Comments on: Who wants to be an artist?

By: tobias tinker

tobias tinker — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:20:05 +0000

(looks like the trackback beat me to it! Wow, that was fast!)

By: tobias tinker

tobias tinker — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:18:16 +0000

Hey, I’m late to the party here, I just stumbled on this while catching up with things here after a busy spell (well, between busy spells I guess).

Interesting thoughts here all around… I started working on a comment but it got out of hand and I realized it was becoming a post unto itself – hey, I’m overdue for one anyway.

So my reaction is over at cliffjump.net/what-is-art

by the way, I got a good chuckle out of this: “Note to politicians: never take a swipe at people who communicate for a living.”

By: What is Art? (And why do we care so much?) « cliffjump.net

What is Art? (And why do we care so much?) « cliffjump.net — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 00:15:20 +0000

[...] so, to continue a kind of slow-motion threaded conversation, I’d like to react here to Stacey Cornelius’ post on the Studio Source, which was itself a reaction to Clint Watson’s post on Fine Art Views, which was itself a [...]

By: uberVU - social comments

uberVU - social comments — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 22:47:04 +0000

Social comments and analytics for this post…

This post was mentioned on Twitter by thestudiosource: New blog post: Who wants to be an artist? http://bit.ly/9GwGKh...

By: Stacey Cornelius

Stacey Cornelius — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 03:36:42 +0000

“Craft” has more baggage than “artist,” in my opinion. Arts and Crafts was a movement began by William Morris and his colleagues (as you probably know), but since it’s also used to describe children’s playtime activities, I can see why it was problematic.

You’re right, no one can do excellent work without mastering the technique, but once again, language and its interpretation throw a monkey wrench into everything.

By: Sally Mack

Sally Mack — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:37:18 +0000

Sorry, I forgot to add that craft is a vital component of art, whatever it is.

The venerable California College of Arts and Crafts, CCAC, changed its name to the CA College of Art a few years ago, to its detriment in my opinion. They thought “crafts” somehow denigrated the institution. What is ceramics without a solid foundation in the craft? Or painting? Or sculpture. photography, drawing, etc.?

By: Sally Mack

Sally Mack — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:18:42 +0000

You wouldn’t believe the number of “When can I call myself a photographer” posts on photo blogs I’m on. I’m tempted to say “When you don’t have to ask the question” but stay out of it.

By: Stacey Cornelius

Stacey Cornelius — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 14:41:35 +0000

I don’t think that’s the least bit curmudgeonly, Sally. I think it’s honest and sensible.

By: Sally Mack

Sally Mack — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 07:04:19 +0000

“Art” has so many definitions and practitioners that it has become meaningless. I don’t use the word because I don’t know what it means. It’s often applied to me but I never ask what it means because I don’t care. It’s meant as a compliment and I take it as such.

I don’t refer to my photos as “art” because I don’t know if they are. I refer to myself as a photographer–that is demonstrably true, I take pictures with a camera. As for whether or not photos can be art, boy, is that a tedious discussion.

Here I am, the curmudgeon, again!

By: Stacey Cornelius

Stacey Cornelius — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 20:39:56 +0000

Squeamish is no good. It’s always best to go with something that fits like a good pair of shoes (unless you’re just being shy, in which case you need to break in the shoes a little). If you make art, you make art. If you work at art, so be it.

Gritting my teeth in sympathy at your friend’s (insecure) comment.