5 Ways You can Pay Too Much when buying Art

1.   Reproductions:  

Prints, giclees or limited editions can be an inexpensive way to decorate, without spending as much as you would for an original.  However, many people have purchased multiple edition art (which seemed like a good investment) only to find out it was over produced in an already flooded market.  While this art still has value if you enjoy it in your home.  Many collectors have seen their perceived valuable investment being sold for cost on e-bay at sub-dealer prices.  I would suggest even a small art budget is better spent on an original, even if you buy from a local new artist who’s just starting out. Hey you never know you just may discover the next Picasso. 

2.   Auctions:  

Auctions can be great places to get artwork but make sure you’ve done your homework.  Be educated about the piece, don’t over buy and always check your emotions at the door.  Above all make sure it’s a reputable auction house. Hopefully you’ll never find yourself on vacation as the lucky high bidder in the “feel good wine buzz art auction”.  It happens more often than you would think, and most people have a terrible case of buyers remorse when they get back home.

3.   Fashion: 

Before hopping on the ban wagon to buy artwork from the next “artist du-jour”, consider how you’ll feel about their work in the long run.  A lot of buzz about who’s currently hot in the art market can be hype that gets falsely created.  Funny, when it comes to music most of us are secure in knowing what we like, and we don’t mind voicing our opinions.  Be sure that you really love the artwork that you buy as well, don’t be persuaded when someone tries to tell you what you “should” like.

4.  Paying a Premium:  

 When you go to an upscale gallery and buy artwork you are paying a premium.  Most galleries have high overhead and a staff with a curator so they need to charge about 50% more on top of the artist’s price. While a curator can be knowledgeable about the artist and helpful about investing,  buying directly from an artists can greatly decrease the price of a work of art.   This also makes for engaging conversation when someone admires a piece of artwork in your home because you can explain how you met the artist personally and it enables you to share considerable insight about the artwork along with the artist’s thoughts and feelings about your piece.

5.  Temporary contemporary:

Artwork that isn’t properly done or is done with cheep materials by a (well meaning) amateur artist can be what I call “temporary” contemporary.  The concern is that the artwork itself may not last.  I have seen artwork fade, crack or even peel. Papers that become yellow and brittle.  I have seen collages that have curled up or come unglued and left pieces to literally fall onto the carpeting.  Fortunately as a restorer I have also worked on oil paintings by old masters that have stood the test of time and stayed in beautiful shape after hundreds of years. The reason is simple, they were properly done with quality materials by a professional artist from the onset.  The solution to this problem is easy, buy quality paintings and photographs and they will last for generations to come.

 

We’ve tried our best to help you avoid all 5 ways to pay too much.

you can:

1 buy originals

2 take your time and avoid the adrenaline rush of an auction

3 buy artwork that’s timeless not trendy

4 buy directly from the photographer or artist

5 get professional work of the finest quality from a gallery you can trust 

All at our Gallery in Sugar Loaf, New York or even easier save time & gas and

buy online with the no risk comfort of a satisfaction guarantee.

New photograph of Hudson River, NYC

This is a new image that will be going into our gallery very soon.  It will also be part of the large print series that is coming soon. It has somewhat of a vintage look, like images from the 30′s and 40′s.  For now it remains untitled.

Photographs -Going up a bit in print size

We have been selling photographs in our gallery for some time now and have seen some mini trends. These are trends that don’t seem to last long. For a while small 5″ and 7″ prints were very common sellers. Now I rarely see them go out the door. Right now it’s larger 14″ and 16″ prints matted and framed that are selling. This is a trend that seems to be building though. I asked a designer about it and she said that larger prints and paintings were popular now because people want to fill large spaces on there walls with one piece of art for a clean look.

In answer to that all I can say is I’m pleased. I love printing large and have started the ball rolling with a new group of 18″ prints that will be framed and hanging on our walls in the coming weeks and months. As well, I will be doing very large prints in the 24″ to 36″ sizes in the coming months.

So, in our gallery you will have a great choice in sizes and the way you want to decorate your walls with art. Several small pieces or one large piece. The world is your oyster!

Spring in NYC - by john strazza

This image titled Spring in NYC can be seen at our online gallery HERE

The making of the photograph “Man with Hat”

This photograph is certainly one of my most well known images.  People stand and stare at it in the gallery and always have something to say.  It’s a joy to hear the many individual takes on what the image means.   That’s one of the most wonderful parts of my “work.”  People walk in and tell me such great things about my photographs.  Hearing such things was not something I envisioned when I started the gallery, but it’s a nice perk.

Man With Hat by john strazza

Anyway, here is some of what happened on the day I made this photograph.  I hope you find it interesting.

It was a day off from my previous day job in NYC.   I went in to the city with Lisa just to spend the day and walk around.   I never (or rarely) follow anyone to take a photograph.  It’s just not my style.  I usually allow things to come to me and walk into my frame.  But, on this day I saw this man walking tall and proud, confident, and of course I saw the suit and hat.  So I watched from a distance and waited.  Lisa noticed him too.

On the technical end —I had a Voigtlander Bessa R camera with me that day with a 25mm Skopar lens.  This is a very small camera and a tiny lens, very light.  I used an incident light meter and took a reading of the light to know what I was dealing with in terms of exposure.  And with this camera and 25mm lens set all I needed to do was set the focus of the lens at 15 or 20 feet.  I knew everything would be in sharp because this lens has some serious depth of field.  This all took about 30 seconds or less.  I was using black and white 35mm film, probably Plus X set to ISO 80.  It wasn’t great light —the bright light I so often love to shoot in.  It was just kinda grey.

While I was setting up the man walked up to a railing and just stood looking toward the water.  I knew this was the moment to do something, though I felt odd doing it —again not my usual way of working.   I simply walked behind him and stood for only a moment and took two frames barely looking through my finder.  I was still and calm but I moved on quickly and didn’t linger.  It was a serene quiet moment that felt like something special happened.

When I saw the negatives I could just tell these images were great ones, and then seeing the print I knew I had something special.

Both frames were excellent, but I chose to print only one and leave the other for another time.  The difference between the two is that he moved his fingers open in one and closed them in the other.

This photograph had an instant fame effect when posted on various photo forums, (something I don’t do much now) but it let me know that the image did have emotional reach and that people simply connected with it.  Some marketing people noticed it and asked if it could be used in various projects that were note worthy, one being “A Life Worth Living.”

In my gallery I see it too, people just connect with it and want to have it in their homes, be it a small, medium or large print, all seem to do well.

So, that’s pretty much it.  Man with Hat.  A simple black and white photograph, with nice lines and a message that touches the soul.  The meaning of which is determined by the viewer, but also by me.  The balance of which seems to just work.

I’m grateful for such moments where visual elements come together —you can’t plan such things, but you can be there and respond to them if you see them.   It is these things that we look for that move us to focus a lens and click a shutter.  “We are (the structure and the elements) and therefore we see and respond to them .. even if only by our intuition.” js

If you are interested in purchasing this image, follow this link to the Man with Hat page in our online gallery.

Thank you for reading.  js

Strazza Fine Art & Photography Gallery

This is a slide show about our gallery in Sugar Loaf, NY.  It shows some paintings and photographs. You’ll find some links and information on how to visit the gallery in person or online.  We do hope to see you.  Enjoy the slides. John & Lisa Strazza

Large new triptych painting by Lisa Strazza

5×10 foot, 3 panel painting.  Acrylic on Canvas.

"Eclipse" by Lisa Strazza

Understanding Abstract Art

Isn’t it funny that the very people that say that they don’t understand abstract art are the same type of people that will drive to New England in the fall just to see the changing leaves. People that will sit on the beach and enjoy the random pattern of waves, or simply gaze at the sky and notice the amazing sunset and cloud formations.

The fact is that the average person finds great beauty, emotion and inner peace in the totally random abstract patterns which exist in our every day life. The changing leaves for example have no pattern, there is no rhyme or reason why each leave selects the color variation that it does ( and if there is a scientific reason the variables would be so complex that I find it hard to believe one would find it soothing). Yet every year there is great beauty in the intense random pattern of foliage and the beautiful changing palate of colors. Who could predict a sunset or find identical snowflakes. You can’t because these beautiful patterns in nature are randomly chaotic and abstract by design.

Another interesting thing about an abstract painting is that after the painting is completed it is still part of a creative process… by you the viewer. Non-abstract (representational paintings) are paintings that have recognizable subjects like a still life of apples or a landscape of a barn. These paintings are more about the subject mater that is represented. When you look at them you may have a certain feeling about apples or barns, but the creative process pretty much stops there. Abstract Expressionist artists are concerned with the act of painting itself and the expression of emotion more then with the representation of a subject. These paintings are about the artists feelings, thoughts and emotions. You can enjoy and discover something new in a painting every time you look at it. The way you see and feel about an abstract work of art comes from your experience, perspective and emotional point of view. As the viewer you are part of the interpretive process. Therefore, take the time to look – feel, experience the work… much like you would a beautiful sunrise. And know that whatever you are feeling, whatever it is that you like or dislike, there is no right or wrong only hopefully (an educated) appreciation.

Abstract Expressionism and the “Cedar Bar”

 

The "Cedar Bar" by Lisa Strazza

 

In the Mid 1950s the topic of Abstract Expressionism dominated the American art scene and spirited conversations among artists.  The Cedar Tavern was the meeting place and the watering hole in Manhattan for these artists like Jackson Pollock, William de Kooning, Mark Rothko, Franz Kline, Robert Motherwell,  and a few lesser known but equally brilliant artists like Pietro Antonio Narducci.  The Cedar was located on University Place and 8th Street in Greenwich Village.

So what could a 20 year old in the 1980s in New Jersey know about the Cedar Tavern?

Let me tell you a story of a bold and colorful window full of abstract paintings.  They were displayed masterfully and very out of place in a second story window among the shoe maker and dry cleaner’s on main street in Denville, NJ.   Every time I went past it I would look up and enjoy the magnificent work.  One Saturday, moved to go up the narrow old stairway I knocked on the door. It was the home and Studio of Pietro Antonio Narducci.   It actually took me several times of persevering, calling, chancing that he would be open, and knocking on his door before I actually met him weeks later.  He was a recluse who suffered from agoraphobia therefore rarely ventured out and let very few people in.  He was a small framed old Italian man with a warm smile who never came to the door without a proper hat and jacket.  He had great enthusiasm, and I was lucky enough to be let into his world.    

As a young academic and studied painter with a little college and an over zealous spirit, I showed him my latest work.  He asked me several questions and within minutes I realized that I didn’t know anything.  Being the kind of person that I am I took it upon myself to research (do my homework) and do my best to know what I was talking about before our second meeting.  I guess that impressed him and so we made it a weekly thing. He taught me, challenged me, mentored me, bettered me and eventually befriended me. He helped give me the confidence I needed to pursue abstract painting. Narducci marveled at the boldness at which I approached a canvas and saw something in me that was pure and special.

In the end I would set up my palette and sit down to paint in his studio. Narducci “Tony” would break out a bottle of Rhine Wine (usually Thunderbolt or Ripple) smack it down at the foot of my easel and say “lets get stoned.”  At that we would both break out in laughter because we were both pretty straight laced and neither of us really drank… And so I would stay for a few hours and nurse my way thru half a glass of wine while he talked about old times at the Cedar Tavern (Cedar Bar as he called it).  I painted, and painted as if it was flowing out of me.  He talked about Bill (William de Kooning) and his close friend Franz (Franz Kline), the girls, the drinking and the passionate arguments as if they happened yesterday.  He took me right in.  It’s amazing to me now to realize that I had the privilege of learning directly from a founder of the Abstract Expressionist movement.  Pietro Antonio Narducci died in March of 1999, and I miss him to this very day.

In the late 1980s I entered a few of my works into the International SOHO Art Competition and won an award for the painting of the “Cedar Bar.” 

Until recently I had never put the painting up for acquisition.  It is very special to me and to date one of my most significant works.  You can see the painting for sale and on display at the Strazza Gallery in Sugar Loaf, NY.  

Strazza Gallery

More about Pietro Antonio Narducci.

Decorating decisions with Abstract paintings

When decorating we often find ourselves returning to the same store 2 or 3 times to make a decision on an important furniture piece.  A focal piece like a sofa or dinning table is a large purchase and requires considerable thought.  Buying abstract artwork is an important and personal decision as well.  A large abstract painting can be the centerpiece of your room.  Usually someone connects instantly with a like or dislike on a painting.  It’s a personal experience.  Sometimes you won’t even know why one painting will pull you in over another but it can be a very powerful connection. Other times your appreciation for a piece of art will grow with each time you see it.

When you think of it, it is similar to your friends.  Some you connected with right away while others took time to get to know and love.  Just keep an open mind.  It’s like a journey of discovery that begins with appreciation of the art itself and evolves into an admired piece you’ll enjoy and live with for years to come.

Each abstract expressionistic painting is uniquely different.  They are not like flower or landscape paintings that can be part of a series with a similar look.  Abstract paintings capture an artist’s specific feelings via thoughts and gestures that use paints to express spontaneous emotions.  Therefore unlike (most) furniture, these paintings are unique and one of a kind.

So… in looking for Art there is a risk.  I was a furniture salesperson for a short time many years ago.  I found when customers shopped around, about 90% of them came back and purchased the first piece that they liked.  Now as an artist I have had more than one experience with clients who connected strongly with a piece and decided to “think it over” (without having me hold it for them) only to come back and find that it had sold to someone else.  I have also seen clients purchase without delay having had their own past story of “ the one that got away”.  They vow never again to lose out on a piece of art that they so strongly connect with.

Most importantly whether you make your decisions quickly or gradually enjoy the experience.  Find that piece of abstract artwork that you’ll really love.  When you do make a bold decision and grab it before it gets away!

FYI:  My suggestion if your decorating from scratch… Get the artwork first.  It’s much easier to match furnishings and color schemes to a painting, than the other way around. You won’t want to compromise with a piece of artwork that you don’t really like just because it matches your sofa color.

Buying Artwork (being a patron of art)

I have found lately that when a painting of mine sells I almost immediately feel inspired.  I am more likely to feel a lifting of my spirit and an overwhelming drive to create.  So as an artist I find myself questioning my motives…  am I inspired by money?  

Imagine a time long ago when an artist, despite never selling a piece of work, had no worries of paying expenses.   They painted how and when they wanted and never had the  suppressing weight of financial worries to stifle their creativity .  Years ago it was quite common for an affluent family to be a patron to an artist.  They would take the artist in to live in their spare cottage house or guest studio without requiring payment for room and board.  In Renaissance Italy it was considered the key to social status. Even in more modern day cultures it was seen as a upscale way to support an artist and a prestigious honor to show what beautiful artwork that they’d generously afforded the artist to create.   

I have almost always painted and had the ability to create, but I have to admit when someone buys a painting and affords me a month or so of living expenses, creativity flows much easier.  I’m convinced that the artists of that former era would not have been able to accomplish such amazing contributions to the art world had it not been for the sponsorship of such patrons.  

As for me I am not inspired by money.  Rather I am hindered when I dread it’s necessity.  

For now… I hope that it gives insight to know that when someone buys a masterful painting they may indeed be affording that artists the ability to rise above their everyday concerns and find the inspiration for their next masterpiece.