How does one choose a mate? Fine art is no different. There’s an undeniable connection. You may very well not know why, but without it, what’s the point? What you love, is what you love. Who would want to live with anything less?

Here are some tips when you start building your art collection:

Style and Aesthetic: Think about your home decor style and choose art that complements it. Consider how the piece will fit into your living space and what type of mood you want to provoke; whether it’s quirky and eclectic or cozy and soothing.

Size: Scale is one of the most important factors in the placement of a painting. The impact of a painting can be accentuated with the size of the corresponding wall and surrounding furniture.

Budget: From an artist’s point of view, I never want the money to be a reason someone can’t own one of my paintings. I’m always happy to work within art budgets, set up payment plans or even offer reproductions of paintings that I can add oil paint to provide texture while coming in at a lower price point than an original.

Do you need to frame a painting? That’s entirely personal preference and completely optional. Most of my artwork is usually hung without a frame. Whichever you choose, frame or no frame, I’ve found keeping the theme the same through out the room helps maintain continuity in style and decor.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR & ARTIST: BRADFORD BRENNER

Born June 9th, 1959 in New York City, NY to art collector parents, Bradford Brenner has been a professional artist for the last 35 years.  His work has been featured in numerous national art publications and can be found in private and corporate collections throughout the world.  Brenner’s gallery and studio is located on the historic Plaza in Healdsburg, CA.

Brad received his education from both UCSB (University of California, Santa Barbara) and San Diego State, and is primarily self-taught as an artist. Receiving creative inspiration and ideas intuitively, his emotive imagery and loose brushstrokes reflect an instinctive and intuitive spirit. Collectors are drawn to the freedom and looseness that represents his unique style, and highly spontaneous rich, multi-layered works. Brenner draws upon a wealth of artistic influences, including his passion for and study of the Old Masters, the Impressionists, the Tonalists and the Abstract Expressionists to create a style that is uniquely his own.