Measuring The Value Of Art
Can a self taught watercolor artist create something worth seeing?
What is the value of art and how can it be measured?
When I was beginning my painting adventure I was clueless. I had never stepped into an art studio or been to an art class. There wasn’t a local art supply store (other than Michael’s) and that was intimidating and complex.
So I dove into books and YouTube and online courses. I stumbled my way through bad supplies until I found what I liked what worked for me. I found an instructor and took my first class. I shared a painting for the first time and was shocked when the instructor called me an illustrator and not a painter…at the time I didn’t actually know the difference or understand that she didn’t mean it as an insult.
At that time illustration was necessary because I had not developed the ability to paint without a blueprint. Everything needed to have a plan and my painting was very controlled.
I bought more books. I sampled more supplies. I found an actual family owned art supply store stocked with great advice (and Daniel Smith watercolor 15 ml paint tubes!!)
I took more classes and was shocked to be told by my instructor that watercolor is “undesirable” in the art world. That oil and acrylic artwork is superior to watercolor, and in this arbitrary hierarchy, illustration was at the bottom. Yet for me, the magic happened with watercolor and illustration.
I bought more paper and paint. I experimented with brushes. I forced my cats to pose for painting sessions.
The urge to draw and paint was undeniable and intoxicating.
I noticed other artists calling out their training or saying “self taught” in their bios and I wondered…does a formal degree make an artist more talented? I began showing my work on Instagram. In my first Instagram bio I was very clear with the world that I did not get a formal training. I didn’t want people to mistakenly think I was an REAL artist. Almost like I was writing a disclaimer… “warning, enjoy at your own risk, K.L. Rockwell is a self-taught watercolor artist.”
As I kept learning, things started to become easier for me. What once took me a day to sketch and then paint now I could do in one short sitting. I devalued my work because it came easily to me. “Oh, that is because it is watercolor,” my inner voice would say. “If this was oil painting it would take forever and be so much more valuable to the viewer.”
Then one day it suddenly occurred to me. I had finished a painting and it was beautiful. I jokingly said to my husband that it took me four years and thirty minutes to paint that scene.
It isn’t the length of time or the type of art. It is a culmination of personal experiences including training, practice, and life played out in the moment of creation.
To the instructor who said "...watercolor is “undesirable” in the art world." they should perhaps google Cheng Khee Chee, John James Audubon, Andrew Wyeth, John Singer Sargent, or Georgia O'Keeffe (to name a few). No art should EVER be called "undesirable", that's just BS. there is something for everyone so don't diss someone else's interest. Ooo... so mad.
If you create, you are an artist. If you dance, you are a dancer. If you sing, you are a singer. Everything else is just labels and someone trying to put you in a box. Create! Dance! Sing! and to heck with everyone else. :)
Fox and Cat will always have a special place in my heart!
It is exactly that…a metamorphosis. I rarely do a side by side comparison but do have a photo log of everything I have painted. Sometimes I see something from years ago and think “Oh that is really pretty. I did that?”