The sock on the mantelpiece

That’s probably the strangest title I’ve written for a while. But it’s because I’ve just read an article about how to fall in love with your artwork all over again. It’s an excellent piece – link below – and it’s talking about what I refer to as the ‘sock on the mantelpiece’ syndrome.

I’ve used this phrase for many years to describe the fact that, if you see something every day, you don’t necessarily ‘see’ it any more. For example, someone left a sock in your living room, right there on the mantelpiece. You see it and think ‘I must tell him to put that in his sock drawer where it belongs’ [because it is invariably a 'him'] but then the  phone rings …

If you don’t move it quick, after a while, you just won’t see that sock any more. That’s because it’s become part of the furniture. Literally.  It’s the same with the art on your walls. You know how your computer cache reloads images from the computer memory when you revisit a website? Your brain does the same thing.

The author of the blog I read suggests that periodically, you switch the art around. Move it to another wall or even another room. Interesting!

How to optimize enjoyment of the art you own.