I’ve always been a bit envious of artists. The people who make drawing, painting, writing, or sculpting seem like second nature. I have never been one of those people. My art is concrete. I like science and math. One of the artists that I admire is my sister-in-law, Doris. Her artwork is varied and outstanding. She has a natural talent in a number of areas. She draws, quilts, and takes pictures. She graduated with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in art and design from Iowa State University and with a master’s degree in art history from the University of South Carolina. I talked to Doris to determine what makes an artist and artist and what defines art.
Ever since she was a little girl Doris loved drawing. Her mom tells this story of how she would draw pictures behind all of the doors and sign her name like an artist. The punch line is that she would then accuse her little brother of doing the drawing. She was quiet and introverted and says art was “part of my nature”. In kindergarten her drawings were used for the PTA newsletters and this is when she started receiving feedback from adults. It is also when she realized she was good. When I asked her if she thought she was an artist she hesitated before she replied, “Yes, I have the eye of an artist and I think like an artist”. I asked her what the hesitation was for and she said she doesn’t view herself as a practicing artist. To her being an artist has been woven into her being and it cannot be separated. However, she isn’t disciplined with her art any longer. She doesn’t draw regularly like she once did. She doesn’t “practice.
So what makes someone an artist? Is it innate or learned? I asked Doris what she thought and she said “innate”. She elaborated, “creativity has to be nurtured”, she compared it to a seed needing water, sunlight, and a lot of positive energy. The spirit of an artist can be squashed. It doesn’t depend on talent but on creation and creativity. I wonder where that puts me. I consider myself an idea girl. Someone who has ideas to be created but I don’t have the ability to make them come to fruition.
I explain that I am going to take a picture each day and edit them so I can learn how to use my camera, my photo editing software, and take great pictures that I can hang on my wall. We discuss the different types of photography and if they are art. Her assessment was “all photography, even portraits, can be art if there is creativity”. I asked for advice or rules I should consider when taking a picture. She went through centering the subject and lighting. She suggested thinking about the composition of the photograph including “the elements of shape, form, color, and light”. Then she threw a curveball and said “an artist basically takes the instructions and throws them out the window and does it their own way”.
We were sitting in a restaurant and there were three pictures hanging on the wall right by our table. I looked at them and asked, “What makes these art”? One of the photos was of stores along a street. There were cars parked on the street but they were cut off in the picture. She gave this as an example of not following the rules. Another picture was of lanterns and the primary lantern was off center. She pointed out that a rule was to center the subject but that in this photograph that rule was broken and it added some interest to the picture.
Rules. Breaking them. Doing things my own way. All within the context of learning about my camera and photo editing. If I really think about it I can become overwhelmed. This is going to be a challenging pursuit. I am going to work on developing an artist’s eye and thoughtfully consider when a picture may be more interesting if it isn’t governed by hard and fast rules. The only thing that is comforting right now is that “it isn’t about talent”.
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