Art Hound

When it comes to decorating and finding art, a lot of people have the same questions, “Where do I start? Should my art match my furniture? Or the other way around?”

Well, it really depends what you’re starting with. If you have art you love, then make sure any furniture you buy works with it. Looking for art but have great furniture? You’re not beholden to buying art that perfectly matches your furniture but make sure they complement each other. Another big consideration – what do you want to be the focal point of the room? Art, furniture, little doggy?

To shed light on these questions, Kelly + Olive, super cool Chicago decorating duo, and I have teamed up for a new series, decorate from the ART. The concept is simple: we take a room and show you three different ways you could decorate with art and accessories.

For each room we start off by selecting a few pieces of furniture. Then I pick out three sets of art that all work with the furnishings in different ways. And finally Courtney and Lauren (Kelly + Olive’s real names) finish the room with accessories that tie everything together.

To start, Lauren and Courtney picked out this swanky black and white furniture for our first room. These pieces are modern, bold and over-the-top. Bed by Anthropologie, table by Room & Board, chair by Z Gallerie, and IKEA wardrobe.

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So, for the version #1 of the black & white bedroom I picked out This Big Love by Christine Kesler and Hold by Langdon Graves. Why these choices? I was going for art with a soft and feminine feel that was still very contemporary and sophisticated. I love the combination of the blacks and grays with the soft pink. In this version it was important to me that the art not compete with the furnishings but be complementary and subtle.

Courtney and Lauren did a wonderful job finishing the room with bedding, a pillow, a blanket, an alarm clock, and a funky chandelier. All of the pieces are modern and bold without being outright loud. Overall the theme is feminine, delicate, modern.

Stay tuned for two more art choices and accessories for our black & white bedroom!

About the Artist Cheat-Sheet Series:

In this series I match major artists of the 19th or 20th century with current independent artists who share the artist’s style, subject, tone, etc. By introducing you to artists similar to your favorites, you’ll no longer have the excuse of not knowing any modern day artists you like!

Rene Magritte

As soon as I was introduced to Rene Magritte back in high school, I was drawn to the Belgian Surrealist’s work. Here were world-famous paintings that, unlike all others I’d studied, had a modern visual language and were loaded with wit and irony. It was a classic teenage reaction of excitement seeing an adult (Magritte) thumbing their nose at other grown-ups. This was good stuff! I thought.

I still love Magritte for the same reasons- how he flagrantly subverted cultural norms and perverted people’s sense of propriety. The brilliance of his work lies in the Freudian, surreal mise-en-scenes which riff off of familiar, ordinary contexts. The following are six artists who are, in one fashion or another, following in Magritte’s path…

. Ben Kehoe

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Ben Kehoe

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Langdon Graves

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Langdon Graves

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Robin F. Williams

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Robin F. Williams

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Zachary Rossman

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Zachary Rossman

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Emma Tryti

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Emma Tryti

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Florencia Temperley

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Florencia Temperley

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Other Artist Cheat-Sheets: Frida Kahlo – Keith Haring – Wassily Kandinsky – Roy Lichtenstein – Gustav Klimt – Georgia O’Keeffe