I stay at many different places as I travel to art fairs around the country. Sometimes with people I know and sometimes with people I just met and sometimes all by myself at an Airbnb. I find it really interesting that there is such a wide difference in the ways people decorate their spaces.
It is always amazing to me when there is absolutely no art on the walls. This was the case at the some Airbnb’s. Or if there is “art” it is from Target or IKEA. Once I stayed at a space that actually just had frames with nothing in them on the wall! Staying in these spaces felt so cold and uninviting. Why is this?
A section of wall at our friends the Terras in Paducah, KY
Then there are the total opposite- whenever I arrive at my friends the Terra’s in Paducah, Kentucky I and just overwhelmed with a feeling of pure joy - part of it is that it’s so great to see them but when you come into their space there is original art floor to ceiling. The art is all very inventive and imaginative. When I look at each piece I feel like I am living the moment that artist came up with that idea and I feel that same rush of inspiration that I also feel when ideas just flow out.
Another view of the wonderful art at the Terra’s House.
Once I stayed with a woman I had just met through the Shaw Art Fair’s host program and she said to me that she likes to have all her favorite things all around her because when she gets home it feels like a hug. I can totally relate! Her house was also a wonderland of special things. Even beautiful rocks in the sink! I could tell right when I walked in that we would connect.
Sometimes when people see my art they say it would be a conversation piece. I believe art can also serve that purpose. Especially when I am staying with people I have just met. Awhile back stayed with a young man through Airbnb that had a collection of masks. Right away this gave us something to connect over because we also have a collection of masks.
“Built on a Lifetime of Conversations” is a sculpture that I created with the idea of sparking conversation across generations.
Art is such an important part of life as human beings. Even art that just serves as filling a wall. It makes a space feel like a home not just a stopping point. And when you get to be around a piece of art for a long time you get to really get aquatinted to it. I feel like when you see art fly by on Instagram or even see it at a museum it’s not at all the same as living with a piece of art even if it is just a few days!