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October Artist Q&A Day

Continuing in the tradition established by Karin Jurick, one of my favorite daily painters and the one I first saw executing this idea, we'll have an Artist Q&A day tomorrow, Friday the 29th of October (we do this each month, on the last Friday).


For those of you new to this idea - an Artist Q&A Day is a day designated to answer all your questions.


Art and studio related questions can be posted via comments right here. I'll work my way through them during the course of the day, doing my best to answer everything to the best of my abilities.


I will only respond to questions posted as comments to this particular post on my blog - this will allow for the community of readers to share in the conversation and eliminate any repetition. Because my blog is moderated (darn those spammers!), your comments will not show up immediately, but if you choose to subscribe to the comments feed, you will be notified when there is activity.


I don't know if I need to define an end time to the day - we'll play it by ear to start out with and see what the volume is like.


I'm looking forward to the dialogue this will spur!


Talk tomorrow.


Thanks, as always, for looking at - and sharing - my artwork and musings with your friends and family.
Kim


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Comments

  1. Okay...Is this the correct place for Q&A?

    Have you ever written anywhere what are your thoughts on "talent"? I don't mean your thoughts, for example, on the technical aspects of painting (or anything else), but rather your thoughts on the mystery of talent? Or do you even believe there's any "mystery" to it? Is talent teachable, or is it an issue of "you either have it or you don't"? What's the "it"? I've always wanted to know what an artist thought about the topic.

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  2. Great questions - and here's what I think. Anyone can learn to draw or paint or sculpt or make art - it is a skill, just like playing the piano or learning to shoot a free throw. It takes knowledge and practice and a desire to want to do so. This is what I tell my students, and I stand by it - if you really want to learn and can apply yourself and find some excellent teachers, you will get better and better. That said, just like in the realm of music or athletics, there are people predisposed/apparently gifted with artistic talent. That doesn't mean that these people don't also practice and work at getting better - it just doesn't seem like such a struggle to watch them. For example, I have always "seen" things in a fashion that allowed me to make art more easily than others, who had to first learn how to break down what they were seeing into manageable pieces and then reproduce them. Does this make sense?

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  3. Your answer does make sense. Thanks. I agree that, at least in theory, at least some people can be taught technique, even perhaps to the point of significant proficiency. But have you ever been able to teach someone into that mystery of "giftedness"?

    People ask me about writing and lament that they cannot "put the words flowingly together" like they apparently think I do. What has been my experience is that I can teach them spelling and grammar, and even slay their split infinitives, but at the end of the day, they are correct: Their sentences lack the "flow" of mine. There remains either that mysterious something that I cannot teach or they cannot learn.

    For me, it is likewise with painting, drawing, playing guitar, or whatever. For example, I can stare at a remote control on my desk, but my hand and a pencil cannot reproduce on paper what I am seeing. Why not? That is the "gap" that mystifies me.

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  4. There are very particular methods used to preserve the integrity of, for example, the paper used in books. While I know that there are several potential variables that will make impossible a singular answer to this questions, how does one preserve the integrity of a painting? Let's say (ahem!) that I buy a "Golden Open Acrylics on Ampersand Gessobord." How do I best "take care" of it?

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  5. But perhaps a cause of that "gap" you refer to lies inside the person's soul and is a measurement of their passion/desire or lack thereof to really "see" (or play or write).

    I also think that learning to make art involves is far more than merely learning technique - a big part is also looking at great art - studying it, picking it apart, and learning to ask oneself the same questions others prior to us have.

    Not everyone can paint like a great master, but is that because they are lacking the desire and willingness to live and breathe art in order to get there? I don't know..... great topic!!

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  6. Another good question!! My paintings are created with museum quality materials, sealed and varnished with a UV protectent. All the collector need do is keep them dust free (a dry/damp cloth will do the trick), away from solvents and bright sunlight. In the case of pieces done on paper, these should be archivally framed in order to further protect them. Oh yeah - and enjoy them, too!!

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  7. Given that your paintings are very detailed and actually convey feeling, connection and meaning, do you at all resent "abstract" painting and being lumped with those painters into a group called "artists"? You know, maybe the way Barbra Streisand might resent being called a singer right alongside Lady Gaga?

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  8. Actually, I am a huge fan of abstract art, and think that abstract artists - the really good ones - are far more talented than representational artists because they are pulling an alternate reality out of nowhere. I also think its wrong to say that abstract paintings are incapable of conveying feeling, connection and meaning - think about Henry Moore, Mark Rothko, Frank Stella, Helen Frankenthaler, Wasilly Kandinsky, Piet Mondrian - I get goosebumps when I stand in front of these. Just being called an "artist" is an honor, because it means that I can communicate visually in a successful fashion.

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  9. I will have to look and think again about abstract art. My aversion to it actually came because of an English professor...

    You answered the question I asked. I just don't think I asked precisely what I meant.

    By the way, would you be considered a "representational" artist? Other classifications would be abstract, impressionist - and what else?

    I do like the impressionists. But the abstract stuff - well, back in the day, "pulling an alternate reality out of nowhere" was called "dropping acid." Now it's expensive art. :)

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  10. I would suggest, if you can, visiting a museum/gallery close to you and wpending some time with a docent and a few abstract paintings. You might decide differently. But not every form of art works/connects with everyone, either. And that's ok.

    I think I am representational, but like to think I also have a bit of whimsy with respect to color and pattern. Not as obvious in my current paintings, but more so in collages and my older (surprise!) abstract paintings.

    And for the sake of argument, "pulling an alternate reality out of nowhere" can also be called fiction. :)

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  11. If you were a tree, what kind would you be?

    Wait a minute, that's Barbara Walter's question to Katherine Hepburn. Sorry about that.

    How compartmentalized are you? I do fiber art and have found that it is so hard to hook my minimum 10 minutes a day. Actually, my problem is that I start hooking and before I realize it, the day has gotten away from me and I have accomplished nothing else. How hard is it to force yourself to stop?

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  12. When I HAVE to force myself to stop, I use an egg timer. Otherwise, I try to do all the computer work mostly in the mornings (because I have the computer to myself), with painting in the afternoons and evenings. It takes discipline and it is not easy. Especially when I'm in the creative rush and wanting to allow that flow to continue.

    As to a tree, well, I think I would be a fruit tree. Something that would give nourishment to others.

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  13. Yes, "pulling an alternate reality out of nowhere" can also be called fiction. And that's exactly where the English professor poisoned me. To him, everything was "fiction" because we have no way of knowing what anyone ever really meant to really mean.

    He'd be a guy who would look at one of your dog paintings and declare that we can't be certain that we are not actually looking at a cat disguised as a dog.

    Having said that, I never thought of an abstract painting in terms of "fiction." Having had an English professor so utterly "abstract" language, my mind equated "abstract" with nonsense.

    The word "fiction" gives me a whole new way to consider abstract paintings. Thanks.

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  14. Do you hate getting lots of questions from dumb non-painters? :)



    Last question, I promise:

    Is it more invigorating for you when your professional peers send accolades your way, or when just common, every day, non-artistic people "connect" with your work?

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  15. What do you think made the biggest impact on people discovering you? Was it a particular website, or was it local word of mouth that led to people looking you up online? Thanks!

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  16. I have always been amazed by how 2 people standing side by side experience the same situation entirely differently. The way we process experiences - and retell them, whether visually or with words or music - is fascinating. There are a million different realities for the same set of circumstances, and doesn't that make our world all the better?

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  17. Drafted.rough - no not at all! I love the questions!!

    I get different feelings from both types of feedback. Clearly the everyday sort of comments are highly important because these are potential collectors and advertisers (via word of mouth) of my work. It's very important that I understand what they connect with so that I can continue to provide that.

    Peers talking about my work is a different kind of rewarding experience, because I know they are approaching the painting as more than a picture - they understand the process and are able to critique using that knowledge, which helps me to be a better artist, too.

    :)

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  18. Christi, I think the biggest impact was my customers telling their friends and family. Sort of a grass roots campaign. As people discovered my art, they shared it very enthusiastically with others, and that trend continued. Of course, this also started 5 years ago, when blogging was relatively new and there wasn't as much on the internet - starting something up similarly now might not work as easily.

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