Possibly dumb q - wrt to artwork in house

[Deleted]

Do you think it's tacky to have prints of famous paintings hanging in your house? Someone said this to me the other day. I have a print of Monet's The Artist's Garden hanging in my living room. I was like, well if I had 60 million dollars to spare I might buy the real thing but since I don't... ^o) lol. Is this something that a lot of people think?

[emjacobs]

I think it depends on the quality of the print. A $15 poster of the print tossed into a cheap frame doesn't look that great. A $50 print on higher quality paper in a wood frame looks great.

I have no problem with it because I don't have any friends that could afford originals.

[TBM]

We used to have some hanging, but at some point it just seemed weird to me to have them in my own home.

I have no idea why, and it doesn't usually bother me when I see them in other people's homes.

I grew up with framed prints of famous works of art hanging in the house, (11x14 at most), works by Degas, The Gleaners....a revolving exhibit in the hallway.lol It was our first exposure to art. Over the years they were replaced by pieces that my mom collected or inherited, and originals by local artists and artists in the family.

I think everyone I knew had a print of some famous-ish painting in their home, but it wasn't like everyone I knew had a Van Gogh or Monet in their home, which did seem to happen in the 80s. Maybe that is what made me decide not to hang prints of famous art in my own house...all of the Starry Nights, Irises and Water Lilies that I was seeing everywhere. Although I was more of a Matisse fan.

[bunnymendelbaum]

I'm with TBM. I do think it is weird, but I don't know why exactly. I do think it depends on the quality though.

I'm personally not that into Monet and in general the art we have in our house is a little weirder. To me, highly recognizable prints sometimes just seem a little generic. I like our art to 'mean' something to us, which when I think about it could just mean we really like it. So if you like your Monet, keep it!

And curious: was this comment directly in response to your house or a general statement?

[Deleted]

Mar 24, 2013 10:30:29 GMT -5 bunnymendelbaum said:

And curious: was this comment directly in response to your house or a general statement?

She was talking about a mutual friend of ours who has a print of Girl with a Pearl Earring hanging up. It's nicely framed but I can see her point about it being so recognizable. On the other hand, if you think it's beautiful and seeing it every day gives you pleasure, what's the harm? I was just curious about what everyone else thought.

[sailorgray]

I think that if you like it, go for it. I have Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth (he was a local artist...does that make a difference?) professionally matted and framed in our living room. I think that's okay, but The Kiss in a thin gold frame with no matting? Not my thing, but I know others wouldn't really notice. To be totally honest, I couldn't care less what you hang as long as it's not hung too high. Now that's one of my biggest pet peeves.

[heygrey]

i don't like it in the sense that i don't really like mass produced decor. it just kind of says "hey, i have no idea what my style is or how to decorate, but i've seen this done somewhere before."

for the people who truly love a piece, even if it is massed produced, you can tell based on their other decor choices.

[Marmee]

Not if its a signed & numbered print. Otherwise I'm not a fan.

[pamela]

I think that's pretty snotty. What's the point of great artwork if it can only appropriately be seen in a museum?

[Deleted]

I'm in the whatever the hell camp too. If you like it and it makes you happy, carry on.

For me like pps said it's all about the framing. I've seen some original works look just awful due to the framing and then I've seen some kiddie fingerpaintings look awesome because of the framing.

I don't have any. "Fine" art isn't really my thing and I don't have a house/decor style where it really works.

[Deleted]

I'm in the "who cares" camp. Why should I not be able to enjoy a famous painting just because I don't have millions lying around?

[auntie]

Mar 24, 2013 12:26:10 GMT -5 pamela said:

I think that's pretty snotty. What's the point of great artwork if it can only appropriately be seen in a museum?

A reproduction isn't the same as an original in terms of experience whether it's matted and framed or featured in a book.

That said, it seems sort of weird to frame something as if it were the original. I'm OK with museum posters that feature a work within the context of announcing an exhibition. 

[thatgirl2478]

meh it's not my cup of tea, but then I prefer my art 'original' or at least not overly recognizable. But if you like it go for it.

[tarheels]

Something well known like the impressionists or Girl with a Pearl Earring, etc, would seem a bit odd displayed large and in a place of prominence in a grown-up home to me, I think. But a small version of it, hung in a hallway or private part of the home where it can make you happy, that seems NBD to me. Or used on notecards or a mouse pad or a coffee mug, NBD. I can't quite explain why I feel that way. A large poster of it, framed or unframed, wouldn't bother me in a college apartment, when you're still young and broke and may not have developed your own POV yet, but as an adult, a poster of some of the most common art known to modern man seems...uninspired?

And as TBM mentioned, I remember all my little girlfriends in the 80s/early 90s having up the impressionists! I guess that was a big thing, now that I think back on it. I had a poster of the painting you're speaking of, OP, because it matched my Laura Ashley bedding. My best friend had Starry Night in her bedroom.

There's so much great original art available at art schools and craft fairs, etc, that I personally wouldn't choose a poster of one of the most recognizable paintings in the world over original art. Art doesn't have to be expensive. I got an original oil painting from a New Orleans street vendor for $35. And I got a watercolor portrait of a woman for $15 from an art school - it doesn't have "meaning" - I just liked it and no one else in the world has it. I'm not saying all art has to be original - I have commercially produced photographs of the Gulf Coast on my kitchen walls and framed Currier & Ives prints in the guest bath, but something less common I personally think is nice.