If you’ve been an artist for any amount of time you’ve probably heard this phrase: “I don’t necessarily know what direction we should go with, but I’ll know it when I see it. I can always tell if something looks good.” And they say it with such a smug expression as if their skill of identifying good things were a special talent – unique to them.
But that isn’t a special skill. Everyone knows what’s good when they see it. Everyone knows what they like. That’s no special thing.
But so very few people realize why they like something or why they don’t like something. That’s what can be so frustrating for artists. You’ll hear things like: “We need to do this over. I don’t know what’s wrong with it I just don’t like it.” So frustrating, right?
So many people know what they like, they just don’t know why. And that’s the opportunity for the artist. The artists gets to figure out what the client/pastor/passerby likes about something and recreate the heart of the art.
That’s what can keep an artist from copying something they see. They don’t have to copy it. They just have to capture what’s good about a piece and recreate that.
And that is what makes an artist. It isn’t skill. It isn’t the tools. It’s understanding why something is good or bad. That’s a much more rare ability. Searching out the matter.
That’s the pursuit of the artist. The why.
Jonathan I loved this particular blog. I’m headed to Chicago Wed. To a fabric show and fabric “fest”. I’m gathering everything I need to start my lifelong dream of owning my own clothing line. I love designing and decided that just because I didn’t go to fashion design school doesn’t mean I’m disqualified. Your blogs always give me confidence as an artist. I’m nervous because I don’t know all the nomenclature used at these shows, heck I’m still learning how to speak proper English! I do know that I can be myself and not act like I know things I don’t know. I can be confident and humble at the same time. I’m not afraid to say “I’m sorry , but I’m new at this and I don’t quite understand”
Anyway, I’ve been working on this for years and this week a part of my dream will be realized. Your blogs encourage me! Any advice is much appreciated. Kass
Jonathan I loved this particular blog. I’m headed to Chicago Wed. To a fabric show and fabric “fest”. I’m gathering everything I need to start my lifelong dream of owning my own clothing line. I love designing and decided that just because I didn’t go to fashion design school doesn’t mean I’m disqualified. Your blogs always give me confidence as an artist. I’m nervous because I don’t know all the nomenclature used at these shows, heck I’m still learning how to speak proper English! I do know that I can be myself and not act like I know things I don’t know. I can be confident and humble at the same time. I’m not afraid to say “I’m sorry , but I’m new at this and I don’t quite understand”
Anyway, I’ve been working on this for years and this week a part of my dream will be realized. Your blogs encourage me! Any advice is much appreciated. Kass
I very much identify with what you said in this article. As an architect, I design to create something entirely different for every client. They want a look and feel that they can barely describe. It is a challenge to find those elements of balance, rhythm, and form that get them excited. It is individual to each client, which gets really interesting when you try to please a committee of 12. But it is as rewarding as it is challenging when they tell you they “love it!!!” That is the task we have signed on for. It is our job to keep pushing buttons until they fall in love with it, at the same time we protect their interest of making it functional and affordable.
I very much identify with what you said in this article. As an architect, I design to create something entirely different for every client. They want a look and feel that they can barely describe. It is a challenge to find those elements of balance, rhythm, and form that get them excited. It is individual to each client, which gets really interesting when you try to please a committee of 12. But it is as rewarding as it is challenging when they tell you they “love it!!!” That is the task we have signed on for. It is our job to keep pushing buttons until they fall in love with it, at the same time we protect their interest of making it functional and affordable.