Giving The Gift Of Art: The Perfect Present For The 'Hard To Buy For' People In Your Life!
AD - This post has been sponsored by King & McGaw, but all art picks, recommendations and advice, as usual, are my own.
As it edges closer to that time of year, where you scratch your head and think ‘what on earth am I going to buy them this year?’, I want to introduce to you the idea of giving the gift of art.
I think we can all confidently say that 2019 has been the year that we focus on being more sustainable. The idea of giving your nearest and dearest something for Christmas that will ultimately end up in landfill after they have left it untouched in a cupboard for 6 months is more unappealing than ever. Art, in contrast, is a timeless gift that will never go out of style. From a Matisse print to a framed iconic record cover, art is something that is cherished and often adorns the walls of a home for a lifetime.
Choosing a piece of art for someone close to you also feels a very considered and thoughtful gift. By picking out that perfect print, there’s no sense of any rushed, ‘oh I just thought that will do’, style of gifting!
My absolute favourite online supplier of framed art prints, King & McGaw, a UK-based company who print and frame all the art they sell by hand, have a wide range of art that would make a great gift for the hard-to-buy-for people in your life. Below, I’ve hand-picked my favourite pieces from their extensive gift range, along with suggestions for who might like to receive them!
I think a lot of men get a bad deal at Christmas. Gift ideas and recommendations often involve a pre-determined love of football / golf / beer / cars / motorcycles. But what if the man in your life, be it your partner, dad or bother, doesn’t fall into this category? Avoid the pitfalls of buying him socks (boring), strong-scented deodorant gift boxes (thrown in the cupboard) or a ‘stylish hip-flask’ (pointless) and get him a great piece of art instead. This year I have gifted my husband this incredible framed print titled ‘Dimension’, by the Irish-born artist Fintan Whelan. The piece is for his home office, pictured here, above the fireplace. The artist uses a variety of pouring, tilting and tipping techniques to create abstract compositions that resemble landscapes and human forms in a range of deep emerald colours. The end results are incredibly interesting to look at and evoke a very masculine impression, as they are void of any semblance of florals or illustration.
I think my husband is going to love this piece, and I know it would never be something that he would think to buy for himself. Also, it’s a double-gift, as I get to enjoy it too! For the full range of prints by Fintan Whelan for King & McGaw, click here. My other top picks of art choices for men can be found below:
Top row, left to right: ‘On The Road’ by Ed Ruscha; ‘Le Petit Echo De La Mode NO.21’ by Hormazd Narielwalla; Sid & Nancy; ‘Light Red Over Black’ by Mark Rothko. Bottom row, left to right: ‘The Honeybees are Dancing’ by Ele Pack; ‘NO 14 White and Greens In Blue’ by Mark Rothko; ‘Destination - New York’ by Nick Cranston; ‘Vertigo’ by Saul Bass.
So, your design-loving friends, who fill their homes with expensive Danish furniture, had kids. You can see them physically recoil when you come round armed with presents for their offspring made from cheap, brightly-coloured plastic. Keep the kids and the parents happy with some amazing art from King & McGaw, which is perfect for a stylish child’s bedroom. King & McGaw are also selling some super-cool Warhol coloured pencils and crayons in the classic soup cans, too:
From left to right: Pez Dispenser, 1984, by Jean-Michel Basquiat; Warhol Soup Can Crayons; ‘For The Zoo, Book To Regents Park, 1921’ by Charles Paine; Warhol Philosophy Coloured Pencils; ‘Untitled’ by Keith Haring.
Framed music posters of iconic record covers, musicians and bands make a great gift for all age groups, as the eternal impact of a monumental song or album is appreciated by those who remember when it first came out, to those who only discover it when they first start getting into music. This Joy Division print would make a great nostalgic, sentimental gift to an old friend who you may have danced to the song with down the indie disco in your student days. While this Hendrix photographic print is a great option to inspire and be enjoyed by a budding young guitarist.
‘Debbie Harry, 1980’ by Andy Warhol and ‘Back To Black - Amy Winehouse’ by Reign and Hail.
If your hard-to-buy-for friend ends the sentence ‘All I want for Christmas…’ with ‘…is to be a social media superstar”, then these Andy Warhol typography prints are for them. Every popular fashion, beauty and interiors Instagrammer can be found with these prints adorning their walls (or very trendily propped up against them instead). Your selfie, snap-happy mate will be delighted with one of these pieces to style in their home for that perfect Instagram shot:
Andy Warhol reproduction typography posters from the Moderna Museet, Stockholm exhibition in 1968, available at King & McGaw.
We all know those impossible-to-buy-for people who already seem to have everything. They are ahead of the curve and have every new piece of tech and the ‘must-have’ items before anyone else. The stuff of Christmas nightmares is buying a gift for someone who already owns what you’ve bought them. Avoid this embarrassment by selecting something from the ‘Rare & Limited’ range from King & McGaw. From scarce 20th Century exhibition posters, handcrafted silkscreens and contemporary limited editions, there is no way the ‘person who has everything’ has one of these.
‘Over To You’ by Sir Howard Hodgkin; ‘Les Lithographies De L’Atelier Mourlot, 1984’ by Henri Matisse; For Heaven’s Sake (2008) by Damien Hirst.
If you love the idea of giving a special piece of art, but do not feel confident that you would choose the right piece, then a King & McGaw gift voucher is the perfect option. It shows that you’ve been thoughtful and are buying them a beautiful gift, but you are leaving the final decision-making process down to your recipient.
King & McGaw have very kindly given me a special discount code for my readers to use to buy their gifts for Christmas! For 15% off everything at King & McGaw (except the ‘Rare & Limited’ range), simply enter the code MEL15 at checkout!
