5 ms·

When I was in Art School, the instructors there stressed that it was wrong, or rather, misguided, to infuse your beginner work with a "Style." Style should come

When I was in Art School, the instructors there stressed that it was wrong, or rather, misguided, to infuse your beginner work with a "Style." Style should come from the inside out, not the outside in. In other words, learn your craft and the way you express it will be individual to you. There is no need to create a "style" for your work. I think this relates to the topic!

throwaway5752 6y ago
Well said. Even in cases like Picasso or Mondrian, they were highly accomplished artists before they developed the abstract styles they became famous for. Picasso: https://www.wikiart.org/en/pablo-picasso/artist-s-mother-1896 https://www.wikiart.org/en/pablo-picasso/artist-s-mother-189... Mondrian: https://www.wikiart.org/en/piet-mondrian/wood-with-beech-trees https://www.wikiart.org/en/piet-mondrian/wood-with-beech-tre... Kandinsky: https://www.wikiart.org/en/wassily-kandinsky/odessa-port-1898 https://www.wikiart.org/en/wassily-kandinsky/odessa-port-189... Miro: https://www.wikiart.org/en/joan-miro/house-with-palm-tree https://www.wikiart.org/en/joan-miro/house-with-palm-tree (admittedly abstracted, but very far from his later work)
- rhn_mk1 6y ago
  "Artworks of Pablo Picasso are not available in your country on copyright grounds." Oh joy.
  - throwaway5752 6y ago
    Sorry, I hope this is available to you: https://www.reproduction-gallery.com/oil-painting/1461912597/portrait-of-the-artists-mother-b-1896-by-pablo-picasso/ https://www.reproduction-gallery.com/oil-painting/1461912597...
paulryanrogers 6y ago
Somehow this strikes me as pay-your-dues elitism. I agree the fundamentals of color and form are essential. And perhaps some basic technique. But ultimately the sooner and more free people are to experiment then I believe the more variety society will gain. Having studied only a few semesters of art at university I realized it wasn't for me. Still, I appreciate that the instructors weren't dogmatic about the craft. They let me explore it from a digital first perspective in the early oughts.
- echelon 6y ago
  > Somehow this strikes me as pay-your-dues elitism. These same people are going to be horrified by style transfer and all of the ML developments coming to upset the art world. Pretty soon practicing shading and lighting skills will be as obscure as making your own paper and inks. People will still do it, but it won't be necessary.
- smoe 6y ago
  All the art teacher and professionals I interacted with encouraged experimentation but also stressed to not skip the fundamentals. The problem is that especially beginners are quick to jump to saying it is their "style" when being critiqued even tough what they were doing wasn't intentional or isn't perceived as intentional. E.g it is easy to play an instrument off-beat, and every now and then it will sound really good by accident. But playing off-beat intentionally, consistently in a appealing fashion in different contexts takes a ton of practice. But there is also the other extreme. The founder of FZD, a concept art school in Singapore mentioned in one of his videos that he is worried that a lot of young students are way too focused on learning fundamentals and doing tedious muscle memory drills found on Youtube instead of drawing just for fun for hours and hours, experimenting, making mistakes and correcting them. So I think it is about finding a balance between honing your technique and knowledge and applying your current skill level in different creative ways, that will eventually result in your own style and the development of your style over time.

throwaway5752 6y ago

Well said. Even in cases like Picasso or Mondrian, they were highly accomplished artists before they developed the abstract styles they became famous for. Picasso: https://www.wikiart.org/en/pablo-picasso/artist-s-mother-1896 https://www.wikiart.org/en/pablo-picasso/artist-s-mother-189... Mondrian: https://www.wikiart.org/en/piet-mondrian/wood-with-beech-trees https://www.wikiart.org/en/piet-mondrian/wood-with-beech-tre... Kandinsky: https://www.wikiart.org/en/wassily-kandinsky/odessa-port-1898 https://www.wikiart.org/en/wassily-kandinsky/odessa-port-189... Miro: https://www.wikiart.org/en/joan-miro/house-with-palm-tree https://www.wikiart.org/en/joan-miro/house-with-palm-tree (admittedly abstracted, but very far from his later work)

rhn_mk1 6y ago
"Artworks of Pablo Picasso are not available in your country on copyright grounds." Oh joy.
- throwaway5752 6y ago
  Sorry, I hope this is available to you: https://www.reproduction-gallery.com/oil-painting/1461912597/portrait-of-the-artists-mother-b-1896-by-pablo-picasso/ https://www.reproduction-gallery.com/oil-painting/1461912597...

paulryanrogers 6y ago

Somehow this strikes me as pay-your-dues elitism. I agree the fundamentals of color and form are essential. And perhaps some basic technique. But ultimately the sooner and more free people are to experiment then I believe the more variety society will gain. Having studied only a few semesters of art at university I realized it wasn't for me. Still, I appreciate that the instructors weren't dogmatic about the craft. They let me explore it from a digital first perspective in the early oughts.

echelon 6y ago
> Somehow this strikes me as pay-your-dues elitism. These same people are going to be horrified by style transfer and all of the ML developments coming to upset the art world. Pretty soon practicing shading and lighting skills will be as obscure as making your own paper and inks. People will still do it, but it won't be necessary.
smoe 6y ago
All the art teacher and professionals I interacted with encouraged experimentation but also stressed to not skip the fundamentals. The problem is that especially beginners are quick to jump to saying it is their "style" when being critiqued even tough what they were doing wasn't intentional or isn't perceived as intentional. E.g it is easy to play an instrument off-beat, and every now and then it will sound really good by accident. But playing off-beat intentionally, consistently in a appealing fashion in different contexts takes a ton of practice. But there is also the other extreme. The founder of FZD, a concept art school in Singapore mentioned in one of his videos that he is worried that a lot of young students are way too focused on learning fundamentals and doing tedious muscle memory drills found on Youtube instead of drawing just for fun for hours and hours, experimenting, making mistakes and correcting them. So I think it is about finding a balance between honing your technique and knowledge and applying your current skill level in different creative ways, that will eventually result in your own style and the development of your style over time.