Something Art Lovers Might Agree On: Art Preservation Index
Some art lovers prefer modern, some more traditional forms of painting - which usually means paintings that look like something you can in some way identify content from the natural world. Whatever your preference, paintings have shot up in value since the financial crisis, and, with some corrections here and there, there doesn't seem to be any looking down for the foreseeable future. So if you're in that league of folks who've got the spare cash to invest in pieces that sell for thousands or, better, millions, you may want to check out the Art Preservation Index.
The Art Preservation Index/APix claims to be able to tell you whether a particular piece of art might suffer significant deterioration over time. One would imagine that's got to be valuable information if you're sinking significant cash into an item, especially if that item stands a good chance of literally falling apart in the next few years. Not being of that class of people who have cash to spare for expensive paintings, this new ratings system doesn't and probably won't touch me personally, but I have known quite a few people who are in this class and would guess they'd want to at least learn something about this.
For the rest of us, wouldn't it be interesting - and perhaps most helpful - if such a system could be developed for people. After all, even those of us with meager means generally "invest" in other people in our lives, spouses being perhaps the primary example, but many others - for example, employees - might also come into play here. I'm not talking about the current physical condition or overall health of an individual. Observation and medical science can handle that aspect of those important to us. I'm talking about a system that could tell us whether this person stands a good chance of "falling apart" at any point in the reasonably near future.
While it may sound a bit hardhearted speaking of a rating system like this for spouses, you might well understand how such a rating for employees, or prospective employees, might be helpful when it comes to hiring and retaining same. If you've ever had an employee emotionally implodes on the job, especially in a critical situation, you'll understand this.
As for spouses, hardhearted as it might seem, given the divorce rate these days, might it not serve some purpose if those who are already inclined to treat marriage as a kind of temporary situation - a mere legal agreement based on convenience - could get look up their spouses rating and at least avoid those who will begin to deteriorate within months of the marriage, thereby avoiding the expense and (typically) emotional turmoil of divorce, not only for themselves, but, as far as expense is concerned, the court system, the cost of which falls on all of us taxpayers? While you could argue that such a system would throw cold water on the warmth of "love" that couples "feel" when they decide to marry, the fact is marriage based solely on such feelings hardly stands a chance of survival in this day and age.
Makes some sense, doesn't it?
The Art Preservation Index/APix claims to be able to tell you whether a particular piece of art might suffer significant deterioration over time. One would imagine that's got to be valuable information if you're sinking significant cash into an item, especially if that item stands a good chance of literally falling apart in the next few years. Not being of that class of people who have cash to spare for expensive paintings, this new ratings system doesn't and probably won't touch me personally, but I have known quite a few people who are in this class and would guess they'd want to at least learn something about this.
For the rest of us, wouldn't it be interesting - and perhaps most helpful - if such a system could be developed for people. After all, even those of us with meager means generally "invest" in other people in our lives, spouses being perhaps the primary example, but many others - for example, employees - might also come into play here. I'm not talking about the current physical condition or overall health of an individual. Observation and medical science can handle that aspect of those important to us. I'm talking about a system that could tell us whether this person stands a good chance of "falling apart" at any point in the reasonably near future.
While it may sound a bit hardhearted speaking of a rating system like this for spouses, you might well understand how such a rating for employees, or prospective employees, might be helpful when it comes to hiring and retaining same. If you've ever had an employee emotionally implodes on the job, especially in a critical situation, you'll understand this.
As for spouses, hardhearted as it might seem, given the divorce rate these days, might it not serve some purpose if those who are already inclined to treat marriage as a kind of temporary situation - a mere legal agreement based on convenience - could get look up their spouses rating and at least avoid those who will begin to deteriorate within months of the marriage, thereby avoiding the expense and (typically) emotional turmoil of divorce, not only for themselves, but, as far as expense is concerned, the court system, the cost of which falls on all of us taxpayers? While you could argue that such a system would throw cold water on the warmth of "love" that couples "feel" when they decide to marry, the fact is marriage based solely on such feelings hardly stands a chance of survival in this day and age.
Makes some sense, doesn't it?
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