As I alluded to recently, I’m making my home a bit more homey. There are a lot of blank walls in my house, which means that they need decorating. I’ve got a few framed prints and posters that are currently in my garage. Two of them will be taken out for display: one is a poster promoting Crane’s 1989 Self Non Self EP, the other is the LP cover for This Mortal Coil’s 1986 debut album It’ll End In Tears. Incidentally, if you’ve not heard Cocteau Twin’s version of Song to the Siren [lyrics] you haven’t lived. Really.

The reason for these two being displayed is that they make me feel something. I don’t mean intellectually, or emotionally, I mean physically. In some respects, this is why I don’t display photographs. Photographs of friends and family don’t do anything for me. They’re merely reflections of memories, and if you have the memories, why bother with photographs? In any case, what are they for? Perhaps that’s for another post.

So I’ve been looking for more art that makes me feel. Yesterday I discovered Mini Gallery. This is a place where dozens of artists promote and sell their work online. Many artists allow you to buy direct with PayPal and you can also contact artists about the work or even start negotiating prices or request commissions. It’s main benefit is a complete lack of pretension. No gallery. No sales people. It’s just you and the art.

I’ve written previously about the benefits of PayPal, primarily the instant purchasing mechanism. It’s also very dangerous. I’ve already bought three items from Mini Gallery and I have six more that are living on my web browser, tantalizing me. I must stop buying.

The common factor with all these pieces is that they make me feel something immediately. If something grabs me in this way I’ll add it to my list of potential purchases. Afterwards I’ll examine the work intellectually. Only then will I buy it. However, some pieces bypass the second filter completely, and I end up wanting it straight away. One of the three I’ve bought is in that category. And there’s still plenty of space on my walls for more…