I got a new piece of priceless art a few weeks ago. It is sitting proudly on my kitchen countertop so that everyone who comes into our house can see it.

I tend to favor landscapes or photographs, but this one falls into the sci-fi genre. I've actually never owned a piece of science fiction art, but heck there is a first time for everything. When I asked the artist to tell me about his work, he said “It’s a Martian eating breakfast, of course.” Of course….. When I asked him what the Martian was eating, he said “Cereal, but that it could be whatever type of cereal you want when you looked it.” Perfect, I love art open for interpretation. He then went on to tell me that he saw the Martian eating Lucky Charms, but that I probably saw the Martian eating pink Cheerios.

When I get a new picture, I usually take it to Michaels to get a nice frame, but this one is in a $4.99 laminate frame from Walmart. The artist exclaimed that it was the perfect frame. And who was I to argue with the artist (especially when it saved me like 50 dollars).

I usually prefer more colorful pictures, but the artist did an amazing job of contrasting the colors brown, blue and green. And it’s even mixed media (marker and crayon). The details on the pictures are pretty cool also, from the big green eyes to the six legs to the skyscraper that is smaller than the martian. However, the most memorable part of this masterpiece is that this artist is very new in his career. While he has dabbled in modern art (aka scribbles) and a few sketches of figures (aka pod people), this is his first realistic work. And like all classic pieces of art, the artist signed his work in with a unique signature. While the first 5 letters of his name are about an inch tall, the final R is about 4 inches tall.

This particular piece of art is a traveling exhibit. It usually is displayed on the countertop, but the artist likes to have it at his seat at the table while eating. The exhibition was also on location in the artist’s bedroom for a few nights where it was proudly displayed on his nightstand. It is now back to it's perch on the kitchen counter.

I bet that most of the art in my house will change throughout the years. However, I am sure that in 45 years that I will still have this piece of art. There is no way that I could ever throw out the first real picture that my son drew.