Instant Art

The most interesting pieces of art are often made with items that are meaningful to the homeowner.

A shadowbox of shells collected on vacation, a print of some distant relatives or, in this case, a photograph taken by someone in the family.

Personal touches like these add meaningful elements to the design of a room.

This "painting" is really a photograph that I took in England. When we entered the town of Woodstock, I saw these hollyhocks growing out of the crack between the sidewalk and this old stone-front building. It became one of my first "must photograph" items on our journey into the Cotswolds and they were so beautiful that we actually hurried to find a parking spot, as if the blooms might disappear if I didn't photograph them that instant.

It looks like a painting, doesn't it? I did not edit this photo in any way. The gorgeous mottled stone and blush-colored peach hollyhocks are shown just as I found them. The soft afternoon light made all the difference.

When I learned that the photo department at Costco can print poster-size images on museum quality semi-board, I jumped at the chance to have this photo enlarged. After that, all I needed was an easel to have instant art in my living room.

To me, this is interior design at its best; it is both beautiful and interesting.