How to Choose the Right Artwork for Your Home

Introduction

Welcome to my blog! I believe that art has the power to transform and enhance the ambience of any living space. In this post, '’ll guide you through the process of choosing the perfect artwork for your home. Discover how to find pieces that resonate with your personal style and create a harmonious environment that truly reflects who you are. If you have any questions or need personalized advice, don't hesitate to reach out to me. I’m here to help!

Understanding Personal Style

Your personal style is unique, and art should reflect that. Take some time to explore different art styles, from abstract and contemporary to impressionistic or minimalistic. Visit local galleries, browse online art platforms, and immerse yourself in various artistic expressions. Pay attention to what captures your attention and stirs emotions within you. Do you find yourself drawn to bold and vibrant colours, or do you prefer softer, more muted tones? Are you captivated by intricate details or more intrigued by simplicity? Understanding your personal style will help you curate a collection that speaks to your heart.

City Limits by Roy P. Awbery

Consider the Space

When choosing artwork for your home, it's essential to consider the space in which it will be displayed. Analyze the available wall space and take note of the dimensions. In larger rooms, bold and statement pieces can make a powerful impact, while smaller spaces may benefit from smaller or medium-sized artworks. Experiment with different orientations, such as horizontal, vertical, or square, to find the best fit for each room. For example, a tall and narrow wall may benefit from a vertical piece that emphasizes the height, while a wide and spacious wall could accommodate a larger horizontal artwork that creates a focal point. Consider the overall layout of the room and how the artwork will interact with other elements. By carefully considering the space, you can choose artwork that not only fits well but also enhances the overall aesthetic and atmosphere of the room.

Harmonizing Colors and Themes

Add abstract art by Roy P. Awbery to your home decor.

Colours have the power to create a harmonious and visually pleasing environment. When selecting artwork, consider the existing color scheme of your space, including the walls, furniture, and decor. Choose artwork that complements or introduces new colors to enhance the overall ambiance. For instance, if your space features warm earth tones, consider artwork with complementary colors like blues or greens to create an intriguing contrast. Additionally, align the themes and subject matter of the artwork with the overall theme or vibe of the room. If you have a coastal-themed living room, artwork depicting seascapes or beach scenes can bring a sense of serenity and connection to the space. Pose questions to yourself: How can the colors and themes of the artwork enhance the atmosphere you want to create? What emotions or feelings do you want the artwork to evoke? By carefully considering the colors and themes, you can curate a collection that not only looks visually stunning but also resonates with the overall ambiance and personality of your home.

Finding the Right Balance

Integrating artwork into your space requires finding the right balance. Consider the interplay between artwork, furniture, and other decor elements. Create a focal point by placing a captivating piece in a prominent position, such as above a fireplace or at the centre of a gallery wall. Allow the artwork to guide the arrangement of other decorative items, ensuring a harmonious and visually pleasing composition. Experiment with different arrangements and groupings to find the perfect balance that highlights both the individual artwork and the overall aesthetic of the room. Take a moment to step back and assess the visual balance—does the artwork draw your eye in without overwhelming the other elements in the space? Remember that balance doesn't necessarily mean symmetry; it can be achieved through the careful placement of different elements to create visual harmony. Challenge yourself to think creatively: How can you arrange the artwork to create an interesting flow? What other elements in the room can complement and enhance the presence of the artwork? By finding the right balance, you can create a space that feels cohesive, visually engaging, and inviting.

Exploring Artistic Mediums

Artistic mediums offer unique qualities and visual effects that can significantly impact the atmosphere of a room. Paintings, prints, sculptures, and photography each bring a distinct character to a space. Explore different mediums and experiment with textures, materials, and finishes to add depth and variety to your collection. Consider the impact of a large-scale abstract painting, the intricate details of a handcrafted sculpture, or the captivating storytelling of a photographic print. Each medium carries its own expressive power and can evoke different emotions and moods. Pose questions to yourself: How do you want the artwork to interact with the surrounding space? Do you want a three-dimensional piece that adds depth and dimension, or a two-dimensional artwork that adds a splash of color and texture? By exploring different artistic mediums, you can find the perfect combination that resonates with your personal style and elevates the visual appeal of your home.

Seeking Authenticity and Meaning

When choosing artwork for your home, seek pieces that hold authenticity and meaning. Investing in authentic artwork or limited-edition prints adds value and significance to your collection. These pieces not only reflect your unique style but also support artists and their creative journeys. Take the time to connect with artwork that resonates with you on a deeper level, evoking emotions and telling stories that align with your personal narrative. Challenge yourself to think beyond mere aesthetics and consider the deeper meaning behind each piece. Does the artwork evoke memories or experiences? Does it convey a specific message or evoke certain emotions? By seeking authenticity and meaning, your collection becomes more than just decorative pieces—it becomes a reflection of your values, passions, and personal journey.

Conclusion

Choosing the perfect artwork for your home is an exciting and fulfilling endeavour. By understanding your personal style, considering the space, harmonizing colours and themes, finding the right balance, exploring artistic mediums, and seeking authenticity and meaning, you'll curate a collection that reflects your individuality and enhances the atmosphere of your living spaces. Let your home become a gallery of your own, filled with art that brings joy, inspiration, and meaning to your everyday life. If you have any questions or need personalized advice in choosing the perfect artwork for your home, feel free to reach out to us. We're here to help you create a space that truly represents who you are and resonates with your artistic vision. Happy art hunting!

Unlocking Art's Potential: Storytelling & Visualizing for Effective Sales

Hi everyone! I hope you’re all well and, if you’re in the UK, enjoying the nice weather we are currently having. It can’t last - can it? You may have noticed that I haven’t been writing these newsletters every week. That’s because of the amount of change I have been experiencing, which has used much of my time.

The most significant change is that I have a new job after working in nuclear forensics for 8 years. I am doing something completely different and that uses my networking skills to good effect. I love meeting new people and building mutually beneficial relationships and this job allows me (indeed, requires me) to do just that. However, with any new venture, there is a lot to learn and I have therefore been swamped researching what I need to do my job well. I have also been working from home a lot less, which is actually a good thing. I forgot how nice meeting people in person rather than across a video link can be.

Last month I showed a selection of my artwork at the Burghfield May Fayre and in the last newsletter, I talked a little about the challenge of choosing the right paintings to showcase my work. I managed to sell one of my larger paintings that I wasn’t sure would ever sell (I painted it in my first year) and I also received several new commission requests that will keep me busy for the rest of this year.

I haven’t been completely idle in my studio despite being busy. I have found some time to create a new series of oil paintings that incorporate a touch of bling with the addition of gold and silver particles. These paintings have received some good reviews and I think I may create a few more in the series but make them much larger so that they become statement pieces. If you haven’t seen them yet, here are a few of the most recent creations. Let me know what you think.

City Limits

Orchid Reflections

I have also been learning about how to better show my artwork on my website and in my online marketing (which I am still trying to understand). Apparently, it is not enough to just show an image of the painting along with a description of its size. The best practice is to write a story to go with the painting to help potential customers identify with a particular piece. This has actually been fun and has allowed me to exercise my writing skills (all helps with the novel writing!) and have some fun with getting a bit creative with the descriptions. Feedback has been entirely positive with one person telling me that, although they didn’t really like one piece of artwork they loved the description and went on to say that, with my descriptions, they would happily buy a blank canvas from me!

I have also been learning that showing how the artwork will look in a home or office setting helps to increase the chances of a sale. I found a website called Canvy that allows me to place my paintings into a variety of room settings complete with the correct sizes. It even lets me choose different framing styles so that people can see how the painting may look in their own homes. I have only been trying out the free version of the website but I think I will sign up for the full package which will give me access to thousands of different settings.

I’ll let you know if it does make a difference and I would love to know what you think - does seeing a painting in a mock setting help you choose and decide to buy?

Leave a comment

That’s it for this week’s newsletter. As always, please consider sharing this with your friends and subscribing (still free and you could win a free painting!) and let me have your comments, especially if there is a topic you would like me to talk about in a future newsletter.

Make sure to keep an eye out for updates on my progress on Facebook and Instagram.

As always, I appreciate your support and feedback. If you have any suggestions for future paintings, don't hesitate to reach out to me. And if you haven't already, please feel free to share my newsletter so others can stay up-to-date on all my latest work.

Until next time,

Roy

P.S. If you're interested in purchasing any of my paintings, don't forget to check out my website. I have some amazing pieces available, and I'm always happy to answer any questions you may have.

Certificates of Authenticity (proving it's really an Awbery!)

Every day's s school day, or so it seems as I learn about something else I should be doing with my artwork. Certificates of authenticity turn out to be very important. Find out why.

Certificates of Authenticity -really rather important!

Ads my artwork has been selling more and more I've constantly been reflecting and adapting my approach. This has applied to packaging, shipping and the whole customer experience. However, I hadn't realised the importance of providing evidence that my paintings were my works or indeed asserting my rights regarding copyright. This is where a Certificate of Authenticity (COA) comes in and every painting I produce now has one. But why?

A COA proves that my paintings were actually created by me and, in the future, could be important in determining the provenance and relative value of the work should it be sold later on. This is especially important, if I'm lucky enough to become well-known and valued in the art market.

Certificates of Authenticity can actually make artworks easier to sell, especially in auctions or galleries (although I currently choose not to look for gallery representation). Serious art collectors usually require any work they purchase to include a COA in order to prove provenance should they choose to sell the work on or donate it in the future.

So, if you buy any of my paintings from now on you will always receive a Certificate of Authenticity. As my artwork has already been steadily increasing in value as my work sells you may indeed be glad of having something that proves your painting’s provenance and future value.

Besides, the Certificates look nice too!

Finding inspiration from staying in

Here we are heading towards a third week of so-called lock-down due to this dreadful Corona virus. I'm now working from home 100% of my time and go out for an hour a day to walk the dogs for exercise. Of course, this means all my travelling has stopped and so too has the opportunity to see new things from which to draw inspiration for my paintings. Or so I thought.

Springtime inspiration in the garden

The water colour painting above was the result of sitting in my garden watching the birds compete for territory and empty my bird feeders, well, when they could get past the greedy pigeons! I think I'd taken my garden for granted and not really considered it as a source of ideas for my work. Now, forced to stay at home I started to properly look at what was right in front of me. Not just birds but flowers too.

Amazingly vibrant tulip

Colourful inspiration all over the garden

I've also found that my love of abstract art can be inspired and motivated from my garden. Just looking closer at some of the plants and flowers provide for a very different perspective. Take this image of the anthers inside the tulip - totally abstract when the wider context is removed but still a beautiful image. I think this would make a great large acrylic canvas and would make a fantastic addition to someone's home. Assuming they like red!

I'm sure I will find more inspiration in the coming weeks. If you'd like to see what comes next why not subscribe and follow my blog?

Abstract inspiration deep inside a tulip

A Winter's tale - another commission finished

Today has reminded me why I love painting and why this hobby of mine has stayed with me when so many others have gone. No, it's not because it earns me money! The smile on the clients face when he saw his painting for himself for the first time. He was rather pleased to say the least.

One happy client with his commissioned artwork by Roy P Awbery

A Winter's Tale by Roy P Awbery - close up

This painting was very challenging but I got a great deal of satisfaction from finally getting this one right. The original plan was just to have a night snow scene but, as the painting developed, the client asked for the addition of wolves and an elk.

I managed to capture a sense of movement with the animals which was not easy. I'd not tried to do it before but it seems to have worked.

I'm seriously pleased how well this one turned out and now understand why my followers were not too happy with the very simple Jumble Animals. Lesson learned!

How to paint a cityscape - A Labour of Love

The first time I painted a cityscape was a simple 7 x 8 inch canvas using acrylic paint. From a distance it looked okay but it wasn’t great, in my perfectionist opinion. Mind you, I had only been painting for about two months when I painted it. However, I always love a challenge and, having been inspired by my recent trip to New York, decided to have another go. Of course, being me I couldn’t keep it simple and decided to “go large”! And complicated! I never paint from photographs so this was going to be quite a task and I really didn’t know what the end result was going to look like. In essence, I would be as surprised as everyone else when it was finally completed.

My first attempt at painting a cityscape - 2 months after picking up a brush

My first step was to prepare the canvas and I knew that I wanted to create another night time scene but with a greater focus on the illuminated buildings. Because of the scale of this painting I knew that there would have to be some fine detail in the buildings and that an abstract approach wasn’t really what I was looking for. So, the first step was to get the background in and an outline of the buildings.

Background and building outlines complete the first stages

once all of the major elements and buildings were added it was time to start adding the fine detail and this painting was going to be all about the lighting during the night to give that iconic cityscape look. This part took an awful lot of patience and time!

The impression of the city lights beginning to take shape, layer by layer

Once the city lights were added, which was a real labour of love as each light needed to be added carefully and in several layers to get the effect I was after, it was time to move on to the foreground. I knew that I wanted to have a waterfront with the buildings gently reflected off the surface. It turned out to be a lot harder than I imagined and it took many attempts before I could crack it. I lost count how many times the Gesso undercoat was applied to effectively erase my unsuccessful efforts.

City lights almost completed and then onto the foreground reflections - a major challenge!

In the end, and after a great many attempts, I finally managed to get the reflections just about how I wanted them. If I’m really honest, I think they could have been better but I was up against a deadline to ensure this piece was finished in time for Christmas but overall I’m pleased with the outcome. This one is being given away as a gift but I think I will have another go as, despite the frustration and challenges, this was a lot of fun to create. So, here it is, the final finished painting. If you’re interesting in getting one for yourself I will be selling prints via my store at Etsy.

The finished painting complete with reflections.