Perceptions of Beauty: Art, Life and Shells

Recently I was at a celebration being held at the beach. I was responsible for some of the decor for a particular evening, including picking up lots of beautiful sea shells to incorporate into the design.  As I was gathering up the “beautiful” shells, the thought occurred to me that my choice of shells may not be pleasing for the others. That the shells I had in fact picked, could be perceived by others as “ugly ducklings” My selected shells did not look “perfect” at all, but they were beautiful in a way that was attractive to me. However, I reminded myself that this was not about me. I really did want to please everyone involved and so I tried looking for shells that “they” would like. Hmm.  What do people want in a shell? What attracts you to a particular shell? Perfection, character, something standard, or something unusual?

Funny, kind of like saying what do people want in art? Or what do people want out of life? Some people want money, some want time, some want change, some don’t want change. In art some want it to “match” their decor or a color scheme. Others just fall in love with a piece of art and get it, knowing it will be at home, somewhere in their home-they just love it. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, right?

I wondered what “most” people would find beautiful.

I was thinking  that maybe the “average” person might think that these shells were the “best”. They are traditional looking shells, and all are in good shape:

But, what about these shells? They are smooth as glass to the touch, like they have been sanded to a silk like surface with years of sand and ocean washing over them.  They are a sensory delight in the hand.

Or what about these cool shaped shells? I call these my “guitar pick ” shells. Some remind me of a guitar pick and there are couple that remind me of shark’s teeth. They are so neat!

But also beautiful are these shells with vibrant color:

 

Or these with great pattern:

Here are some I liked for their reflective, almost metallic properties:

These were special because they had a hole in the middle (I put ribbon through them and hung them from a sea branch bouquet).

 

And finally-this one: Depending on how I looked at it, it reminded of me of either the cochlea  or a fortune cookie.

Now, I have my favorites, but for now i will keep those to myself. What I do want to know, is what is YOUR favorite, and if you know why, tell me. Which ones would you have picked up from the sand and taken home?