Why are We Buying Art

The reasons one buys art are many. The few that I could think of right away, sitting here in my armchair are presented below in ascending order of engagement levels:

REASON 1: To take back a piece from one’s travel – in this case the eyes have just freshly seen a category and it is the category that appeals and one chooses one particular piece  without too much delving into the details. It may not be the best of the category but it works just fine as a beautiful thing to take back home as a token of one’s travel experience.  These art purchases warrant little research and little money and little mind space. Come easy go easy.

REASON 2: To decorate a space – in this case one goes out with the space specifications in mind and looks for something suitable that fits in. The entire spectrum of art possibilities is open! For wall art – one chooses from paintings, photo prints, textile artworks, ceramic artworks and in-situ created works like murals and mirror-inlays!

REASON 3: To invest money for the sake of the money – I do hear of artworks selling for millions – even though I can find nothing in them – not even a dot! But there are brand names involved – the artist the gallery – and the provenance. These are cold commercial investments with some high-powered brokers convincing someone else that he will get back in the future more than he gives today. And that makes the big-bucks art world go around.

REASON 4: To hustle – One known objective to sell art – which is impossible to put down a firm value of – is to convert black money to white …. but these hustles have less to do with art and more to do with unlawful tax evasion methods that I have not yet fully understood.

MY REASON: To be able to live within the surroundings of that beauty – The beholder gets smitten by the art to such an extent that even days after beholding it, the vision has a grip on the mind. Like the entanglements of a fresh love, it pops up unexpected anywhere and everywhere enticing and consuming her or him. Naturally if the bank balance does not permit it, it becomes an unfulfilled love and the victim remains in love with that unacquirable artwork forever. No Devdas story in this though! Sooner or later one stops being distraught and life goes on. But such people are particularly susceptible to relapses when another object of beauty comes along! And the cycle starts again. This is perhaps the reason to which maximum number of art purchases might be ascribed. And it is this group addicted to beauty that is a bit ‘na-ilaaj’ or helpless …

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Disclaimer: No statistical research was done to arrive at these conjectures over a cup of superb boiled Indian tea!  😀

jaina mishra

Sept 2018