What artwork/artists are you collecting?

I think most would agree that some mainstream ones (e.g. Shag) are getting a bit expensive. Which artists are you collecting where you think they'll be as popular or "successful" as Shag?

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.

shag too expensive!!??.....i rmember the days when you could buy a shag painting for $500-600 bucks....back then, that was too expensive for me...of course i kick myself over and over for not going into hock to buy one when i had the chance....that said, I have works by the following:

J.Tingler (new and inexpensive -check this guy out i bought a tiki painting and cool shrunken head Painting on ebay)
mitch o'connell
shag (yes i have one now)
ken keirns
glen barr
doug horne
Paul moch
rod fildebrant
ryan heshka
van
crazy al evans
benzart
kirsten easthope
sam gambino
flounder
johnny crap
mark pilon
that guy that makes the cool 50's style ray-guns out of blown glass(i forget his name)
and
tim bradstreet

there's probably a few more, but i agree with the above post...i buy what i like to look at, and if it turns out to be worth something someday, great, if not, it doesn't mean i don't enjoy the art any less...besides, i'm gonna win the lottery , which makes all of this a moot point....

As the wise posters above stated, buy what you love, if it becomes valuable it is a bonus.

A lot of our collection has appreciated dramatically in worth, but it does me no good, since I never plan on selling them. The paintings were purchased or commissioned because we love them, not as an investment. The fact that they are increasing in value, actually costs me more money to take out insurance policies on them to cover losses should they ever be stolen or ruined.

We try to limit our collection to a tiki/Hawaiiana whenever possible, therefore the whole house and collection flows with a theme. Most artists have been willing to commission something in this style, even if it is not there usual theme.

Our collection includes:

Miles Thompson (our favorite artist and friend)
Shag
Sas Christian
Glenn Barr
Kirsten Easthrope
Amanda Visell
Davey Wong
James Wong
Tim Biskup
Ryden
Aaron Marshall
Alex Kirwan
Seonna Hong
Dave Burke
Flounder
Andrew Brandou

I collect what I like, I dont view any of it as an investment. Ive got a mental list of artists I want to get art off. I am working towards a mix of hot rod art and tiki art. Currently I have art from:
Finkdaddy (1st carving)
Foamy (original water colour)
Kirby (print)
Sam Gambino (print)
Dave (pinstriped panel)

I am also waiting on a piece from Benzart, and looking forward to another piece from a TCer from the art swap :)

I have also got a few original pieces from my cruise to the South Pacific.

guys, i never said it was for investment purposes. I was just curious what you guys thought as far as up and coming artists who have the potential to be Shag/Ryden like. I agree with everything said about buying what you love...

Will anyone get as big as Shag? The dude was in marketing, he knows how to get his product out there (merchandising). This promotes his work, the more people see it and like it, the more it becomes desirable. It becomes a self-feeding positive reinforcement cycle, where more and more demand is created. More power to him I say.

The other thing is Shag has a great style, but it still allows him to pick a wide variety of subject matter to keep his work fresh. Look at the different things has has painted in the last 5 years. It also allows him to appeal to a much wider audience.

When Shag started, his work was totally fresh and new - now Shag "style" painters are popping up everywhere, imitation as a form of flattery and all that.

So for someone to get "big" they need something fresh with mass appeal.

I dont know much about the wider "lowbrow" art arena, but Im thinking Flounder's tiki art is great, and Im expecting him to flourish accordingly. :) No, I dont have any of his art - but I wish I did!

Kustom Kahoona

[ Edited by: hewey 2007-03-06 00:27 ]

I find Jeff Koons' work hugly entertaining. He produces items (cups figurines etc)which are affordable and often irksome to established art people.

Jim Woodrings illustrations and books and figures are splendid too.
http://store.jimwoodring.com/

I wish I were smarter about what art to and what not to bother collecting. As you folks were speaking of...this is just stuff I like.

I'm a big Doug Horne fan! I have quite a few of his pieces. They have a unique quality to them--computer art, but not, hand drawn, but not.

On 2007-03-06 09:57, Digitiki wrote:
I'm a big Doug Horne fan! I have quite a few of his pieces. They have a unique quality to them--computer art, but not, hand drawn, but not.

I second that, I'm a big Doug Horne fan. He paints cool stuff like old bowling alleys, bars, cars, all 50's era stuff, and adds the tiki to make it the perfect combination.
Naturally I'm a fan of SHAG too, but you have to be an insider to actually be able to buy his stuff now. All of his gallery pieces are sold before the show even opens.
When something gets that mainstream, it's not as fun anymore. That being said, I still love his work.

Who I collect is in pictures here:

http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?topic=23170&forum=15&3

I just buy what I like. I don't buy art for what it might be worth to someone else. In my Tiki Lounge I have prints by:
Heather Watts
Sam Gambino
Jamie Odell
Tom Thordarson
Jan Hoowij "Balinese Girl"
Hokusai "In the Well of the Great Wave of Kanagawa"

http://thataintart.blogspot.com/2007/03/ryden-report.html
I love seeing this stuff, Shags in here.

More than collect, I show you wHAT i did in a day or two

Good art is not cheap. Cheap art is not good.

Talk about Shag getting expensive, I stopped in to see the recent Shag show at M Modern Gallery in
Palm Springs, and one of the paintings sold for $33,000. Glad I bought an original several years ago!
Most of the art I collect is from artists whose work I discovered at La Luz de Jesus Gallery in Los Angeles (including Shag). The artists currently hanging in my house are:

Shag
Mark Ryden
Gary Taxali
Doug Horne
Niagara
Kalynn Campbell
Derek Yaniger
Seamus
Richie Fahey
Cherry Capri
Ryan Heshka
Dawn Frasier
Heather Watts
Crazy Al Evans
Sam Gambino
Carlo

I agree that you should buy art you love to look at, and if it appreciates then that's a bonus.
Sometimes I do wonder how much my Shag originals would sell for, but I think I would miss them
more than I would enjoy the cash. Artist whose work I hope to acquire someday include:

Edgar Leeteg
Tim Biskup
Keith Weesner
Robert Williams

[ Edited by: tiki-riviera 2007-03-17 09:04 ]

What Mark Ryden painting is it?

It sounds like there are alot of nice collections of originals and I'll assume some of these are prints in TC homes. I have a couple of Shag prints but a painting would be out of my league even at prices a few years ago. I have a Clayton brothers drawing that they did for me a couple of years ago for free so that was a good deal! I have a book of prints by Bill Carman, a local artist, some nice work by my fiance, an architect/artist/graphic designer, a surplus of my own crap, and various thrift store finds. I'm pretty sure the biggest art mistake I ever made was not buying a couple of 30 bux each black velvets at a yard sale a couple of years ago. They were incredible and after seeing some Leeteeg from his book I'd swear he painted them, though I don't recall signatures. Even if they were knock offs they were incredibly realistic and beautifully rendered likenesses of a Chinese man and an old Chinese woman. It's hard as a struggling artist to buy much artwork, though I've got some nice trades coming up.

Here are a few pictures I took of some of my favorites, sorry for the poor picture quality

Mark Ryden print "Exotica"

Shag original painting

Richie Fahey Print

Niagara Print

Kalynn Campbell print

Shag original my sister commissioned from Shag for my wedding

I find it's a little more difficult to collect in Seattle than Southern California,
but my wife says I already have enough!

Shag original my sister commissioned from Shag for my wedding

I love this one! you're a lucky guy to get one commissioned. I tried to get one for my wedding but to no avail. oh well.

[ Edited by: GMAN 2007-04-28 03:56 ]

Here is the drawing the Clayton brothers sketched for me when they visited Boise.

I'm just getting started on my tikiphile obsession, and I am fiscally challenged (aka broke) so the Shag originals are outta my league (though I wish they were not!) So, unless someone is tired of an orignal they have hanging around and want to donate it to me, I will have to limit myself to prints of some of these artists that have been previously mentioned.

Not sure if anyone else has mentioned Todd V's art here. I spotted his work on EBay and like it a lot. Some of the smaller pieces are even in my price range! Search for "Todd V retro" and you'll find his EBay listings.

Another artist that I like a lot is Burton Morris. He's not done anything tiki that I know of, but he does fun, vibrant pop art. He's a local (Pittsburgh) boy who made it big. His originals are cool and three dimensional. Unfortunately, I can't afford his originals, or even his prints for that matter -- but I was able to score a calendar of his work that a local print shop made. I took the images from that and had some of them framed. Voila! Almost Free Burton Morris prints!

Miles Thompson! Next is some OA

I think wood carvers are churning out sum great pieces of sculpture. I guess Witco is no longer made by Westenhaver's co. so he's not current in the still creating sense, but I'm hanging onto the big pieces I have. I have an RL Blair that would cost a couple thou. from his website that I "collected" at the thrift for 5 bux. He's got alot of new tiki sculptures and fountains that are very well executed. I'd say his prices are easily in league with Shag's for Shag's originals. Who knows what will happen with Witco prices, bigbro's book should give them an at least temporary boost. Maybe permanent?

Miles Thompson's art is really fun and I'd collect his work if I could afford to buy art. I guess Robert Williams is sayin' Tiki is over as a lowbrow fad or whatever. I don't know if that is really happening from what I've seen. It won't ever be over for me. Robert Williams is the creator of the term lowbrow, when he originally dubbed his show "The Lowbrow Art of R. Williams", it was meant as a slam against the "fine art" people in NYC who didn't approve of his subject matter etc. Lately I've seen it used to describe outsider art which is supposed to be another thing entirely, ie untrained artists, often handicapped or otherwise challenged. I would not put outsider art and lowbrow in the synonym category.

R. Williams meant it in a tongue and cheek way when he said lowbrow, some people are interpreting it exactly opposite. I find the whole "pop surrealist" term that the art world uses for "low brow" somewhat useful but it's limited too. Everything has to be sub-genrified anymore.

I'm going to try to collect originals over prints in the future and if something I like becomes shagadelically valuable then that's a bonus. I almost parted with the Witcos in a weak engagement ring moment last month. I love those damn things though, lol.

Shag's work is so advertising friendly that it's sort of peerless in that respect. Originals in galleries and Disney passport brochures? Ryden's originals sell for far more than Shag's but I don't see anybody asking him to rework Pink Panther on a merchandising campaign. Apples and oranges. Shag is kind of a modern day Norman Rockwell. Ryden is like the next R. Williams. I love Rockwell by the way...

[ Edited by: Sneakytiki 2007-04-08 20:24 ]

I found this art work when I was at a Tiki Event. Its a water color piece of the Disneyland Tiki Room. Ive seem simulator art, yet not as nice as this one!

[ Edited by: TikiArtHunter 2007-04-08 12:47 ]

[ Edited by: TikiArtHunter 2007-04-08 16:34 ]

Much better-----Welcome to TC.

[ Edited by: GROG 2007-04-11 01:12 ]

Yes, I noticed that too. I like how Tikiarthunter has seen that painting at a Tiki event but also finds it online. I think it's a sign that Tikiarthunter should buy it for themselves and also a sign that they are spamming. :roll:

No me!be not a spamming. Me..... not know where the best place to post..... me... finds! Since Im new and not too fimliar with the boards I didnt want to have anyone miss out on cool my find!
Hey man; I just thought it was cool, and just wanted to contruibe something!That was it!

[ Edited by: TikiArtHunter 2007-04-08 16:27 ]

Well since I did see the piece from a friend that went to a Tiki event Give me a break!

[ Edited by: TikiArtHunter 2007-04-08 16:28 ]

On 2007-03-06 09:57, Digitiki wrote:
I'm a big Doug Horne fan! I have quite a few of his pieces. They have a unique quality to them--computer art, but not, hand drawn, but not.

Doug Horne does have really good stuff, I like the combo of not only Tiki, but the whole retro/lounge feeling as well. I think I have 3-4 of his prints.

Heather Watts is another good artist as well. She was quite a lovely person when I met her at Tiki Oasis last year.

On 2007-03-17 08:59, tiki-riviera wrote:
The artists currently hanging in my house are:
Shag, Mark Ryden, Gary Taxali, Doug Horne, Niagara, Kalynn Campbell, Derek Yaniger, Seamus, Richie Fahey, Cherry Capri, Ryan Heshka, Dawn Frasier, Heather Watts, Crazy Al Evans, Sam Gambino, Carlo

Dear Tiki Riviera,
Thank you for your support. Wow! I am honored to be a part of such an amazing collection.
Cheers!
~CC

Mark Ryden a month ago
Mark Ryden now WOW

It will probably take some time to get use to but I think I like Abe Lincoln Ryden better.

On 2007-04-19 19:01, teaKEY wrote:

Mark Ryden now WOW

Looks like he's taking style cues from Little Lost Tiki! :lol:

I believe that Mark Ryden is one of the biggest painters of our time. And Mark knows what colors work best in his almost magical creations. So that's why he went Kinny. Too bad Kinny went Ryden just the other day, as shown in this Paintshop photo seen here.

You got to Kin it to Win it !!!!!!!!! Word to yo Momma

On 2007-04-11 04:35, Cherry Capri wrote:

On 2007-03-17 08:59, tiki-riviera wrote:
The artists currently hanging in my house are:
Shag, Mark Ryden, Gary Taxali, Doug Horne, Niagara, Kalynn Campbell, Derek Yaniger, Seamus, Richie Fahey, Cherry Capri, Ryan Heshka, Dawn Frasier, Heather Watts, Crazy Al Evans, Sam Gambino, Carlo

Dear Tiki Riviera,
Thank you for your support. Wow! I am honored to be a part of such an amazing collection.
Cheers!
~CC

Hi Cherry,

The painting of yours I have is titled "Tonga", which I
purchased from M Modern Gallery. It looks great hanging
above my tiki bar and I've received many comments on how great
it looks! Hope to see more of your work in the future!

[ Edited by: Tonicacat 2008-06-21 12:36 ]

*On 2007-04-20 09:56, tiki-riviera wrote:*Hi Cherry,

The painting of yours I have is titled "Tonga", which I
purchased from M Modern Gallery. It looks great hanging
above my tiki bar and I've received many comments on how great
it looks! Hope to see more of your work in the future!

I remember when you got it and the whole P.S. Mod Tiki tour!

http://www.cherrycapri.com/photos_oasis5.php
I am so glad you are enjoying it! And wouldn't you know it. That is the only ONE painting of mine I have no photos of. I would love it (if you have time) if you could take a nice high resolution picture of it and send it my way. No rush, just sometime...
Cheers!
~CC

New to the world of Tiki....but my first original piece makes me happy.Framed it out in a vintage frame cut down to fit.Artist is ToddVart

[ Edited by: insanetikiers 2007-05-21 03:49 ]