I love original artwork. When I fall in love, there is no greater thrill for me than to be able to own an original piece that I can cherish always and forever. Years ago when I was gainfully employed as an art teacher, I stalked admired Kadir Nelson’s work (still do) and wished that I could afford one of his originals. One day, there was a painting that appeared on his web site titled “Rainbow”. It was a smaller painting, but was within my budget at only $1000 and I loved it. It spoke to me (cue the wind chimes). The image was a close up of a woman’s face with a rainbow painted across her eyelid. I waited and waited to buy it, debating whether or not I could make that type of investment. When I finally mustered up the courage to purchase the painting it was gone. To this day it is one of my biggest regrets. Now it haunts me (cue the weepy violins).
Since then I vowed to seize opportunities to purchase original art when I can.
That being said, 826LA held an OH NO art auction with Dan Santat back in August. I saw that Sean Qualls (who I also stalk admire) had a piece up for bidding and I jumped at the chance to own it. A few days went by and I won the piece! Happy Day!!!
Not only did I get to add a new piece of art to my (modest) collection and a signed copy of Dan’s awesome book, OH NO! (Or, How my Science Project Destroyed the World), with a signed limited edition print, but I was also supporting 826LA, a non-profit organization that provides free literacy programs to thousands of students living in underserved neighborhoods in Los Angeles.