What does an artist do?
Everyone is an artist in its purest sense. Every one of us is able to express their ideas in a creative way. How creative we are, however, depends on how much time we spend on creative activities, such as sketching, observing the world around us, playing games or simply daydreaming! A creative mind is necessary in every profession, and the art studio is the perfect training academy for your creative muscles.
Before we can be artists in the studio, it is important that we know how to behave like artists. But how do we know how artists behave, and how do we know which of our behaviours helps us become better artists?
To help everyone understand some aspects of being an artist, let's take a look at a typical painter's studio. Even though many artists prefer working with pencils, or charcoals, or collage, you will see that some of the clues we will find in this studio apply to any kind of artist!
Grab your clue paper and, in your table groups, choose a recorder. You will have two minutes to write anything you see on the slide, and what may it mean. Start to consider how this item or procedure helps the person who owns this studio to become a better artist!
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Now, let's talk about stealing like an artist. It is important to know the difference between bad stealing and good stealing.
Picasso said, "Bad artists copy. Good artists steal."
But what is the difference?
The difference is that ideas also belong to someone. In fact, ideas are considered property of a person even after they die -- it is transferred to their families, just like any other inheritance.
You can get in a lot of trouble if you copy something that someone else already made. This is plagiarism. Good stealing is subtle and not obvious. When you steal like an artist, no one even notices it. To steal the right way, you can't look at only one source of inspiration -- you look at several, and then you add to what you already have inside. This generates something that is unique and creative. This is called research, and good stealing.
And that is how we grow as a society. Think about this -- for millennia, humans have improved upon previous humans' ideas. They do this by looking at something, adding to what they know or imagine, and creating something new. If all we did was copy each other, then human progress would stagnate.
Looking at many ideas and taking a little bit from each one is a form of inspiration. Artists have historically been the most creative and inventive people around. Having the capacity to hold on to your artistic self will make you a better professional, no matter what path you choose in life. The same portion of your brain that works hard to solve an open problem in art class is also responsible for coming up with a quick, creative solution to escape a difficult situation, save a life, or fixing something that is broken last minute. Creativity gives you stronger life skills and makes you better in any profession you choose.
Let's watch the two videos below to understand more about stealing the right way.
So, this all brings us back to the question...
What does an artist do?
As we saw above, artists research how others do it. And that is not just looking at other artists -- inspiration (and good stealing) also comes from nature and the world around us. In fact, many artists are very aware of global issues and they get involved and try to make a difference. Art can be used to communicate ideas -- remember the saying, "A picture is worth a thousand words?"
Artists also work hard. Very hard! No one is born with the skills they need in order to reproduce the ideas that are in their mind. Artists need to develop those skills through hard work. Many people seem to think that art is easy, but it is not easy. Art is the same as learning how to play an instrument -- if you want to play well, you have to practice many, many hours. Even playing a sport -- you don't start off being the best hockey player. It's all about building muscle memory, developing skills... You will not be the best you can be at art (or anything) without hard work, commitment and dedication.
Artists also reflect on how they have been working, and take risks with their art. They don't stick to the same thing and repeat it over and over. While it may seem like some artists never changed, did you know that Picasso was actually quite an accomplished realistic drawer? After being comfortable with his observation skills, he decided to take risks and try something different. And that is how Cubism started.
Now, let's discuss for a couple minutes in our table groups.
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Then, come together and talk about stealing.
Are you doing some good stealing? How can you make sure you do?
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To the left, the first self-portrait Picasso ever did... and to the right, his last.
Artists also solve problems. So much so, that innovators have taken notice of the technique used by artists to produce artwork. This way of thinking generated Design Thinking, a way used by engineers and inventors in order to come up with new products; you may see something similar to this in ADST class!
Skills in math or science are important; creativity allows you to apply these skills in unusual ways.
Finally, artists collaborate. Throughout history, art has not been created in a vacuum, but artists worked together. That is why we know about Cubism, Impressionism, Renaissance and other art movements throughout history; because artists helped each other come up with good ideas. They worked in large studios (much like this classroom), where they would come and work together, create together and build upon each other's work. And as they collaborate and grow, their art becomes more and more original, and they develop their own personal and unique voice.