Speaking of Art Blog

I just finished participating in another successful Chesterton Art Fair.  Rain or shine, and there was a lot of the former this year, I always look forward to it.  I sold 6 original pastel paintings along with several prints and notecards.  I really appreciate the support our local community shows to our artists each year at this fair. 

One other feature of our fair that I cherish is the opportunity for honest conversations I have with other artists, both participating artists and artist visitors to the fair.  On Saturday I had a discussion about photography with an artist visitor to my booth.  They told me they have come to despise photography.  Oh my!  They feel that photography has only served to cheapen 2-D art.  Nowadays with people everywhere having a camera right on their phones, taking pics has become second nature to everyone.  Many people think they’re a self-made professional photographer now.  As a result, this artist feels that 2-D art creating, where an artist actually applies an art medium to a surface, has not only lost its intrigue to artists, but the public is losing its respect for how labor intensive 2-D artwork creations are.

I was afraid that because my hyperrealistic styled artwork is based on photos I take, that the artist was going to lump my work in with photography, but they didn’t.  In fact, they had very high praise for my artwork.  It was mainly because they knew just how long it took me to go above and beyond mere description.  They told me that each of my paintings tells a story.  Hearing that from an accomplished 2-D artist was one of the nicest compliments they could have given me.

Our conversation simmered on a back burner of my brain after that person left my booth.  Do I agree with them about the cheapening effect of universal picture taking?  Yes, I think so.  There are far less non-photography 2-D artists in art fairs anymore, while 20 years ago oil painters and watercolorists were the norm.  But when I ponder it, professional photographers today might not necessarily have an edge in the art market either because they are competing with the general public, many of whom think, “I could take a pic like that.  I just need a better camera.”  Well, they are wrong.

I have taken 3 very valuable photography courses in my life, and in the first one I took in college, the gifted instructor stated very confidently and accurately, “It does not matter what kind of camera you own, it’s WHO is snapping the shutter that makes all the difference.”  The artistry begins in the mind of the artist.  Whether they are holding a cheap-o camera or a pastel stick or a brush makes no difference.  The level of expertise is evident when the artist moves beyond mere description to using their practiced skills in conveying something they envision even before they start to physically create their artwork.  And that is not a common occurrence that magically happens without practice, studious learning, and lots of trial and error.

I tell my pastel students regularly that I do not have all the answers when it comes to rendering something new to me in a pastel painting.  I have just tried and failed and then tried again more times than them.  Practice and taking lessons and practicing some more and then learning some more is the essential rhythm that comes before mastery.  There are no shortcuts.

So that was our conversation as the rain started pouring down on my booth and most of the customers quickly disappeared on Saturday afternoon.  It was a very worthwhile discussion, one that will stay with me long after this year’s fair is a distant memory.  And another Chesterton Art Fair is now in the books.  It was time well spent.  My wallet expanded a bit and so did my mind.