Oh the joy of a new magazine on my coffee table!! In the words of artist Lisa Cooper “Magazines are like porn, they make you feel dirty but oh so good at the same time”. My magazine addiction started as a young uni student making ends meet working at the local newsagency. To be truthful I never really tried to curb the addiction – I simply adore visual stimulation far too much. I mean, everyone has a vice right? In any case, because of this affair of sorts and in order to justify the gazillions of dollars spent, I started to take note of the articles trending art and living with art. I found my voyeuristic tendencies being fed by a kind of porn that I didn’t realise existed. So started my multiple mood boards with pages torn from magazines and hap hazardously arranged in a kind of “wish list” manner awaiting use on that day I finally nabbed my own place. Fast forward 10 years and now its blogs and pinterest board that feature images captured of coveted living rooms in the same wishful way. So much has my addiction grown that I now have a number of virtual homes that feature beautiful furniture and art – not sure I need bricks and mortar!
While I was busy tearing out the pages of the pieces of art I wanted to find and own, a simple little ritual emerged! Here’s how my totally guilt free any given Sunday starts:
- cycle my circa 1986 aqua Repco Traveller Picnic to local hole in the wall coffee joint – coffee and two coconut dreams thanks! (brilliantly I rarely need to say anything, they see me coming)
- sidestep to the news agency next door and purchase one of my top five mags (more about that later)
- cross the road stealthily avoiding tourist traffic and find a spot of grass sans cigarette butts and green ant nest
- flip… flip… flip… Bingo! Tag! Never ever fail to find a new artist amongst the pages of photographs of people’s lovely homes.
- Pull out trusty iPhone, search artist – love affair in full swing…..let the daydreaming begin!
It’s my life and I love it!
My Top Five Go To Magazines for Homes Featuring Brilliant Artists
- INSIDE OUT. At the very top of the list and a staple on my coffee table is Australian magazine Inside Out. This magazine pretty much features only Australian homes which is great because it means that the artists featured are mostly Australian artists. I just adore the art scene in Australia and so this magazine makes it very easy for me to find artists I can afford to support and add to my collection. When international homes are featured it only serves to expose me to the art of the area that the people live, as it seems the editors of this magazine like the concept of supporting home grown artists. I guess what I love about this magazine is it takes out the pretence usually associated with collecting art. While I don’t mind a bit of pretence, (I mean I wouldn’t say no to a luncheon in the private domain of a well-known artist and eat the tiny canapés and drink champagne if I was asked) I don’t believe the wealthy or privileged have the monopoly on collecting art.
- BELLE or VOGUE LIVING. Speaking of pretentious displays of wealth! Well I mean it is Vogue and Belle after all so one should expect a great deal of opulence and high end pieces on display in each and every page. And you know what? I just don’t mind at all! This magazine offers me a world where I can truly indulge in the sin of coveting. The homes are magnificent and the art equally so. Here is where I get my fix of international artists, old collections handed down through family connections, pieces I have seen in galleries in London, Paris and New York. I languor over the way the furniture and art pieces intertwine to build a dramatic scene oozing opulence and preciousness. Lad-de-dah!
- FRANKIE. Well what can i say, little Frankie is like the cheeky child dressing up in grandma’s finest clomping around in shoes and attire that is far too big, but looks oh so pretty! I love the accessibility of Frankie art. Every issue features an artist. Nowadays more of the features are of illustrators as a genre, but flip through the pages and a liquorice assorts of crafters, artists and left of the middle collectors can be found. I do have a soft spot for this young laydee, you can read about why here.
- COUNTRY STYLE. I know it sounds like an odd choice for finding art, but in the pages of this lovely magazine I have found a number of ever-so-humble Australian artists that I would never have seen otherwise. The photography is sublime in this magazine, rolling hills , eucalyptus trees, century old homesteads and a fair amount of sheep feature heavily in this mag. I feel like I am walking through each of the homes discovering walls adorned with artists long gone next to artists who live down the lane, all the while dreamily moving toward the scent of fresh scones wafting through the house. It’s pretty magical!
- REAL LIVING. Here’s where I am guaranteed to find that fab print that is trending about the art scene. While not overly sophisticated, there are some super finds in the pages of this magazine. If you’re on a budget this is the go-to-guy of the shelter mags! Anyone who is busy on the hunt for the piece that will showcase in the foyer of their newly renovated townhouse, will have pages torn from this mag amongst their scrapbook and mood board. The art is usually described and a source listed where you can purchase your very own – which is great for finding that fab gift to help start a friends collection!
So that’s how I keep my addiction in line and justify the means to the end! Next time you’re reading a magazine that you bought simply to look at the homes for renovation inspiration – I ask you to look a little closer and linger a little longer. The homes on the pages look complete because they have that special little something either hanging on the wall, leaning on the 1970’s replica sideboard or hanging above the artful arrangement of liquor and glassware on the vintage bar cart. It’s like love and marriage…..you can’t have one without the other! xx
C&M
Cilla & Mint 
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