The Personality of Art

Art is a direct reflection of your personality, which is a wonderful way to express yourself in your home but is also what makes choosing art for a client so difficult. When we take on a client, initially you get a sense of what that person's taste level is, their broad interests and what they are relatively attracted to or repulsed by. As you spend more time together throughout the design process you build a better understanding of someone's personality but ultimately art is still a very tricky piece of the design puzzle. We love modern art and our clients but matching the two can be a challenge.

To help narrow the field it's best to break it down into a few categories and then have the client choose what speaks loudest to them. Sometimes you are dealing with a connoisseur, a true collector of art, which means they are armed with an already amazing collection to work around but for all those other barren walled individuals, these few categories should help in the decision making. And remember, art changes the mood from room to room, so it's OK to showcase all sides of your personality throughout your home.

Minimalist: These pieces are carefully edited, thoughtful, often monochromatic, but never boring. They are often a single or simple color palette but blend seamlessly between shades, they can have texture and show movement without screaming out any particular subject. It's all open to interpretation. Sometimes simplicity with a rich color, in a great size, is all you need to take a room to the next level. These people are usually open minded, organized and have a classic modern style.

Graphic Design: Sharp edges, simple shapes and bold colors. These pieces are often abstracts, 3D, clean graphics prints that coordinate with the rest of the decor and really shows someones fun personality in an eclectic almost digital kind of way. These people enjoy a little pop of unexpectedness, are more carefree but still calculated, clean orderly and a bit eccentric.

Nature Lover: Pretty landscapes, soothing beach shots, foggy forrest back drops and pretty plant portraits are great for the outdoorsy, more "natural" personalities. This client can be a modern or vintage hippie alike, they are mellow, spiritual, thoughtful, quietly reserved and very influenced emotionally by their environment. In this category you could also include travel photos, documentation of great places and cities people have visited or wish to visit. This type of art is a celebration of all the subtle beauty the planet has to offer, which can be very neutral or quite strong, depending on the subject.

JAC paired this serene ocean shot with our client's mellows vibes, in their Laguna Beach house. Perfect size and great compliment to that riveted grasscloth wallpaper and those sweet purple accent lamps! For a closer look at some of our other projects, click here

Urban Edge: The cool kid's art. These are often great street art portraits, some graffiti or loud proclamation of anti establishment. Also falling into this category are awesome candid photography of "street kids". Skateboarders, surfers, models, iconic actors and musicians, conveying real emotion and movement. This edginess isn't for everyone but speaks volumes for the people it is suited for. These clients are more adventurous, boisterous, energetic and typically young....at heart.

Personal Photos: Sometimes all you need to dress your walls is some blown up black and white framed photos of your family. We're not talking that JC Penny family photo where you're all wearing denim shirts and khakis from the early 2000s. We're talking thoughtful candid family portraits, personal vacation photos or big life event documentation in varying sizes thoughtfully arranged on a focal wall in your home.

As a little side note on a new trend in displaying art; forget the nail! Effortlessly cool stacking and leaning pieces on the mantle or console, layering them strategically on floor or on a bookshelf is a great way to display your pieces without looking too formal. Very California cool.