Tips For Those Building Homes Or Managing Major Renovations

Building a new home, or renovating an existing one, can be a huge undertaking. As art advisors, we’re lucky to see the final product in all its shiny new glory. What we miss are the thousands of little decisions clients, architects, designers and builders have to make along the way.  It’s SO HARD to think about art in the midst of these decisions, but by proactively considering a few simple tips,  you’ll be better positioned to enjoy the art sourcing process when that time comes.   Here are our quick tips: 

1. Thoughtfully select socket, light switch and AV panel locations:
   Contractors love to put these guys in the middle of large walls because, well, who knows. But at the end of the day, an artwork that feels interesting and unique and that showcases your personal taste, is more meaningful on a signature wall than a Savant screen. During the building process, be sure to specify to your team that all these wall items go on the sides of walls or in relatively discrete locations. 

2. Consider art walls alongside your lighting plan:
   Lighting plans are a key part of any new build. When developing your plan, note which walls will likely have art since lighting for those locations will be different from lighting for non-art walls. Importantly, we recommend against picking out specific off-the-wall linear fixtures before art is selected. Instead, have your electrician leave the proper wiring in that location, and wait until art is in place to select the fixture that best suits that art. The fixture should emit a light that covers the entire artwork only, not the upper third, not in spotlight shape on the center of the artwork, and not the entire wall.  

3. Budget for art.
   A client once told me that the last 10% of a project adds 90% of the value, meaning that the final touches, like art and styling, are key. When you budget for these final touches, both financially and emotionally, they are more likely to happen, resulting in a space that feels DONE and YOURS. Developing a budget around art can also be particularly difficult because the price of art varies significantly. This is an area where we can be helpful; we create art budgets for clients often, inclusive of all necessary items: art, framing, trucking, insurance, installation and more. Additionally, we identify ways to address art for a new build in phases such that clients know where to focus when, and how to allocate resources accordingly. If you are developing an art budget on your own, be sure not to just add a line item called "art"; instead, be specific about which priority walls you intend to put artwork on and what ancillary costs should be expected. For example: Art for 5 key walls, average cost for shipping, framing, insurance, and installation.

We hope these tips are helpful, as we know a ton of our clients are TRYING to finish homes by the summer. Let us know what questions we can answer, and in the meantime, here’s a great new build that we did out in Quogue, New York, a few summers ago.