Recently, peep completed an innovations project focused on trends in nursery décor. We tracked popular aesthetics in London and New York and were pleasantly surprised by what is emerging. Art, it seems, is the latest must have for the nursery.
In the past, nursery art meant posters of well-known cartoon characters or superheroes by brands like Disney and Marvel. Today, a new generation of parents are redefining both the type of art and the role that art plays in their child’s nursery. These parents, typically older, educated and relatively well-off, have acquired tastes for more modern and minimalist design, and in turn, seek to incorporate these design elements into their child’s nursery.
What started as a desire for contemporary furniture and fixtures for the living room has made its way into art for the nursery. Parents are increasingly searching for artwork with bold and bright colors, ranging in price from hundreds to thousands of dollars. Artists that specialize in this type of work, such as Canadian-born Marcel Dzama and Japanese artist Yoshimoto Nara, have gained increasing popularity with parents, as a result. Other artists, like Toronto based Sarah Merry, have capitalized on the new demand for child-friendly art. Ms. Merry, who has since started a side business called Bumblegators, which creates lush murals for kids’ rooms, “says [the business] now accounts for up to 70 percent of her sales.”
Aside from matching the design of the rest of the home, some parents view exposure to fine art as critical in their child’s development. This priority is supported by recent US museum and art gallery efforts to make works more accessible to children. The Museum of Modern Art, in New York, offers Tours for Fours, which encourage children to look, listen, share and interact with the world of contemporary art. While child psychologists tend to agree that children benefit from early exposure to art, some parents we spoke with simply viewed art as an investment they could readily pass down to their child – a legacy and the beginnings of their child’s very own first collection.
This trend may seem surprising, especially given the current state of the US economy. While the real estate market continues to face tumultuous times, the art market has remained resilient. In fact, art can be viewed as a more secure investment than many stocks. As MarketWatch noted last week, “art, as an investment, has held up well over time, beating or competing with stock returns.” Maybe that Murakami deserves a second look?
