The death of painting

If you want to make money in the arts, sell art supplies. It’s a multi-gazillion (name your currency) per year cash flow. Out of the pockets of artists, professional, amateur and wannabe. Into the coffers of the suppliers. “Art”, however you define it, has fat years and lean. Not so much, the supply houses. Artists and crafters always need more supplies and tools.  I’ve done no research on it, but I’m willing to believe the suppliers have as good or better years, when the economy slows.

I can vouch for at least my own contorted set of oils, since I have recently gathered all together preparing for a move. They still itch to be uncapped. Or if they cannot easily be uncapped, they burst out at the bottom just to be put on canvas! If painting dies, it will be when human beings are extinct. “The market” was not there when Igluk painted his dinner on a cave wall. Nor was Christies, nor were MOMA or the Louvre. Painting as product? Well it may die out if it becomes more chic to hang something else (maybe plastic spoons or old tires) for a while. But eventually the cycle will move and there we will be, rummaging through our stacks of paintings to sell to revivalists.

Yes yes yes, Painting is dead. I think I posted these exact words somewhere else years ago. It is dead because as an art form it is not taken seriously by “THE ART WORLD.” If you want to impact the world today, film is the best way to achieve these results. The days of a Guernica have passed. This is good news to us. It means we are free to express ourselves any way we would like. Paint diary journal entries, paint realism, abstraction, paint poorly, paint like Sargent. With the internet you can find you audience anywhere. The challenge to oil painting (or at least realistic painting) is– first, many artists have nothing to say so they say what has been said already. They may paint in a manner – ala anachronistic Renaissance – and the painting, though well executed is boring and dated. They paint still life objects that no one would choose as their decor to put in their home. That vase might pose an interesting artistic challenge, but the painting is old before the brush hits the canvas. The same goes for artists dressing up models in costume. It’s OK to do this if you like, painting is dead afterall, but realize that this choice does not reflect today and no one will see it as fresh and new. Which is irrelevant personally, but as a “movement” oil painting will not gain a resurgence in “THE ART WORLD.” (If that is important to you. I agree that skill seems to be overlooked. A wealthy retiree could take a dozen workshops with well-known artists and then hang a shingle to teach painting. Most people will agree on his talent, but when I checked out his website, he looked as if he was still in the intermediate stages artistically. At least on American Idol someone who is not top notched eventually gets sent home. In our circle, they hang around and give advice. Which so much inferior art out in the world, people see the overall picture of mediocrity and it’s pretty dead.

I think what Renate says is true. In the minds of the public, there is little difference between an original piece of art and a print or a poster. I sold a painting to a friend once and overheard her discussing it with a mutual acquaintance, referring to it as “a print”. She didn’t even know what she bought. My daughter has several of my paintings in her home and tells me that her friends are amazed she has original art. These experiences are not unusual. Many people may take up art as a hobby and produce substandard art in the World today, but I believe most people have no idea what real original art is, have never been in an art museum, and certainly would never go in an art gallery. They think those prints you see in Bed Bath and Beyond is art.

If you’re concerned about selling your paintings here’s an interesting (unofficial) statistic. 4% of the population makes “art”. 2% of the population buys it. You are competing with professionals in a shrinking market. Little wonder why they’re conducting so many workshops.

Kathryn H, you hit on many good points; I particularly agree with the sentiments about quality and relevance. Ours is a world in which “social Darwinism” is active and supreme. I suspect that if one wants the smallest chance of success, he/she must make art that is both compelling and well-marketed.

I have been quietly painting and selling for over 40 years. It is still a passion. I will never give it up. I am able to only do small paintings now and most people and galleries want big. I have a downtown studio, work when I am able and nothing else matters. Creating will remain a passion until the day I die. It does not matter what anyone else is doing or not doing.

Too much “art” is the problem and, ironically, maybe the solution. When many find they really are not good at it, they quit but retain an appreciation for those who have it. Nina Allen Freeman (above) hits a part of the problem I’ve heard over and over. That is, the confusion in the minds of many between originals and prints. “Print” seems to be the generic word and the value difference between the two is missed.

Those who can’t handle the challenges of painting declare it to be obsolete.

Perhaps the question should be why do you create art? if it is driven by the ambition to sell and become famous, then yes, there are too many artists and not enough collectors from your perspective, and you – if your work is merely average – will find it more and more challenging to carry on when it seems so difficult to find success. But if you create art for some other reason, then perhaps you don’t give a whit for the fact that every retiree and their grandmother are out there chasing some dream of their own. You applaud their courage to try, no matter what the quality of their output. You identify more with the Winslow Homer quote above, and see your work as an extension of how you see the world, and as Robert says, experience it as a “doing thing.”

Marilyn Smith, thanks for sharing your thoughts, I really enjoyed them. Good for you!

Awwww, Bunkies ! Too many painters in the world for some of you to compete ? Think, perhaps only those who have been to school, and learned the “rules” of how to do it like everyone else ought to be allowed into the “guild” ? That, if it’s not being done your way, it’s not valid art ? The population in 1950 was under 2.6 billion. The growth rate was 1.47%. The population in 2011 was over 6.9 billion. The growth rate was down to 1.09%. Cuyrrent projection for 2020 is just under 8 billion, with a growth rate of 0.9% However, the lower growth rate is outdone by the larger base numbers, so the population is growing at almost three times the numbers that it was in 1950. (Mid year figures.) Yea, there are more “artists” alive and working. There are more of everyone and everything. I guess, if you want to be of a smaller production group, you could return to forging metal wagon parts. Not so many blacksmiths required, these days. Some of you seem to be fondly missing those long-dead long ago’s. Or maybe, you aspire to the globalist solution. A bunch of us must die, and soon. Think I’ll go out to the back yard this afternoon, and open some cans of leftover house paints and stains, and throw the contents at a few scraps of plywood, or sheetrock. Or, whatever is in the shed. See you at the galleries and the seasonal exhibits.

Certainly painting does not have the position it previously held among the arts prior to the advent of photography. Neither does it hold the same position it held prior to digital manipulation. However, any craft pursued with diligence, can speak to a viewer. There will always be those who appreciate painting, as there are those who buy ceramics not to hold oil, but to appreciate visually.

Like God, I believe art is receiving the last rites. Too much, too many,everybody,anybody, everywhere, anywhere,anything, overloaded, over, nothing.

This evening I go to a seasonal gallery opening where a few of my pieces are shown. Each year the work being shown in a coop section of the gallery is increasingly photographic. It has seemed that anyone who can take a clear crisp photograph with decent composition feels that they should be a professional art photographer. Almost invariably these pictures are in black and white. However, we are an extremely mediated society, and people see pictures constantly. After a couple shows, without much in the way of sales, the erstwhile art photographers go back to the drawing board (not really, but I couldn’t help myself). Some of them realize that there is more to art than technical proficiency, and more to technical proficiency than clear reportage. That’s the third big hurdle for a photographer, the first being cost of gear, the second being technical acumen. It’s that last hurdle where the big cut is often made. That third hurdle is the leveler for painters as well. However, as an impractical craft– painting no longer being needed for visual reporting–painting will remain the carrier of whatever communciation it is that we call art. This is true for most of the plastic arts. Painting will never be dead, it will merely be more specialized.

I have nothing against a good photograph, but I continue to be annoyed by photo artwork that is digitally filtered to look like a painting. I’m even more annoyed by the photographer who is plumb tickled with him/herself for pulling off such a feat, but most highly annoyed by the art customer who is impressed more than by an actual original painting. I hope not all art buyers are this shallow, but I see too many of them who are.

Painting is very much alive in oils, watercolors, acrylics and other mediums. The entire matter rests on WHAT is being painted and you are right everyone is a painter these days. A while back someone sent me an e-mail about some new technique that will turn anyone into a realist painter. I didn’t check it out but it involved copying your subject onto graph paper square by square and then painting it. Then I saw a lot of paintings that not only had the same subject but were so similar they could have been painted by robots. Painting requires a love of subject, an intimacy with the forms, colors, light, shadow and feel of the subject and eye-hand coordination, sense of composition and space and an underlying of hard won knowledge that requires years to acquire. And if after acquiring all this you wake up one day and think you know all there is to know about painting then your painting is DEAD! Painting is an on-going creative process, artists continually challenge their abilities that’s what painting is to me.

Having recently at age 65 finally started oil painting (Studio Art degree 1970) I agree that painting is NOT dead, even though lots of bad art abounds. We are all learning -and being willing to suffer less than admirable results is the price for heartily enjoying the medium.

I slog away at my plein air painting, fulfill my membership in a backwaters artists’ cooperative gallery, post images and journals on my blog, where people who’ve met me go to buy it….. and if I can live/paint until I die, perhaps after that, more than my personal clients, friends, and family will call my life’s work “art”.

So many times I see work that makes me wonder why I should learn to draw and why should I keep trying to learn about the wonderful medium of watercolor. I am glad I did not go to art school, or got to take art classes many years ago in school, because that keeps me remembering that I am still learning.

With the advent of photography, the death of painting has been predicted. I choose to say it will/has become an alternative media in the larger world of two dimensional visual art. For a very long while it kept pace because photography didn’t have color or good ways to manipulate the images. With the advent of widespread digital this is no longer true. (Note analog photography is considered by most an alternative process now too.) Painting used to be the way to preserve history, tell a story and etc. While it can still do so, everyone has a camera now – they are common in cell phones. Magazines newspapers and the web, all hit us with hundreds of photographs each day, and then there are the moving photographs like movies and television. Do I believe painting will die? No! Do I believe it is or will become a rich and valued alternative process of two dimensional visual communication? Yes.

I feel oil painting is part of our visual landscape and history and gives a graphic guideline to our very existence through images.

Personally, I find that the computer sucks the life out of me. Now that I am retired, I have returned to fine art doing plein air and portrait. I cannot imagine sitting in front of my computer doing a landscape instead of being outside actually experiencing the beauty and inspiration of nature. I cannot imagine not being involved with a real person when painting a portrait. A lot of the new painters are in my age range. They have a different outlook on work than many younger people. We expect to take time to develop our skills (even though our time may be limited). We do not expect instant gratification, we except failures, we embrace the process. The computer can be a tool, a means to the end, but it is not a beginning. It is a great place for exposure of work. I just hope the standards don’t go down because one can “do it yourself” in an hour or two sitting in front of a monitor. I question the on-line competitions where paintings are only seen digitally, is the work as painted or is it “enhanced” electronically? I also see a lot of craft painting, match-the-sofa painting, and painting without depth or emotion. It will be interesting to see what the next couple of generations can do; if they will have the fortitude and passion to do some great work. Meanwhile I will continue to struggle and grow in my own work and wonder at the skill of the masters.

Painting is not photography and it will always go through the brain of the artist before it reaches his hand. Therefore it will benefit from the artist’s inspiration, perception, experience and imagination. It is the artist’s intervention that makes a painting attractive or poor. Perhaps some day computers will be programmed to have these capabilities… but then, they will exhibit the perception, experience and imagination the programmers choose to incorporate.

What I have noticed also is the amateurization (if that is a word) of oil painting and a repetition of motifs ad nauseum. I can see immediately what master has been emulated….sometimes verbatim. So my great ennui with oil painting is just that…and maybe it’s just me….can we have something fresh and exciting please?

Those who want to paint are going to go on painting. I think the question really went into the direction of, will paintings stop selling. As you hinted, a lot of the people you see painting are interested in only does it sell, and hopefully does everything they do sell. They are not willing to edit out, do some stuff over or just accept that sometimes what you do is not that great. Also a huge percent of the buying public wants essentially something cheap, that doesn’t challenge the brain to much and is easy on the eye. I think that market will be taken over by computer generated products and other mechanically generated pictures. Hopefully, like most cycles, this will be one too and in the end painting as done for centuries will regain lost ground.

I have heard time and time again how “painting is dead” then someone comes along, in the 70″s it was Julian Schnabel and Jean Michel Basquiat then Susan Rothenberg in the 80’s, and suddenly the critics are praising painting. In my opinion, as long as there are artists with imagination and buyers who marvel at how someone can create a work of art with skill and creativity, painting will always be around.

In regards to “the death of painting: ever notice that the death of painting is announced by non-painters?

The key phrase in your letter is “easy to do, difficult to do well”. Painting, in all media will survive because we all get sucked in by its charm and we all think we can learn to be painters. Most of my students are retired or near retirement. Some hope to have a second career with painting while others just love the challenge. After 30+ years in my own career, I am constantly challenged by painting and if anything, often feel like a beginner. Painting is the fun drug of choice.

What is painting. As a pastelist, is it pastel painting? What about colored pencil? Art fairs consider pastels, colored pencil and charcoal and graphite, drawing. A fine distinction. But in my art center the artists in those mediums want to join the painters guild. The oil, watercolor and acrylic artists say no way. What is a painting? Does it count if you trace a photo, or project a photo, or paint over a photo?

Since humans have been painting since the times of living in caves, it seems unlikely that small things such as computers will alter this activity that is in our genetic memory. We are like dogs that are born with instincts specific to their breed. Holding a paint brush is in our genetic material, we just have to do it. As Andy Warhol answered when asked if painting was dead, the answer is “NO”.

Painting is very much alive and kicking in South Africa at the moment. If any readers are interested let them Google to read about the controversy raging – and I mean raging – over the Brett Murray’s painting “the Spear of the Nation’. I think it supports your statement that painting will survive and thrive.

I have heard that “painting is dead” or “painting is dying” for several decades now. Obviously it is not. What troubles me is the general decline in quality because of the explosion of practitioners. Add to that the alternative techniques which undermine what art is, and you end up with an atmosphere of confusion, doubt, and standards. It’s not so much the death of painting, but the death of standards and a consensus about what art truly is.

I believe in our society of ‘instant gratification’ this can pale eventually and there is nothing quite so good for the soul as ‘self expression’. Just as you can have too much chocolate – yes – there is such a thing as too much of a good thing, so one can experience fatigue from getting the quick easy fix with other things. You don’t get the ‘buzz’ from self expression from having something given to you … you can only delight in self expression / achievement when you have done it yourself. So, I agree,… painting will live on.

And then there is painting from the spirit! I don’t do portraiture of anyone over 12, because I penetrate to the very soul and adults want to be flattered, not analyzed. My perception, comes from the unconscious. My best paintings from nature are in collaboration with spirit.

Painting will continue because there is so much more to the act than simply painting. There is a feeling of challenge in the learning, a feeling of satisfaction in the accomplishment, a great deal of introspection and expression of feelings. There is the opportunity to create something beautiful, to be appreciated by the viewer; an opportunity to create something that evokes an emotion in the viewer. To suggest that painting will end is to suggest that making music will end. Do you believe that?

Computers will be the death of painting like cars are the death of walking and running… Cars and computers are fine tools to get somewhere quickly – but can never replace the joy and health benefits of the simple physical acts that define us as humans…

Oil painting isn’t dead…yet! What is dying are buyers. There are so many would-be painters trying to paint there is practically no one willing to buy paintings anymore. Or at the very least buyers want to buy it cheap. We have done this to ourselves. We have shot ourselves in the foot and keep doing it. My answer to Renate is Painting isn’t dead, quality painting is dying.

EVERYONE with a point and shoot is now a photographer – and the same goes for a paintbrush. Hurray for those who pursue art long enough to determine it isn’t as easy as it looks, and it is worth the years of training to get it right.

As a portrait painter I agree with you 100% regarding quick fix versus long, hard work. I remember when desktop publishing first came out. Everyone was doing their own graphic design and it was pretty terrible. It was years before I saw more than a couple menus or ads without at least one misspelled word. Of course you can take shortcuts, like changing a photo to look like a painting. But something is always missing. The essence of the subject is gone. It is a sterile representation of the living being. With a hand-drawn portrait you can catch that gamin smile, that mischievous sparkle in the eye, the ‘perfect’ blend of light and shadow that running a photo through one of the many filters doesn’t accomplish. On the other hand, there are some that can use the tools of Photoshop type programs and create true works of art, wielding the mouse and tablet pen as we wield our brushes. But to do that, don’t you also have to be an artist?

Painting is in a rebirth every day. Many people are encouraged to pick up a pencil or brush now more than ever. For some it is relaxing, for others, they need something to do. Painting can be a skill revived or it can be a new way for expression, rather than being a difficult exhibitionist. Art is in the eye of the beholder, not just the artist adding form and texture to a paper or canvas. The methods used are never-ending, hence the term NEW ART! Art is not dead, nor is it dying….. If anything, ART is alive and well — 2012 style.

I really believe that the only people would think that the profusion of artists would be the “death of painting” would be those that would be threatened by their own inadequacies.. Many striving painters make a great environment for a serious painter to improve. The lazy or indifferent would not be likely to succeed in the professional field right now, but for a happy would be painter, there will never be a better time for learning from more accomplished artists and immersing oneself in the world of art. I don’t believe that the profusion of painters would hurt an accomplished painter. The difference always shows in the work of someone who spends their life painting and someone who enjoys weekend painting, no matter how gifted. The time spent honing the various skills and mindset for painting full time, shows over a body of work, even if the beginner may have an inspired painting or two. As an artist only into 10 years of daily painting, I find the established artists in my area have a lot of time for helping me. The art community here is very compassionate and willingly mentoring.

Well played, Barbara Callow! Yes,yes,yes. It’s the “technicians” who are threatened by the competition of numbers. And by the way, it seems to me that many of the responses here imply that “realism” is the only valid purpose for painting. Long hours and many years do not always improve the result, once you have “learned” to do it only one way. Some of the “TV instructors”, for instance seem to be doing only one painting over and over, week after week. Some actors play only one role, as many characters. (It’s called “type casting”.) Grab your fears, and try something new. Maybe a different medium would improve your outlooks, and persuade some of you to allow for the growth and pleasure some of the less technical, less “educated” people are trying. Maybe the “poor painters” are having more fun than some of you. Is that really what’s getting to you? If there’s not room for all, maybe there should be no room left for anyone. If that’s the case, maybe painting should die. Remember the impressionists? They were doing it it all wrong. Now, look how many there are…

Let me tell you what I find particularly annoying about many “professional” artists. It’s their unwillingness to give the slightest bit of encouragement or helpful hint to someone who wants to learn, or expand his or her own horizons. Ex: I recently decided to try my luck at some very large panels (6 ft x 10-15 ft). I decided it might be useful to ask some of the practicing muralists about the potential problems — or benefits — of moving into such an expanded size. Out of far more than a dozen, not one painter had even the courtesy to reply to my request for “any suggestions?” Finally, went to a local university, and asked a professor, who is also a very accomplished painter, and who often works on large panels. His response was quite simplistic, and more than a bit obvious. But at least it was courteous, and saved me some money on tuition expense. That response? “Bigger brushes — more paint.” But, the real lesson for me was the apparent lack of something in the hearts of the “professionals”. Their big hidden secret just might be “any sign painter can do them”. My response to them? “Get off the scaffold. I’m on my way!”

Many of those announcing the death of painting are those who cannot or do not paint. They are like eunuchs in the harem–the see it done, they know more or less how it its done, but they themselves cannot do it, so they are bitter.

Painting is not dead – quality is. Whether you establish planned obsolescence in manufacturing electronics or appliances the earlier death of a product is desirable: the underlying causation is there was little quality in the product in the first place. Beyond that, the “newest thing” applies in art or electronics. “Art” today is produced cheaply and quickly for a mass consumer base. That will never be the market niche for quality work … if you paint for that market and price it accordingly, you will sell to it. But if you reach for a higher plane, strive deeper within your artistic soul for quality, your work will elevate itself. Some interested parties nod their head knowingly when I present my portrait work to them. Others express shock and get family photography portraits snapped in minutes at the local discount store. Sorry, not my market.

Painting is dead, y’all. Morte! Finis! So, you might as well send me all your old and extra gear, panels, tubes, and brushes. I’ll take them off your hands and save you the effort of recycling them.

If painting is dead, can books and music be far behind? Then blogs and rap? What’s the next big wave on the cultural horizon?

It takes a lot of time to become “good” at what you are painting in any medium. My dad painted in oils since he was a child and still struggled as an adult to become a GOOD/GREAT at what he loved to do. “Go to your room” and that’s what I am doing. NEVER GIVE UP! My motto is to have FAITH / COURAGE and ENTHUSIASM in everything you do.

Mr. Reuter should be obliged to read the issues of Art of the West, a magazine devoted to western art, and his question will seem highly unsupported. Good oil paintings, particularly when the subject matter is of animals, western scenery, cowboys, or related subjects, will always maintain their value and have interested buyers from all over the world. Again, I wish to emphasize the importance of “subject matter,” a visual scene or object we can relate to. Thank you for asking for comments about his unfounded statements.

I have lived in the Bay Area (Oakland,Berkeley Cal.area for 40 adult years now.And participated in the local art scene from Alameda to Fremont.And never have I seen the number of open studio tours and proliferation of art workshops and classes that are currently offered.Now whether this is because the economy has been so bad and people are trying anything to make a buck or there is truly a Renaissance occurring or not I do not know but the bigger art supply stores seem to be doing okay.And I for one am still at 68 constantly striving to learn and develop new techniques. Yours truly, J.R.

Frankly, there’s the other side of the question that has to do with the art respondent/patron. Can they tell the difference between fine art and horse shit? When the celebration/recognition of an art piece is based on what it brings in the market place rather than it’s merit as art, the entire word art begins to lose meaning. Now it’s the multi million transaction that gets the headlines (The Scream sketch most recently) and the subject is at best second rate. As an artist who seeks expression in both two and three dimensional materials I marvel at the the level ignorance some of the public trots out in response to junk. Sculpture by machine and paintings by the numbers now decorate our public places devoid of any originality, design or conviction.

One might as well ask if there will be a death to passion! Knoxville, Tennessee

There were times even farmers could afford their own portraits in oil, painted by some emerging artists for a dish of soup and a bed. It’s obvious, such artists tended to work as slowly as possible. Such portraits were not intended for any other purposes except for being handed down to the next generation. No art for art sake here. Photography put a huge stop to this business. There are times we buy a painting of a couple of swans on a pond amid water lilies against a medieval castle or a meadow in dew at sunrise. I mean landscapes, real or imaginary good or bad. I am almost certain digital photography will put an end to this one fine day, which is not that far. Especially with the development of printing technologies and holography. Having said that, I can’t help quoting your words I fully support: “The art of painting will survive and thrive because it is easy to do and difficult to do well.” And “The problem lies in the quality of the art.” In my opinion, these are the basic of art survival, any art at all. There are masters and there are craftsmen, and the balance between them would hardly change. – My mommy gave me a box of acrylic paints and brushes for my birthday. Now I am an artist. – Really? But my dad gave me a professional camera on my birthday. Now I am a professional photographer. Art dies. Good art remains.

It took me lifetime to reach my style but will take me after life to perfect my style. Tradition/realism paintings will never die even though I’ve faced many harsh criticism from different ones for different reasons, while received other positive comments from professionals, I remained dedicated to my style I have chosen to adapt since childhood with no wavering. The result was that I just sold 11 original paintings to an art collector who is also a collector of Disney artist Carl Barks and Don Rosa. My paintings will be in his famous Villa where movies are filmed, he will write about my paintings in his luxurious magazine and they will end up in his museum. What else can I ask for after spending my lifetime investing on my art since childhood! This is one of his expressions: “Neben Carl Barks sowie Don Rosa verehre ich die ausgezeichnete Künstlerin Mona Youssef – ihre Gemälde sind fantastisch! Besides Carl Barks and Don Rosa I worship the brilliant paintress Mona Youssef – her paintings are fantastic!” Can anyone call himself /herself a fine artist, wait and see the result. By the way my “ Blue shadows” painting has been sold as well for $17,000.00 Do I smell Champaign!

As Lori Agostino says, “It’s the continuum of alchemy throughout the ages,” that keeps painting going. What a valuable resource are all these varying responses. Thank you. By far the best art forum on the Internet.

I have been inspired by your writing for well over a year now and feel that the Painters Keys has helped me to grow as an artist and a person.

I am working on creating a web site that is intended to show the need for and importance of imagination. I would also appreciate your thoughts and ideas on how this site could become a useful resource for parents, educators, students, businesses or anyone who wants to make the world a better place through the power of creativity. I am looking for examples of good things people have done using imagination and creativity. Also, links to companies and organizations who appreciate and value innovation and would like to see our education system produce more problem solvers and innovative thinkers. I would like to know about services and products that are designed to promote creative thinking and strengthen our kids imaginations. I would like to showcase and celebrate people who are highly creative, so we can learn from them. Please send me contact info for the most creative people you have ever known. This topic has remained the focal point of my work and my life for many years. Over the past 4 years as a High school teacher, I have gained many valuable insights into how we can improve our education system so that it increases rather than destroys the precious gift we call imagination. The site will be: www.WeNeedImagination.com I hope you will take a minute to realize that the success of our future depends on our ability to solve problems and our ability to solve problems, depends on our ability to tap our imaginations. Please find a way to help me build this web site and develop ways to strengthen this valuable resource. I would also welcome any opportunities to speak to groups of people who are interested in this topic. Thanks so much for your time.

Truth has been spoken in your letter Robert. It takes a lifetime of study to become an accomplished artist. Studying portraiture, the most difficult of subjects, is a critical study in order to have a true understanding of raising up a painting. In any work of art there are big shapes and small shapes and tone and value. A good painting is well drawn. Do you understand perspective? Color is a complete study in itself. All this is fascinating, fun and challenging. All mediums have their own way. Learning how to use your chosen medium takes the time worth doing. The art process is an adventure that deserves the time in study and experimentation. Each painting is a victory.

Those that claim the death of art, especially painting, due to technological advances fail to acknowledge the human factor. Where you create using an app,c omputer key board, paint brush, or pencil, etc., the human mind and hand are still guiding the creation. Tools of the trade may change but human creation goes on. Viva art and the creative spirit!.

Painting will never die. Generations of screenagers will come and go; they will master the computer programmes and make stunning creations. They will have 15 seconds of fame on fb or Twitter or some cyberblog, but they will forever hover in that huge, grey space reserved for “Almosts”. To paint is not just a hand-eye technique; it is a process. This process starts with some acknowledgement of “talent” in your youth, some of your own sense of achievement, years of persistence and times of agony. But once you call yourself a painter, you have risen out of the Land of Almost and transcended onto a higher, better cloud. Give a random class of students (any subject) a pencil and a piece of paper. Ask them to draw a tree. Out of a class of forty, only one or two drawings will leap out of the page at you. They will tug at your trousers and you will recognize them like your children. You will face this thing that painters have that millions of computer boffins will never have. Next time someone baffles you with bullshit about pixel-painting, give them a piece of charcoal and some paper and ask them to draw a tree. Then you and everyone present will differentiate between “Cool!” and “Wow!” I owned an digital animation and special effects company and sourced my artists from a young age by simply looking at their drawings. Rough sketches, especially. It did not matter to me if they were computer literate; it is a medium that anybody can master. But to be able to DRAW: therein lies art. Stellenbosch, South Africa

While I don’t carry my easel & paints with me, I make it a point to go for a run whenever I visit a new place . . . it allows me to stop and explore at every whim. I do usually take a camera for these tours, allowing some reference when I do return to my easel. Even the old-visited-before places have new surprises.

Our Arts Center held a week long workshop by classical realism master, Frank Covino. We only had 8 take the course. When we held a lecture in advance, with film and speakers, we had 2 attend. They were clearly fascinated and in awe. However, when we saw how many notes they were taking, we ended the film, as it was just meant to be a “look” into the process. Neither of them took the workshop, just lots of notes. Those who were in the workshop will be taking it again, as they immediately could see how much they didn’t know about painting. One of the individuals was a retired art teacher. She said she learned more during the workshop than she learned in all of her art classes in college! What a shame. Our area is a resort, seasonal one. The interest in taking workshops is, as I see it, for hobby. As a studio and plein air oil painter, I put a lot of time and soul into my pieces. I could never be a “daily painter” as seems to be a big trend. I realize that perhaps that process is simply meant to perhaps get the artist “warmed up” for serious painting, but how many of these daily paintings are good art? I’m simply curious and don’t mean to be critical of those who participate. I merely know that I’m unable to do it.

Carl Purcell said it all better than I can. My thoughts exactly. PattyO.

I paint because … I’m not a nice person if I do not. When I was in art school our watercolor teacher made us attend a lecture ” Why Painting is dead”. This was in the 1980’s. It seems to me every so often someone crops up who mentions this. I figure we should all just roll our eyes ( my teenagers did this) and go back to our painting.

I strongly believe that painting is an art that will remain. Not for the same reasons as others though. Painting is the integration of a person’s experience, skills, thoughts, combined with and limited by available resources, including time. As such, the resulting object can never authentically be reproduced, which makes it unique. Wether it is judged by peers afterwards to be of value or not, and regardless of the efforts the painter has put in, it remains one of the strongest forms of communication available to humans. It is a riddle without a definite answer, and to me its beauty lies in all the thoughts it has the power to generate in each viewer’s mind. Painting is like writing one page of history straight from your brainand coded as such that it will remain to be discovered and interpreted by future generations.