Coromo In New York, parts 1643 - 1646

 1643. The subjects of the naïve artist are often perceived as childish, and indeed, often the character of the artist himself strikes one as childish. Collectors prize these attributes and search for them, and many artists whose work falls into this category are actively collected.

1644. Naïve artists being untrained, they often do not even consider themselves to be artists at all, and as a rule have little knowledge of the traditional artists materials. Instead of oil paint they might use house paint; instead of canvas they perhaps might decide to paint their pictures on shirt cardboards or paper bags, roofing slates, or plywood.

1645. But the technical considerations are nowhere near as important as the mental makeup of the naïve artist. Collectors look for outlandish personalities, even going so far as to invade prisons and mental hospitals looking for the schizoid personality who is obsessed with making pictures to the exclusion of all else. Perhaps the work they produce defies any explanation, all the better.

1646. If the purpose of the picture is obvious then the collector will reject the works outright and not even bother to consider it seriously. If the artist is painting flowers because flowers are pretty, then the work has no place in the collection of the expert.