Just How do you become an Artist?

srg

in order to become infamous as an artist you have to be dead unfortunately. Otherwise, I think it's a game of chance, right place right time kind of thing, and the right person to recognize your talent.

Anonymous

Born to

dalix

Being an artist is about you, not about what others think. If you create, then you're an artist.

onastar

Being an artist is about you, not about what others think. If you create, then you're an artist.

being an artist is about you, and not what others say or think, I don't think so!!. this is a great way of comforting one's feeling of belonging to that which they desire.

I think being an artist is more than it being about yourself. Its a service if you like, some may say a hobby if they only do it for self-satisfaction. however, an artist should be a creator, a person whom puts in a passion in that which they believe, so as to sell, show, acquire a sense of achieveness . be it for money or not, an Artist is a service person offering you the chance to see, feel or witness that ability they poses. whatever the case art is art when it is seen or shown to others. its not art if no one ever sees, hears or witnesses what you are capable of creating.

thanks I rest my case

onastar

Being an artist is about you, not about what others think. If you create, then you're an artist.

being an artist is about you, and not what others say or think. this is a great way of comforting one feeling of belonging to that which they desire.

I think being an artist is more than it being about yourself, its a service if you like, some may say a hobby if they only do it for self-satisfaction. however, an artist should be a creator, a person whom puts in a passion in that which they believe, so as to sell, show, acquire a sense of achieveness . be it for money or not, an Artist is a service person offering you the chance to see, feel or witness that ability they poses. whatever the case art is art when it is seen or shown to others. its not art if no ever sees, hears or witnesses what you are capable of creating.

thanks I rest my case

simla

to answer the question, how you become an artist?,one would first ask, the question , what is art.That of course opens a great can of worms. A number of pretentious folk would have a lot of criteria you`d have to fill, qualifications,accomplishments,eg; showings,art sales and the like. I agree with the the concept that artists are born with the desire to make art. they can also be trained to a degree as well.They may not ever reach the depths of passion seen in Masters,who are prepared to live in a garret for their art . I have a degree in fine art. Whether or not I make any money from my art is immaterial, I know i`m an artist,have always been,since a small child,drawing,painting, making mud pies. its, for me,the act of ascetic appreciation that makes or breaks an artist. One may say its`` The Perfection of the Imperfect``

Nicky

Art is such a subjective thing, and is so varied according to each of our perceptions and perspectives that it seems impossible to have set criteria that everyone would need to meet before being considered an artist. Each person is an artist in their own right. If you create something, and it inspires you or anyone else, or if it means something, or provokes thought - or even if it does nothing at all... If you have created something it is a reflection of some aspect of who you are - you are an artist.

Captured

You can call yourself an artist when you actively participate in art and find yourself living for and yearning to do art as often as possible.

Anyone can put pencil to paper or paint on a canvas but this does not necessarily make them an artist many people will look up to admire, but they can still call them selves an artist all the same.

Art covers many genres too- music, painting, drawing, photography, illustrating, writing, poetry (and i am sure there are others i have failed to mention).

If you make enough money to live off your art, then i'd have to say you're more than just a hobby artist, but sometimes even "professional" artists have to hold another job to help them pay the bills.

dave

i wish i was one

mischh75

I consider myself as an artist of sorts where others may consider me an illustrator, but the same thing happened with norman lindsay, although I am certainly not up to his par. I was a stuff up at school, just really unhappy there, and at home but when i left home I went to Tafe and was lucky enough to have a teacher from the slade school. It was funny, cos the class was made up of mainly older women, there were only two men and one of those was two years older than me, ditched school too, and the other was in the older age group. It was nice, finally I was learning and treated equally. I only did this for six months but home circumstances changed and I didnt continue. Many years passed and i realised i was still an art nut and really disappointed that i had wasted my life and time doing stuff I had no value for. Then I started going in art comps in the hope Id get a name, maybe sell some, as i was unemployed again. I found this very expensive, as my chosen medium has to be framed. I never won anything and no piques in my work as to sales, but my circle of friends always say my stuff is very good. Art comps often have themes, and i find this a bit annoying, also portrait prizes require one to get some known person to sit, difficult a bit really, but people challenge this, and win, just look at this years archibold being a self portrait.

Art is a bit flavour of the month governed, and the curator or gallery director is important too, in the way they work. The most recent group exhibit, themed, that I went in, most smaller two dimensional things (photography, drawings) were lumped in a brickalage? fashion, together, a style that i have seen individual artists taking up atm, and this was disappointing, as it felt as though the gallery director just didnt know what do and so lazily decided to just lump them all together. The exhibition was covered by the local papers art critic, and she didnt mention pastels or pencil drawing at all, so there you go. Its just what ppl value i guess. my style is very subtle, still life or whatever, a bit quirky, i suppose. It was the first exhibition only exhibition that i ever got to, as it required one to attend the opening night, something which is very difficult for me as I am terrible in social situations. I dont know anyone and am too nervous to make a fake acceptable persona so its really hard. BUT, in looking around, i sooo delighted, as young asain couple were staring intently at my work, and i think they liked it! Even now Im tearing because Ive been so much, and worked really hard and I dont have to work, or money to learn more, and the tyranny of distance, and fear to travel at night to try and undertake classes which would give me space and keep me practicing and improving, it just meant so much to me for a stranger to like my work, because relying on friends, its not the same.

I really wish I had've been able to stick with that class when i was a teenager, everyone has regrets i spose, but i really think, coming back to what i enjoy, i couldve gone far and had a lot more confidence than i do now. I think being an artist is almost like when you realise you just cant do anything else anymore. I always was told no artist makes money, like poets i guess, and this distracted me, as i really wanted to own my own home one day, just the security of not being homeless or having to move a lot as rental prices become unpayable. Being an artist for me, is being happy with what i do, as i do compare myself to the art world, and even tho i havent, and may never be recognised, i love my works, if i didnt id chuck em : ) and they definately are on par with others i see in magazines etc. Its important to keep this in mind, because trying to jump the fence can be difficult and soul destroying at times.

Keep studying, improve technique so then you can bend it and challenge it. Artist by trade (usually lndscapes), from those I know who have done so, have someone that can market them, and find the market and milk it. If you can break the trade, its different to being recognised by peers, but at least you can afford to support yourself and secretly work on your own archi in the back of your studio. goodluck and congratulations on your sales, it a great thing to be able to keep doing what you like to, no matter what it is.

Anonymous

I consider myself as an artist of sorts where others may consider me an illustrator, but the same thing happened with norman lindsay, although I am certainly not up to his par. I was a stuff up at...

Hi,
I have just joined and read your comment about artists. I was never interested when I was a child but started to paint about the same time when my Mother decided to- in her early sixties. I find it fun and an outlet for creativity. Who cares if your good or not as long as you are enjoying yourself. I actually sold one of my paintings which I had painted over 6 times. You sound like a nice person and that's important. Best of luck

what'shisname

I believe if you say you are an artist and actually make something and call it art then you are an artist. But in most cases not necessaraly a good one. In fact you could possibly be a terrible artist, but who am I to say this person is and artist and that person isn't. You are an artist if you say you are. I don't believe attending art school or having an exhibition is what makes you an artist. Or acceptance from any "art community" makes you an artist. Many brilliant artists were never accepted by other artist or art critics in there lifetime, only to become highly reguarded by them years later.

I do call myself an artist. When people question me about it their usual response is to be amazed that yes, they agree that I am a REAL artist, unlike most people they know who claim to be artists, but don't actually get around to making much art. I have a PhD in Fine Art which took 10 years of incredibly hard work. But that doesn't make me an artist. I have held 10 very sucessful solo exhibitions in commercial galleries over the past 12 years and also been included in countless group exhibitions. I have sold many artworks, and had my exhibitions written about very favourably by art critics in Sydney's newspapers. I have lectured in Painting and Drawing at University. But I still don't think its these things that make me an artist.

So what makes me think I'm an artist ? Its because I am totally passionatly devoted to not just art but everything that can be seen around me. I am always looking at things others walk straight past. I've been like this since I was very young. There is nothing else in the world that I would ever consider doing. I believe people are born artists, they are not made artists by attending art schools or selling some of their work. You can teach anyone how to paint or draw. Even monkeys can be taught this. But you can not teach creativity.

As a child art or music was seen as having no value in my family home. We had no pictures of any type on the walls of our home. We didn't even have a record player and this wasn't because we couldn't afford it. I was 10 when Gough bough Jackson Pollock's Blue Poles and everyone was screaming about what a waste of 1.3 million it was. ( Its now estimated to be worth well over 100 million perhaps as much as 300 million. ) I saw pictures of it in the newspapers and on TV and was able to think for myself, what a fantastic painting. I can't explain why but although I came from the background I just described, I was always drawing and painting as a child. And I spent weekend after weekend constructing things out of Lego. lways my own made up things. I was never encouraged by any of my family. But I still drew constantly and was totally self motivated to do so. Even at school I remember my art teacher ripping up my paintings and telling me they were crap. But it didn't stop me.

I hate to sound so over romantic about it, but I truely believe that creativity is something we all have in some way, be it gardening, cooking, dancing, sewing or just singing in the shower. I believe its a basic human need. And of course there has never been a society in the history of humans on earth that did not do some type of artwork.

One of the first toys kids get are crayons or somthing similar. But when they grow too old they have to stop playing with them. People like myself chose not to stop and allowed this kind of play to develop much further. When I talk to other artists I find that they too were always drawing as children. This strenghens my belief that artists are born not made. People must have a huge desire for art and an obsession which makes creating art the most important thing in there lives. Sometimes people must make huge sacrifices, and choose art over all other things.

O.K. So not every artist in the world is totally obsesed like I am. Many must work other jobs to be able to support their artistic projects. But I truely and very stongly believe there is already something inside a person which makes them an artist. I just happen to be one of the lucky few who has made a career out of it.

Anonymous

Many artist dont intentionally trade their art so selling it doesn't make you an artist. Do you feel like an artist? Do you value your own work and do others se value in what you do.