No Criticisms, Please!

A reader of one of my recent posts expressed his ire at my suggestion that one could be a better illustrator (and or artist) by relying on one's observation, memory, and imagination.  I did expect some kind of angry reply from somebody, for which I wrote a preemptive paragraph of apology. Let me again say that while I acknowledge the fact that Art is intensely personal, I also understand that it can be a strong source of one's identity and that any suggestions about how to improve the execution of it can naturally, be seen as a threat. Heck, I know how it feels; I went through hell in grad school where I was torn stem to stern ideologically -- it was a kind of artist's boot camp-- so that I would begin to question every aspect of my art-making. And it turned out to be a good thing for me.

If you continue to read this blog and appreciate it, then you can expect to receive similar advice about questioning all aspects of Art and one's ideology that is so interconnected to it. Am I a great illustrator yet? Maybe not (yet). Am I better artist today than I was before school? Most definitely. I'm blogging about some of my observations and hope you will benefit-- or will at least engage me in a nice chat over your concerns. Yes, I can take criticism.

The aforementioned reader suggested that it was arrogant (my words) of me to offer any advice or critique about such an intensely personal pursuit as Art because no advice was sought. I don't think anyone forced him to read my article, but he felt compelled to read it because he cares so much about Art that he had to reply. We had a meaningful conversation about it and he expressed his feelings about how he makes art.  He said be basically presents what he intends and if the audience doesn't like it they can pound sand . He also said that he doesn't accept any criticism of his work as he considers himself to be finished growing as an artist. It's the art philosophy of  don't ask, "Is it good? but rather Do I like it?"  Of course, an artist is completely justified in taking this stance at any time.

I must assume that he is a professional artist and no longer requires anyone's input for his work to remain professional, edgy, and relevant to an audience. Or, maybe he's just a very independent and introspective thinker and happy making art without the feedback.  But doesn't one's work naturally change over a lifetime of searching?  Especially as your interests in life change, wouldn't your work naturally shift and, yikes, grow? School really pushed me into exploring facture and content with relevant contemporary issues so much more than I had been doing, and I learned how to make my practice sustainable.

For you, that "something new" might be to go to school, or take community classes, or maybe join a forum of artists and maybe even just read a few blogs written by some random illustrator. After all, if you're still reading this, you might be seeking a little advice.