The Object Of My Desire "The Art of Collecting"

The Webster's dictionary defines the word collection as being,"the act of collecting, formed by gathering together or to be assembled in a group, to come together." Mankind has always, throughout history, collected something, whether it be for monetary value, increasing of knowledge or just self pleasure and the love for the object of their desire. The process of massing together the object of their interest, all gave a sense of satisfaction, pleasure or accomplishment back then as it does today. We all as human beings surround ourselves with things we like and are interested in for they give us pleasure and have meaning to us as an individual. A collection is more than one object, for it is many individual pieces that have been carefully chosen over a period of time and assembled together, each complementing the other and bringing the collector specific memories from whence, where and the details of how each piece had been obtained. All of this gives collectors the feeling of pride, achievement and pleasure when they stand and view their gathered choices.

Individuals, from all walks of life, have a common thread, that which is amassing the object that holds special meaning or piques their interest. All of these carefully accumulated objects work together to express the collectors innermost self. Collections can be simple in their mediums, such as everyday mass produced cast resins and plastics or more quality items created from metals, porcelain and cold cast resins. Collectibles also depend on if they are mass produced by a specific artist or one of a kind (OOAK), or have a limited edition, which means only a defined amount will be produced, each numbered, and then no more. Collections can be valued from hundreds to thousands of dollars and all are controlled by finances available that allow them to be acquired. And many a piece may contribute to the pride and overall satisfaction of the owner and displayer of the collection, but there will always be one significant acquiring of a piece that bring the owner great pride, satisfaction and joy, the crowning adornment of the collection.

Collecting brings such pleasure and joy to the one who slowly and meticulously adds to it and can be passed on to generation to generation, not loosing it's monetary value as some objects do. Objects collected from desire, to increase a carefully maintained collection, derived from affection and appreciation of the object, is priceless to families from one generation to the next.



Written by Lori Spencer 2005 Copyright Protected All Rights Reserved No duplication of this article is permitted