Housing journalist is asking for thoughts about Art and the Zen of decorating a condo!
.
.jpg)
Cutline: left: Dick Wehrs masks fight for wall space in a Water Tower Pisan window filled condo.
Far Left: No room for art in this small downtown condo.
Below: Roving I, a Flickr photographer took this picture of art in a bathroom in Macau.
BIG CANVAS OR FLAT PANEL TELEVISION. FLOOR SCULPTURE OR UMBRELLA STAND. HOW DO CONDO OWNERS BRING ORIGINAL ART INTO THEIR LIVES. JOURNALIST NEEDS YOUR HELP IN RESEARCHING A FEATURE STORY ABOUT THE ART OF CONDO ZEN
Has the downtown condo boom hurt the sale of original art? If you don't have wall space do you just buy smaller art?
The Zen of Condos (according to an article I wrote for the US trade magazine Paint Decorating Retailer) says that when you live in a finite space you must remove something old to make room for something new. Buy a chair? Throw out a coffee table!
What about art? Buy a painting throw out a wall clock?
In space challenged downtown condos the norm is for the builder to provide as much natural light as possible ... at the expense of walls. Kitchen walls are removed. There is no spatial differential between the living room and dining area. Outside walls are curtain wall glass.
Do new condo owners want original art on their walls? Or, in the Zen of things, is it the flat panel screen that becomes the "Got It" and the Chris Temple canvas that is the new "Trade It"?
Or, do new condo owners use art to define their living space? As new works of art are acquired do pieces get zenned out, or does the proud owner simply stack the paintings on the wall like a 19th century salon? I know I could write a lengthy article on the art gallery bathrooms I have seen while working on stories for the Toronto Star and on videos for the McMichael Gallery.
The articles that I write for the Star tend to be assignment based - I don't pick 'em, I just get asked to write them (which is why it takes me a long time to write some of them -- I have to upload a lot of information and understanding about the topic before I begin to call people). Currently without an assignment. Thinking about pitching a story to the Star about original art and the Zen of decorating a Condo.
I have a lot of questions. Like? Well like:
1. Has the explosion of downtown condo towers had an effect about the original art market.
2. Are new condo owners budgeting to buy original art (or do reproductions and flat panel displays become the focal point of wall space). Could mention the high rez Group of Seven art that condo owners can show on their Hi Def flat panel screens (for a price).
3. Does the lack of wall space in condos influence the size of canvases that artists are producing?
4. If people have to move a painting out to make room for a new purchase, are auction houses seeing more paintings getting sold or do new condo owners prefer E-Bay.
I NEED YOUR HELP
Do you my website readers have an opinion on these four questions? Please let me know. Do you have art in your condo? Please post or email me. Thanks!
I will be talking to artists (I have already talked to one artist who's customer base is mature ... people who if they downsize to condos get luxury units that have dynamic space for his large works), builders, designers, art gallery owners and of course, condo owners. Sure would like to talk to you!
.jpg)
Cutline: left: Dick Wehrs masks fight for wall space in a Water Tower Pisan window filled condo.
Far Left: No room for art in this small downtown condo.
Below: Roving I, a Flickr photographer took this picture of art in a bathroom in Macau.
BIG CANVAS OR FLAT PANEL TELEVISION. FLOOR SCULPTURE OR UMBRELLA STAND. HOW DO CONDO OWNERS BRING ORIGINAL ART INTO THEIR LIVES. JOURNALIST NEEDS YOUR HELP IN RESEARCHING A FEATURE STORY ABOUT THE ART OF CONDO ZEN
Has the downtown condo boom hurt the sale of original art? If you don't have wall space do you just buy smaller art?
The Zen of Condos (according to an article I wrote for the US trade magazine Paint Decorating Retailer) says that when you live in a finite space you must remove something old to make room for something new. Buy a chair? Throw out a coffee table!
What about art? Buy a painting throw out a wall clock?
In space challenged downtown condos the norm is for the builder to provide as much natural light as possible ... at the expense of walls. Kitchen walls are removed. There is no spatial differential between the living room and dining area. Outside walls are curtain wall glass.
Do new condo owners want original art on their walls? Or, in the Zen of things, is it the flat panel screen that becomes the "Got It" and the Chris Temple canvas that is the new "Trade It"?
Or, do new condo owners use art to define their living space? As new works of art are acquired do pieces get zenned out, or does the proud owner simply stack the paintings on the wall like a 19th century salon? I know I could write a lengthy article on the art gallery bathrooms I have seen while working on stories for the Toronto Star and on videos for the McMichael Gallery.
The articles that I write for the Star tend to be assignment based - I don't pick 'em, I just get asked to write them (which is why it takes me a long time to write some of them -- I have to upload a lot of information and understanding about the topic before I begin to call people). Currently without an assignment. Thinking about pitching a story to the Star about original art and the Zen of decorating a Condo.
I have a lot of questions. Like? Well like:
1. Has the explosion of downtown condo towers had an effect about the original art market.
2. Are new condo owners budgeting to buy original art (or do reproductions and flat panel displays become the focal point of wall space). Could mention the high rez Group of Seven art that condo owners can show on their Hi Def flat panel screens (for a price).
3. Does the lack of wall space in condos influence the size of canvases that artists are producing?
4. If people have to move a painting out to make room for a new purchase, are auction houses seeing more paintings getting sold or do new condo owners prefer E-Bay.
I NEED YOUR HELP
Do you my website readers have an opinion on these four questions? Please let me know. Do you have art in your condo? Please post or email me. Thanks!
I will be talking to artists (I have already talked to one artist who's customer base is mature ... people who if they downsize to condos get luxury units that have dynamic space for his large works), builders, designers, art gallery owners and of course, condo owners. Sure would like to talk to you!
Comments
Deirdre G
arrielle p