I don’t care who you are: as a guy, “wine” and “art” are two terms that are likely to give you sweaty palms or even a mild case of the hives. Rumor has it that John Wayne himself was known to wither a bit in the presence of sommeliers and disapproving gallery directors with angular haircuts.
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The fact of the matter is that you already know what you’re talking about in both areas. The average guy has been making informed decisions in nuanced, subjective realms (albeit with less pomp and circumstance) his entire life. We all have our favorite bands, authors and sports heroes we’d follow into battle. And while art is it’s own universe—one that you may only be contemplating for the first time—you can rest assured that just like basically everything else in life, your “taste” can be boiled down to a simple gut reaction.
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Looking at a piece of art for the first time is no different than flipping through radio stations, and just as with wine, relying on your own reactions with a little bit of confidence is what’s important. Sure, you can study up and focus on deciphering the cryptograms of terroir and varietals, but what it really comes down to is “what do I like?”
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Don’t trust yourself to make that informed decision? Well, you should. After all, who is it that reaches over and turns the dial from Kenny G to John Coltrane? And who devoured The Old Man and Sea and then bought the cliffs notes to Pride and Prejudice back in college? And while that Prius was the right choice for your transportation needs, you still can’t stop obsessing about that ’82 Land Cruiser, can you?
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Granted, there are a few faux pas (the incorporation of your favorite team’s logo in a painting, dogs playing poker, and any thing that can actually be specifically classified as “Man Art”–even if it’s going in your Man Cave), but they’re as easy to avoid as the pleated jeans in the men’s section. When it comes down to it, art is about relating universal elements of the human experience, so “I don’t know, I just really liked it” is the perfect justification for almost any purchase.
Excellent Post! I love the part about relating universal elements of the human experience.
It is as simple as what music etc. what your taste is…
a perfect justification for almost any purchase- liking it!
That is a start, but when committing significant funds to a purchase of art ( $10,000 and up), it’s best to make an informed decision. It’s great to have an emotional response, but I am happier when there’s a bit more knowledge and thought behind the decision..as a gallery owner and consultant, we educate and illuminate, choosing art with both the wow factor and quality.
@madelyn, it seems someone could still use this approach to get up to $10,000? I volunteer at a small gallery in san jose ca, we have a $2 tuesday . I encourage people to just buy the art on what they like, play with building a collection . eventually they will grow in confidence & all on $2 art. from there they are able to work their way up.