Post #289809 by JenTiki on Mon, Mar 5, 2007 12:21 PM

I don't collect based on what/who I think will be popular or successful. I collect based on what I like to look at. I realize some people see art as a "financial investment," I see it as a "happiness investment." My level of happiness has recently been raised by adding two of Chongolio's mini paintings and a Ken "Little Lost Tiki" Ruzic ink study to my home. I don't know if either of these artists will ever be as "popular" or "successful" as Shag, by the definitions I think you're using, although I think they should. But I'd much rather look at their art any day. I don't look at it and say "Ho hum, just another formulaic Chongolio painting." Everything they do is new and different. I believe I could recognize their work in a crowded gallery, but not because they use the same images over and over again. I also believe in supporting artists that create for their own joy and sanity, rather than for commercial success, and who are accessible to their fans. I also appreciate that Randy and Ken know that not all of their fans have loads of money to shell out on huge paintings, so they're careful to include affordable art for the rest of us. Some of the carvers are starting to do the same by creating resin copies of handcarved pendants that would go for hundreds of dollars if we could afford the originals. These are the artists I will continue to support and collect because they realize that sometimes "low-brow" means "low-budget" too.