The other day my attention was caught by this Picasso quote:
It's so true, but more about this later.
To acquaint yourself with Picasso's paintings, take a look at Wikiart, where the Picasso entry shows all of his works (at least that what the site says). Picasso's works number in the ten thousands. "8 Things You May Not Know About Picasso" gives some interesting facts about him. Ironically, I like this painting from his early period, where he painted more realistically.
To paint like a child is, to me, painting from inside. What we see when we open our eyes is a world rendered in full 3D. It's a beautiful world, granted. But overwhelmingly so. And it has been painted over and over without touching what's going on in the mind and emotions of the painter. Often the works most technically true to life are the most lifeless.
As an example, compare Bouguereau's work with that of Toni Shulajkovski, a frequent poster on Google+.
Toni definitely doesn't paint like a child--there's a lot of technique in his paintings (and of course there's technique in Picasso's more childlike works). But he does paint what he feels. Here's one he did that's more thought-provoking.
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Even painting in the abstract genre doesn't touch what I'm trying to say. (Warning: sermonizing imminent.) What I'm trying to say is be present with your work: artwork, coding, writing, whatever. Let the work evolve on its own, not just follow someone's convention or even what your eyes see in the 'real' world. And if the juices stop flowing, step away and come back later. If the work has merit, a break from it will help--a lot.
Here's another quote from Picasso:
It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child. (Brainy Quotes)
It's so true, but more about this later.
To acquaint yourself with Picasso's paintings, take a look at Wikiart, where the Picasso entry shows all of his works (at least that what the site says). Picasso's works number in the ten thousands. "8 Things You May Not Know About Picasso" gives some interesting facts about him. Ironically, I like this painting from his early period, where he painted more realistically.
***
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| Picasso, Portrait of the artist's mother (1896), Wikiart |
***
To paint like a child is, to me, painting from inside. What we see when we open our eyes is a world rendered in full 3D. It's a beautiful world, granted. But overwhelmingly so. And it has been painted over and over without touching what's going on in the mind and emotions of the painter. Often the works most technically true to life are the most lifeless.
As an example, compare Bouguereau's work with that of Toni Shulajkovski, a frequent poster on Google+.
***
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| William Adolphe Bouguereau, Work Interrupted(1891, bougereau.org |
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| Toni Shulajkovski, The Resonance, Google+ |
***
Toni definitely doesn't paint like a child--there's a lot of technique in his paintings (and of course there's technique in Picasso's more childlike works). But he does paint what he feels. Here's one he did that's more thought-provoking.
***
 |
| Toni Shulajkovski, Mirage 2011, Google+ |
***
Even painting in the abstract genre doesn't touch what I'm trying to say. (Warning: sermonizing imminent.) What I'm trying to say is be present with your work: artwork, coding, writing, whatever. Let the work evolve on its own, not just follow someone's convention or even what your eyes see in the 'real' world. And if the juices stop flowing, step away and come back later. If the work has merit, a break from it will help--a lot.
Here's another quote from Picasso:
Inspiration exists, but it has to find us working.-- Marge
