Should I bin my friend's art?

[Joyjazz]

My friend painted me a picture. The sentiment was lovely but I really hate it. It's not my taste and not in keeping with my house. I keep it behind the TV and hang it whenever she comes to visit so I don't hurt her feelings as she is really proud of this piece and spent many weeks making it. I'm moving to a new house and I don't want to be carrying things that I don't like or want to my new home. I want to take the frame and bin the actual painting. She's a good friend and she is likely to visit and possibly ask where the art is.

AIBU to put the painting in the bin?

The really question are you Rachel, Monica or Penny?

This is such an innocent post😂😆

@Joyjazz

Why can't you give it to a charity shop obviously not local but somewhere further afield as alternative? 🤔

Tell her it was destroyed in the move.

Tell her what you are planning in your new home will not go with her art and offer it back to her.

Hours and hours go into painting, please don't just throw it away.

Today I learnt... more people haven't seen Friends than I realised!

Yup, brand new news to me... so many people haven't seen Friends!

I would hang it in the least offensive/obtrusive place possible and try to ignore it.

If you damage it, she may paint you another.
If you get rid, you'll really upset her.

I do take issue with the idea that artists gifting their art is always all about them though.

That could be true of many people giving all sorts of gifts and is a problem with the gift giver, not the gift itself.

I have given art I've made as gifts, tends to be to people who have bought art from me in the past or expressed an interest and it's rarely a surprise gift! Its always a 'would you like x piece, I won't be offended if it's not your thing' and not a 'tadaa I expect you to spend £££ having this framed and you to display it over the mantlepiece in the living room' thing!

I don't have friends who'd agree to receiving something if they didn't like it though!

(I tell a lie, I once went to fairly ridiculous lengths to find out what someones favourite moth was, relevant to a long running joke/story... and painted it in miniature on a teeny tiny canvas for their wedding. It's been hanging in their hallway with a lot of other wildlife/wild-flower art for the last decade so I'm pretty sure they do like it!)

I was going to say it accidentally got broken in the move but this is much better.

She’ll see it in your bedroom once and never go in thee again.

I have a friend like this. Not fun and not cool to have a painting in your own house that you hate. I wouldn't mention it, and it would not be going back up on the wall, no. Tell her you are circulating your art pieces and hers is resting!

Don't bin it, she might offer to make you another.

Tell her you loved it but it doesn't suit the new house/you're starting afresh with decor/you are more minimalist now or whatever. Offer it back to her and see if she would like to give it to someone else.

We had this it's not a bad picture (it's of my dog) but not to our taste and not fitting with decor. It's in the f downstairs loo.

I'd relocate it to an upstairs room. If she asks where it is say/show her. The Magee months later put it in the loft.

Can you tell her it doesn't fit in with the decor of the new house and would she like it back seeing she has put a lot of effort into it?

I almost screamed when I saw it. That's a hell of an ugly, seriously deranged picture.

As other posters have advised, you have the perfect opportunity to "lose it" when moving houses. Just tell her you didn't prepare the painting well for the move and got damaged beyond repair.

No matter how much I love a friend, there is no way I will hang this creepy thing on my walls.

Yep just like that episode of friends 🤣

YABVU to bin in, it was a meaningful gift that took a lot of work. But I get what you mean…I would keep it but not hang it in new house keep it in drawer or hang it somewhere by the kitchen pin board or less significant where you don’t spend much time. Just don’t mention it and if she brings it up just say you love it but are being really obsessive about new house colour scheme or something like that. But don’t bin it!

I thought you were BU until I saw it. It's a horror. I would be very upset about the irreparable damage it suffered in the move. You can't keep the frame, you'll just get another offering to put in it. Bin the lot.

Are you for real?
maybe friend couldn’t afford to buy something from white room or Jo malone and thought they’d do something nice.

the piece looks awful and I wouldn’t thank anyone for that but to suggest it’s selfish and all about them, that the friend took the time to paint it and gift it is just bonkers.

Would it still be selfish and about the artist if said friend was Banksy or Jenny saville and the piece was worth millions or is it only when it’s someone’s hobby or they’re not very skilled that it becomes ego centric?

THE PICTURE SHARED ISNT THE OPS PICTURE sorry just needed to shout that for the 50% who seemed to be confused

You shouldn’t have to keep art work in your house that you don’t like. I think it’s worse to just stash it in the loft than to charity shop it- at least then someone might find it and really love it. I do think giving a large piece of art is a risky gift- you’re putting quite a pressure on the receiver to love it when it’s obviously so subjective. We’ve been given so many paintings and pictures over the years (not done by the givers in our case, just purchased)- and I do hugely appreciate the gesture, and love the people who gave them- but nonetheless if we’d displayed it all we’d have a house we hated! And we have so little storage it would be impossible to keep them all. I get it’s harder when your friend has painted it herself- but I agree this kind of gift is in part about the giver, and a bit burdensome for the receiver. I would take it to a charity shop a fair distance away, and honestly just wouldn’t mention it again. If she asks I’d ‘We haven’t put all our pictures up yet, still deciding where everything goes.’

That’s truly, truly awful @Joyjazz. No matter how good a friend she is, that would give me bloody nightmares. Can you let her know you were burnt at the stake in a past life and it’s haunting you? It’s far too realistic?
*I am 52 and still traumatised by the clown painting my grandmother had in the toilet at her place when I was little. I used to sneak past the loo and pee in the bath with the water running. If I had to do ummm…. anything else, I’d cry with my eyes shut. (It was really very John Wayne Gaycey in there…)

She loves it - say you don’t think it suits your new house would she like it. She likes it - binning it instead of giving it to her sounds cruel.

Please don't put it in the bin. She's spent a lot of time and effort making it.

You need to come clean with her and give it back to her.

As an artist I'd be devastated if a friend binned my work (although I don't give my work to friends who didn't ask for it/ buy it!)

If they just said "I don't think it's really in keeping with my decoration plans for my new house" and gave it back, I wouldn't be offended at all!

Fake/joke post?

This
Except this is a winde up.

Sensible
Say it doesn't suit the new house.

Do what I do with my kid’s ‘art’, take a photo of it on your phone and launch it into the recycling.