Who Is An Artist?

An interesting question often asked is, "Who is an

artist?"

In the United States, the cultural view of expertise is

definitely somewhat blurred. A little girl taking ballet class is

considered a ballerina but there is a big difference between

h e r and someone dancing professionally for the Bolshoi

Theater in Moscow. The same goes for artists who paint or

sculpt. Every one of us has an artist within; most of us feel

driven to express at least a small part of our self via a

certain media.

This distinction, however, is a world apart from being

an artist who's living is earned through their art.

Professional artists are people who have found a particular

voice in themselves. In fact, when you see an incredible

artist with 5 or 6 different styles doing amazing paintings of

everything from still-life to landscapes to nude; the hidden

truth is this artist has not yet found their maturity and a

voice consistent throughout their work.

Mature artists have the ability whereby, if they do a

still-life, a nude or anything else, they transfer their style on

to the canvas without effort or thought. You are able to

notice the hand behind the work so strongly even a true

neophyte knowing nothing about art should be able to

comment... "this is the artist I just saw the nude from

even though I am looking at a bowl of cherries."