“Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.” – Pablo Picasso.
For centuries, art has been an escape and a retreat from the reality of life for both artists and art-lovers alike. From historical sculptures to seascape paintings they have provided a means of processing pain, joy, distress, tranquillity and every other emotion and state of being. But what separates a great artist from every other person with a paintbrush, pencil or lump of clay?
Terry Watts, Driving in Rain (M11 in Cambridgeshire)
“I found I could say things with colour and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way… things I had no words for.” – Georgia O’Keeffe
The first question we must ask is ‘Is art subjective?’ Is it merely a matter of opinion, or is it something that we can pin down and categorically state whether a painting, sculpture or sketch is good or not? That is a huge question, and one that we can’t answer in one blog post (if ever)! However, it’s an interesting way to start the discussion of what makes a great artist.
“The artist is nothing without the gift, but the gift is nothing without work.” – Émile Zola
One school of thought states that the quality of a piece of art is solely based on what is taken away by those who view it. For example, there are some great works of art that inspire or move people. If this is what we are looking for in order to label truly great art, it opens up the door for many artists to be known as great.
George Weissbort, The Rooftops of Ostend
“Painting is a faith, and it imposes the duty to disregard public opinion.” – Vincent Van Gough
The next question we should ask ourselves is ‘Must an artist produce great art to be a great artist?’ If we accepted the claim that all art is subjective, then does it follow that a great artist must produce great art? Is it so cut and dry, or is there more to it than that? Perhaps the only element that is needed to create a truly great artist is the ability to create art at all?
“Drawing is the honesty of the art. There is no possibility of cheating. It is either good or bad.” – Salvador Dali
If we take a look at the lives and careers of some of the world’s greatest artists, we will see that some of them were not considered to be great while they were alive. For example, Vincent Van Gough was a failing and starving artist while he was alive. He created more than 2000 paintings, yet only sold two of them during his lifetime. Plagued with mental illness and the reality of his lack of success, he took his own life at 37. Little did he know that, less than 100 years later, he would be regarded as one of the greatest artists to have ever lived. These days, his paintings sell for incredible sums of money. So what was it that changed, and why is his once irrelevant collection now admired so widely and fervently?
Edward Esson, Boats on the Norfolk Broads
“Fine art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of man go together.” – John Ruskin
Many of us would agree that Van Gough was always a great artist – his paintings have not changed since his death, but public opinion has. Perhaps he was ahead of his time, and his paintings found relevance in the years after he died. It is hard to truly know why it is that he was not appreciated during his life, but maybe this suggests that art is objective. It is ever changing, just as those who appreciate it continue to change.
“Every good painter paints what he is.” – Jackson Pollock
With such a huge question, it is difficult to come to a real conclusion. It is something that we must make our own decisions about. Perhaps a great artist is someone who can create a technically great piece of art, or maybe a great artist is someone who can make people experience something through their work. If an artist can put a little of themselves into their art, then just maybe, they truly are a great artist.
