The Need for Art

Art is a calling. Some of us also choose to make it a career, but it’s not a career in the traditional sense of the word (i.e. work till you’re 65, retire with a good pension, take up golf…). I have no desire to retire at a set age and live out my days on a yacht or a golf course. My wish is to make money from my art so that I can keep creating art for the rest of my life.

Sometimes I think it would be easier to have a 9-5 job working for someone else. If you run your own business like I do, you probably understand that the marketing and self promotion side of it can be tough, sometimes awkward. It’s hard to put yourself out there and actively promote yourself and your product. With artists, it can be even harder because our product is so utterly personal, an extension of ourselves. We make a painting, and there is only one in the world like it. It is completely unique. And once it has been realized to the best of our ability, we give it up to someone who will love and cherish it, so that we can go on making more.

Granted… unlike many of the products that small business owners wholeheartedly sell and promote, art doesn’t promise “results” such as weight loss, a healthier heart, clear skin, or better social media skills. So what is the big deal? Unless you’re investing in the big guys like Koons or Morikami, art won’t make you rich; in fact, it will cost you something.

But seasoned collectors know a secret the rest of the world has yet to learn: that art is an actual need. The walls and shelves of these collectors are teeming with life, energy, and countless stories. If you’re ever lucky enough to walk through a home like this and hear some of those stories, it’s an experience you’ll never forget. Every painting or sculpture, and the artist behind it, has a story. Collectors buy art because it speaks to them on a personal level and helps them better tell their own stories. Art fulfills that deep and unquenchable ache we all have to be surrounded by beauty. Have you ever been inside a house devoid of any original art? It’s quite soulless. But a house that has been thoughtfully and lovingly filled with good and beautiful things truly feels like a home.

So, I would like to take this moment to express my gratitude towards all my collectors, past, present, and future. Thank you for allowing me to be part of your story. I hope to contribute more beautiful art to the world and to your homes for many years to come!

P.S. If you have purchased my work in the past, I would love to see a picture of it in its new home! Feel free to email me at annarosebain@gmail.com. And be sure to check out my website, artworkbyannarose.com, to see my latest work.

Below: Photos of my collectors and painting subjects with their art, either purchased or privately commissioned.

The Need for Art