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When it comes to buying art, there is one main rule: Buy what you love and can afford regardless of the type of art. Don’t hesitate to hang different types of art together. The only time you shouldn’t mix fine, decorative, and fun art is when it doesn’t look good together.

Following are some tried-and-true tips for selecting art:

  • Buy art that speaks to you: Well, not literally, but something that makes you laugh, sing, feel nostalgic, or jump for joy.

  • Don’t use art that bores you: Art should evoke a mood, but boredom isn’t the one you want!

  • Don’t pit your art against your furniture: Don’t hang fabulous artwork over furniture if the art fights it. A great piece of art and your sofa both deserve the right setting.

  • Do buy artwork that you enjoy looking at, that boasts colors that look smashing with your furnishings, and that grabs your attention each time you see it: With so much art available, all it takes is a little looking around to find the right piece. So, what’s the rush?

Art is anywhere and everywhere. For best results, bring along snapshots or sample boards and floor plans to help you decide whether a particular piece of artwork fits in with your room. And don’t be afraid to let gallery owners, artists, and others know you’re looking for art that works well with your room — they just might have the perfect piece in the storeroom.

Buy fine art from a reputable dealer who knows the artist whose work he represents and who sells pieces at fair prices. Visit galleries. Ask questions. If you’re not sure about which gallery to deal with, talk with museum curators and art professors and ask them to recommend galleries. Read art journals and magazines to find the names of excellent galleries, the names of the artists they represent, and the value of these artists’ works. Visit artists’ studios when you have an opportunity. Talk with artists at openings. Check their biographies, which tell the names of celebrity clients, museums where their work is hung, awards won, and so on.

In addition to galleries, artists’ studios, and designer showrooms, retail art shops and furniture stores are the easiest places to find decorative art. You can sometimes find pieces in consignment shops, flea markets, and antique shops, and at auctions and estate sales. Personally, we’ve found some of our favorite pieces at thrift shops. As for knowing whether you’re paying the right price for a particular piece, you have to be the judge. Don’t forget your area’s colleges, where students and teachers may sell their art.

Not every piece by a great artist is great art. You may like a lesser, purely decorative piece and get a kick out of owning something by a big-name artist!

About This Article

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About the book authors:

Katharine Kaye McMillan, former senior editor of a New York City-based national magazine, is a writer whose work appears regularly in magazines and newspapers. She is a contributing writer to internationally circulated Florida Design Magazine. She is the co-author of several books on decorating and design, including Sun Country Style, which is the basis for licensed signature collections of furniture and accessories by three leading American manufacturers and importers. A graduate of the University of Texas in Austin, she holds a masters degree in psychology and is a doctoral student in psychology at Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, Florida.

Patricia Hart McMillan is a nationally known interior designer, whose interior design work for private clients, designer showcases, and corporations has appeared in publications worldwide, including the New York Times and USA Today. Known as a trend spotter and for clearly articulated views on design, she is quoted frequently and extensively in both trade and consumer publications. She a ppears on TV and talk radio. A prolific writer, she is coauthor and author of seven books on interior design and decoration, with Sun Country Style signature collections of furniture based on two books. She has taught decorating courses at several colleges and conducted numerous seminars across the U.S. She is decorating editor for Christian Woman Magazine and reports on design trends for The Sun-Sentinel, a Tribune newspaper based in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She has been editor-in-chief of two publications and was head of a New York City-based public relations firm representing some of the most prestigious names in home furnishing and building products. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English, with a minor in art history (with an emphasis in architecture), from the State University of New York (New Paltz). She was awarded a certificate from The New York School of Interior Design.

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