What Makes Art Worth Collecting—And How to Know When a Piece Is Yours

What Caught My Eye

Let’s be honest—most of the images we see don’t change us.

We live in a remarkably image-saturated world. What once would have required a pilgrimage or a museum now sits in the palm of your hand, scrolling past you by the hundreds. Instagram. Facebook. TikTok. Even Reddit. Pleasant. Polished. Forgettable. Useful for distraction, and better than doomscrolling, but not enough.

And aren’t you tired of the scroll?

But every so often, you meet a piece that holds you. It asks something more of you. And it gives something back.

It took me a while to realize that I needed something real to live with, that the kitschy paintings in the big box store were only enough to remind me of coffee but nothing more. Coffee, after all, is the smallest portion of my personality, right above a preference for a certain color of socks or a particular brand of dental floss.

But art that connects with your own story, your history, your emotions, your longings - that’s different. It speaks to you, reminds you:

Where you fell in love.

An unforgettable loss.

That one shining moment on that one perfect day that you want to live over and over again.

The very air outside your home.

It’s a joy for me to paint these stories, this life, both mine and yours. It’s a privilege to express what I feel, what we all feel - hope, longing, pain, homesickness, and a deep, defiant joy, beauty that cannot be stolen from us.

Take Jordan, for example, a painting that holds so much more than pretty colors. See her up close here.

I suspect that you, like me, feel the rush, the swift passage of time.

What parent hasn’t looked into the eyes of their babies and wished they could freeze that moment? What soul on this great, chaotic, beautiful, broken planet doesn’t fear death?

Maybe you, like me, are comforted by this promise:

“When you pass through the waters, I will be with you.” (Isaiah 43:2, ESV)

Handmade art is different because it’s real. It has a real hand and a real soul behind it - nothing like generic, AI generated images of pleasantly soulless neutral colors or, God forbid, scuba diving kittens.

Why It Matters

Original artwork doesn’t compete with décor. It stands apart. It lingers.

Because when a painting is made by hand, it carries presence. When it holds story, it becomes a companion.

Here’s what gives original art its value:

• Time: My paintings don’t happen in a sitting. They unfold over days. Layers of watercolor, emotion, and detail build meaning into the paper.
• Touch: No print or product can replace the brushstroke made in real time, by a real hand.
• Story: Every piece begins with an experience. An ache. A light. A prayer. You can feel that.

These aren’t just artworks. They’re living reminders. And they don’t wait around forever.

From the Studio

This week in my studio I’m working on finishing touches - those last perfect little notes that make a painting complete. Most importantly, I’ve finished signing the paintings from the Pathways Collection. They’re ready to come home now, and they’re beautiful.

If This Hits Home

If a piece from the Pathways Collection already feels like yours—trust that.

Every original is one of one. No reruns. No backups. When it’s gone, it’s gone.

Explore the collection to bring your piece home.

Tell Me

What’s one thing in your home you didn’t buy to impress anyone—but because it carries your story?

Send me a message below. I’d love to hear, and I read every one.