nations.

Therefore, contemporary art forms have and will continue to express publicly understood ideas so as to be appreciated by as many as possible. In other words, the success of a play, a novel, a music composition, a film, or a painting, does not depend solely on the views of some skillful artists, critics, or experts. On the contrary, it depends on the capacity an art form has to penetrate our household, help us express a thought, or even conceptualize popular emotions and needs.

Kadence Buchanan writes articles on many topics including Home, Family, and Gardening

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