In Perspective, Planet: Is this art?

[Nigel Allan]

I was strolling along London's South Bank on Sunday and saw this lady painting on the sidewalk. She had a large crowd around her so I went in for a closer look.

Here is my enigmatic, rhetorical and philosophical question of the day: Is this art?

To which one might reply, “Is what art?”

The point is, am I referring to the sidewalk painting? Or to the painting she is copying? Or indeed to my own photograph documenting what she is doing?

Is any of it ‘art’ or just well captured observation? And does it even matter? (actually I thought she was doing a damn fine job)

Nigel Allan: Is this art? London South bank, 1st August 2010 ​

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[Asher Kelman]

Yes, yes and yes!

Actually, I'm in awe of the skill of this street artists. They have no pretenses. They have surprisingly immense talent to reproduce works of the masters. How is it possible that they aren't doing their own original work? Can one really have that much skill but seem to show no heart of their own in their work?

Asher

 

[Mike Shimwell]

Perhaps they find it easier to make money from passers by than to sell their own work through the galleries? A friend of my brother is a painter who was represented by one of the 'fine art' houses. On a regular basis they would return his work to him with a photoshopped variation - can the girl smile please etc - in order that he would be more saleable.

After he had 3 paintings selected for the RA show he no longer had need of their 'help'.

Mike

 

[Nigel Allan]

Yes, yes and yes!

Actually, I'm in awe of the skill of this street artists. They have no pretenses. They have surprisingly immense talent to reproduce works of the masters. How is it possible that they aren't doing their own original work? Can one really have that much skill but seem to show no heart of their own in their work?

Asher

It's like the occasional story you see on the news about art forgers. Some of them have such awesome skill that they fool the experts and you wonder why they don't use it for their own creations. However I guess that's where skill or craft ends and art begins - the 'application of great skill' in rendering a UNIQUE vision.

A craftsman needs skill, and an artist needs BOTH skill AND vision.

ADDENDUM:

On reflection there is more to it than this. Being a great artist and being 'recognised' as a great artist are TWO entirely different things and are as much to do with PR and consensus as anything else. So I can understand why someone with enormous God-given talent might opt to create forgeries or copy other people's work to make a decent living if they are not fortunate enough to be recognised by the 'art world' and feted.

A parellel might be in the music industry. There are lots of talented people who never get anywhere because they don't have the right breaks or connections and maybe end up making a living as backing singers or session musicians working on albums for talentless 'stars' who have been fortunate enough to break through due to PR and consensus etc

Talent alone is not enough. You need the consensus of others to become successful and acknowledged as a great artist

 

[Asher Kelman]

It's like the occasional story you see on the news about art forgers. Some of them have such awesome s
Talent alone is not enough. You need the consensus of others to become successful and acknowledged as a great artist

This is why, perhaps, Savador Dali, (Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquis of Dalí de Púbol), had, I am told, the British psychological warfare army chap do all his promotions! This man was talented, trained, imaginative, eccentric as his promotional trick, and a had no moral backbone.

Asher