Consider Art

This morning, I sorted gloves.



I found 11 individual gloves - and two matched pairs.




How does this happen? Perhaps glove manufacturers secretly infuse one of each pair with a ferrous nano-fiber so sensitive that it is drawn to the earth's magnetic core. Maybe it's a diabolical conspiracy with sock manufacturers...



At any rate, I decided that (yet again) I will be giving my family gloves for Christmas.

On Christmas morning, most of the gifts under the tree in our house are practical, useful items, and not terribly expensive. Often we just gift wrap things we would have gotten each other anyway - a jar of honey, say, or an interesting book.

But I do try to give everyone on my list one special gift - something distinctive and meaningful.

Original artwork can be a highly distinctive, deeply meaningful gift.

And in the North Country, fine art prices are outragously affordable relative to other areas. I recently spoke to an artist who exhibits both in the North Country and in Westchester County, near New York City; she told me that she at least doubles her prices for the southern market. She explained, no one in that region would take her seriously as an artist if she offered her works at North Country prices, so, ironically, she would not be able to sell as much.

At the Adirondack Artists' Guild, most of the work sells for under $200.00 - much of it under $100.00. You can buy a large, perfectly framed, compelling and original piece for under $1,000.00.

For fine art - that's a steal.

Bluseed Studios is currently featuring a show, called "Unique Blend", of work by 10 diverse local artists. Every piece is available cash & carry: in other words, if you buy something, you can take it right away instead of the usual SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) whereby you would have to wait til the close of the show. When a piece is sold, the artist will replace it.

I haven't been there yet myself, but I plan to go soon - and I will write about it for you.





The other day, my older son asked me the difference between an "artist" and an "artisan". I didn't really know - and the dictionary wasn't very illuminating. He thought a moment, and said, "An artist has another job and does artwork on the side, but an artisan makes a living through his art."





By that definition, several of the participants in "Unique Blend" are artisans - but even the artists ride an edge where their art needs to be financially viable to justify the time involved.




Tim Fortune, Saranac Lake's godfather of art, is quoted in a recent issue of Adirondack Life as saying,



"Artists are businesspeople. A lot of people think the arts are a nice diversion created by people who have the time to do so and don't understand that we are running a business and have to make money."




As you think about gift giving this holiday season, remember that your choices impact local business people of all sorts. And if you, too, like to give just a few exceptional gifts each year, consider art.