The Art of Feng Shui and the Feng Shui of Art

A question that comes up often during a feng shui consultation, is how to interpret the effects of art in our home or work place. Here are my thoughts: 1. Art is subjective: if you like looking at a particular piece of art and it makes you feel good, then that is good feng shui in one sense. 2. When an art object or painting or photograph is boldly one color, then it will emanate the element associated with that color. Example: a giant red canvas on the wall is the fire element. (That color may or may not be good for that particular area, but if you have good reason to believe that a certain element is appropriate for that area, then a large display of it via color will enforce the effects.) 3. A picture which has several or many colors will NOT be strong enough to represent one or all of those colors--the energy gets dissipated. 4. Art should not conflict with the function of the room. Example: I once had a client who had a large painting over her bed. It was brash and modern with the actual words "LISTEN TO ME NOW!" sprawled across it. Perhaps a joke, but not exactly the kind of message you would normally want to display for the new boyfriend! 5. Placing a series of pictures along the wall or walls of a room with frames all at the same level will create a subtle second ceiling to the room. Air currents travel along walls, ceilings and floors. This could be good for rooms with ceilings that are too high. 6. In general, placing pictures a little higher on the wall will make the room feel bigger. 7. Art pieces, such as bronze statues or sculptures are definitely feng shui metal remedies. 8. Having an attractive paining on an otherwise blank wall can be a feng shui remedy for a congestive entrance. 9. Having pictures of landscapes can be good for rooms with no windows. ***Recommended Reading: a new feng shui book by Master Gahle Atherton (Feng Shui: The Perfect Arrangement) has now joined the ranks of one of my favorite authentic feng shui books. (A grand total of six!) It is not in stores in America yet, but you can get signed copies from the author by contacting her at www.fengshui.com.au Don't forget the "au" part of the domain name or you won't get Gahle's site. I have a few copies, and I'm ordering more. $20.00 Question from a student: Are new houses better than older houses? Answer: A newer house may be in better structural condition. This contributes to good feng shui. A newer house will statistically have had fewer past occupants. The result is less lingering energy of past occupants, or even the potential for one of them to return as a ghost. These are just a couple of advantages of the newer house. But there are many older homes that still have good ch'i, even better than the new homes which were built against feng shui principles. Second part of the answer: Houses go through cycles that last 180 years, broken down into 9 construction cycles that last for 20 years. Once a house reaches 180 years old, then its ch'i gets renewed, as if it were a new house again. Question: What's the best color for the exterior of a house? Answer: We have eight basic house types, each one associated with a direction. That direction is asociated with an element, and that element has a color. If you paint the house the same color as the element which defines its orientation, then you have an exterior color that supports the house instead of undermining it. You can also use a color which is "productive" to the element that matches your house. As an example: Your house faces East, therefore it "sits" in the West. The real nature of the house is that it is a West type house. West is associated with Metal. Metal colors include grey and white. Those would be good colors for the exterior. Also, since Earth makes Metal stronger, then earth colors would also be strengthening to the house. Earth colors are beiges, oranges, and yellows. What would be a bad color for the metal house? Well, fire melts metal--so a house that was reddish in tones, or salmon colored, would not be an ideal color for this orientation of house.