Design Dilemmas: Finding Affordable Art

Episode 37: How to find art that sings to you that doesn't cost the earth, plus an art experts top tips on what to look for and my own Top Ten affordable art finds.

(Post lead photo credit: Gin Bar - Pam Glew via Art Of Protest Gallery).

I’ve always loved curating wall art for my home. My first stab at a gallery wall was many years ago at our home in Caversham - I pulled together a selection of old family photographs, picked up a load of black frames from Wilkos and covered the wall from top to bottom. It ticked the boxes on many levels - it was a focal point for the room, it was interesting to look at, it was full of memories, plus (bonus points) it was economical to create. Spurred on by the success of my endeavours, I covered an entire wall in the kids playroom with colour photographs, stuck on with copious amounts of Blu-Tack. Looked great up, not quite so great when I removed it all and was left with a wall of oil marks. My next move? A white walled staircase gallery wall (this may sound familiar) which teamed nicely alongside two storeys of Tree wallpaper from Cole & Son. Yes, even back then I was an Insta cliche.

My family gallery wall (mid party). Yes, I am dressed as Margot from The Good Life.

Fast forward a while and I’m still obsessed with decorating my walls. It’s part of my core style - every so often I’ll try something new but I’ll always return to the impact of art to make the rooms in my home my own. I never, ever get bored of looking at art. One of my best ever days was spent with my friend Sam walking around the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) in New York, a place that is an absolute must see if you are visiting the City. It’s stocked full of the most amazing pieces - an entire room of Claude Monet Waterlillies; Van Gogh Starry Nights so close that you can almost touch it. Literally amazeballs. Unfortunately, my family don’t feel the same way about the joy of art - I took them again when we went to New York on holiday last year and they were most unimpressed. Don’t ask me how, but they would rather cut off their own heads than spend the day walking around art galleries. Honestly, I despair.

A few years ago, Joe bought me a Benjamin Murphy print as a birthday present and from that point on, I’ve started to really look at what I like art wise and why I like it. As a result, over the past couple of years, I’ve started spending a little bit more on art - not huge amounts, often no more than the price of a night out, but enough to make me feel as if it’s an investment. It’s MASSIVE fun. Instagram is stuffed full of artists and online galleries and it’s easy to fall down a rabbit hole and come out the other side with a PayPal confirmation e mail. Online galleries such as Nelly Duff and Jealous Gallery are a brilliant source of inspiration. Print Club London is well worth a look - you can search via price which is super helpful.

The Art Of Protest Gallery opened in York seven years ago now, channelling the expertise of art expert and owner Craig Humble and Gallery Manager Beth. Based on Walmgate, they focus on contemporary urban art including artists such as Magnus Gjoen, Jo Peel, Prefab 66 and Pure Evil. I always LOVE going to visit the gallery and to see what’s new and always, without fail, having a glass of Prosecco and a chat with Craig and Beth whose knowledge of the subject is endless. In the interests of providing a full and accurate account of this super interesting subject, I asked Craig to tell me his recommendations for sourcing and finding the perfect piece of art for your home. If you’ve been reading a while, you’ll remember that Craig also jumped in to assist on this post below which has lots more good info if you are art inclined.

But without further ado, here are Craigs top tips, followed by my own curation of ten favourite affordable art finds for £100 and under.