The Best Things in Life

'the best things in life are free, the second best are very, very expensive' -Coco Chanel


   I ran across this quote in a second-hand shop that sold high-end women's clothing and had to laugh. In a way it is true. The best things are free but what are the second best? They are the things we strive after and long to have or do, luxurious items, nice cars, beautiful homes, the opportunity to travel to wonderful, exotic, or far away places. Does art fall into this category? the second best things? Could that be why it is often, 'very, very, expensive'?

  The starving artist may be a cliche, or it may be a cliche that is going out- be that as it may, if it weren't for my hard-working husband I would definitely be one. I have been painting vigorously over the past 11 years and have been able to develop many techniques. I learned illustration, acrylic painting, 3D Hyperrealism, urban sketching, and zentangles just to name a few. However, I also have children and it isn't until this past few months that I have had the time to start marketing my work to any great degree. Thus, I own a reservoir of work. Some people refer to it as a body but I think the sheer amount available in my studio verges on the resevoirial. It will probably come as no surprise that although I have all of the best things in life, my health, freedom to pursue my dreams and ambitions, a wonderful husband, and children I love, the second best are a bit leaner, Unfortunately, I am also a person who loves the second best quite well. Therefore I have been mentally cataloging the things which give me the feeling of having those second best things (ie... The very, very, expensive), but which are actually the best things. Here is an example, I love beautiful things- Passionately! jewelry, art, dishes, decorations, etc.. However, I have come to realize that as an artist I can fill the desire for new and shiny objects by creating them. Often when I am thinking how a room needs something and how I would love to go out and buy something, I will take time, sit down in my studio with the goal to produce something beautiful. This is certainly the idea behind decorative art, and although it isn't always deep and meaningful as some people wish true art to be it definitely boosts my spirits when I see it on the mantelpiece later on or even a few days later.

   I read somewhere that a love of Autumn was a part of being elegant. I haven't the faintest idea why, but I do love Autumn. The seasons and their enjoyment belong to those best things, they provide for us a wonderful and ever-changing display. It has been a goal of mine to spend time painting autumn leaves, berries, and fruits. It belongs to one of the longer-term goals since the time allotted such an activity is brief and full of logistics as the year and school year gets started again. However, I have had my sketchbook with me whenever I have gone out and have been able to render a few of the small treasure offered in this season.

  So back to my initial question of weather art belongs to the second category and whether it is that very categorization that causes it to often be so very, very expensive. First I would like to say that since art supplies are themselves often made of valuable elements- many pigments come from valuable ores such as cobalt, and the paper is often made of special fibers being partially handmade or using a hand finishing technique. And since art is a learned craft that uses a lot of very exact techniques to achieve the desired results, both craft and supplies must be at a certain level to allow the artist's inspiration to take form.

But when those things are taken into account I believe that one of the reasons art belongs in the second-best category is that it takes the ordinary and elevates it to an emotional level. This can be by taking a vegetable or a simple bowl of soup and loaf of bread and creating a lovely painting. It can be a visual expression of high emotion, pain, ecstasy, even logic. The poet speaks to the soul as does the artist. The fact that the plight of man is often mundane results in the overlooking of the beauty within that same sphere. And it is the plight of the artist to draw attention back to that beauty. To capture moments of importance as well as to underline those things which are good in life.

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