The "Why"?
There is a private collection of paintings in New York City called The Frick Collection. The son of an immigrant farmer, Henry Clay Frick made his money alongside Carnegie and other greats of the post-industrial era. Investments in coke proved worthwhile for Frick and years later we are the beneficiaries of his success as he made certain that his extensive collection of art would be accessible to the public.
I recall my first visit to the Frick. I was twelve and standing in front of several paintings by Vermeer. The richness of the dark colors made the faces glow and I felt strangely transfixed. The subjects' eyes were iridescent and knowing, yet completely innocent. I will not exaggerate and say that these paintings satisfied my soul in any way, but I will say that I felt my mind and heart expand somehow. A feeling of empathy for the people in the painting mixed with this sense of mystery....and something clicked.
...
For many "art" as a form of enrichment to one's life is a very abstract concept. Why would I stare at a painting for any length of time? How does that do anything for me? I admit that it took me a while to grasp the place of art in my own life, especially since for kids art museums can be about as alluring as a plate of steamed broccoli. (I never really disliked broccoli, but I never went out of my way to eat it.)
My Vermeer experience (in addition to another incident in which I absentmindedly touched The Thinker by Rodin at The Baltimore Museum of Art) precipitated a change in my thoughts about art. I began to understand "art" as a means of elevating my everyday thoughts. Interestingly enough, a very visual experience (i.e. viewing a painting or sculpture) brings me to the place of considering everything that is not inherently visual--space, time, eternity, emotions, social causes, etc.
[Ramble, ramble, ramble and....The Point. Finally:]
Frick's mission was to build an art collection that was made up of art that was enjoyable to live with. Not avant-garde necessarily and certainly not jarring. In my own little (read: very modest) way, I try to be intentional about incorporating art in our house that will enrich our thought lives, enlighten our senses and help us to think of both the beautiful and deeper things.
Shawn and Eleanor admiring Rothko at The Yale University Art Gallery. University art museums are the way to go with babies and kids because they are usually free to get into.
The "How"?
Whenever we have the occasion to decorate, I usually budget to add one special piece to each room. A few years back--before kids, before one job, before lots of things--we used a portion of our tax return to purchase this painting (our only original) from artist Erin Spencer.
When I was decorating Eleanor's room, I purchased a print from Michelle Armas. She is a pretty popular artist based out of Atlanta. The frame is a basic white Ikea frame that I painted gold.
A good frame can do wonders. Sometimes I'll spend more on professional framing than the actual piece itself. Case in point: these botanical prints/greeting cards that we picked up on our first anniversary trip to the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens. The cards were $5 a piece. Framing each one cost about $50.
This handprinted wallpaper was leftover from a magazine product shoot years ago and was given to me. I brought it to the framer's and had it mounted in a simple metal frame with no glass.
Our only souvenir from Rome, save lots of pictures, is this small 3x4" ink drawing of a building that was a hospital but is currently an art museum, ironically enough. It is dated 1730. We intend to frame it soon.
While our decorating and amateur art curating are on hold for now with the many life changes we're going through, I still keep my eyes open for pieces that I might like to have in my house one day. Right now, I'm really loving this painting of a husband and wife.