I wanted to share some thoughts that I have been formulating recently, concerning realistic (not abstract) art.
Let me start with some related questions:
- What exactly IS art?
- Why is one image "art" while another is not?
- Is the distinction between "art" and "not art" subjective or objective?
- If you take a "not art" photo and paint it exactly as it appears, does it become "art"?
In my opinion, the answer to that last question is no. Simply painting a photograph with slavish accuracy is not art - it is a craft. Art needs something else. So what "something else" is required? Thus far, I have come up with five elements:
1. Simplification
2. Abstraction
3. Modification
4. Emphasis
5. Exaggeration
This is what the artist brings to the piece. By taking reality as an input, the artist applies one or more of these elements. In so doing, he/she injects something of themselves into the piece and transforms reality into art.
Within this framework, photo-realist paintings can be considered art if they highlight or exaggerate details, such as lighting or scale. However, I believe that when every feature is a perfect replica of an existing photograph, then it is no longer art.
Let's start off with a fabulous drawing by my friend and mentor, Henry Yan:
Henry greatly simplified this from what would have been a much more complicated scene. He has created a wonderful abstract shape for the overall design of the drawing. Knowing Henry, he would have modified the pose to suit his design - making the light and dark pattern zig-zag across the page in an interesting way within that abstract shape. He emphasised the muscles and forms - but only in some areas. Other areas are subdued and lost into the background. He exaggerated the contrast between light and shadow in the areas where he wanted to draw attention, and also exaggerated the optical distance between near and far. Truly masterful.
Art doesn't need to have all five elements, but when it does, it really appeals to me!
Next, let's look at two paintings from the same reference image by Henry Yan's colleague, Zhaoming Wu. First, the reference:
And here are two paintings that he created from it:
The first image is more faithful to the reference photo, and yet still has plenty of art in it: simplified dress and background; emphasised detail around the face and chest; the light has an exaggerated coolness to it; and the upper part of the painting and the view outside have been blurred (abstracted).
He employed a similar approach in the second painting, but this time his visual concept was an arrangement of warm interior light vs a cool exterior, with more saturated colours for the skin and the floor (exaggeration). Her pose has been slightly modified too, to fit the canvas.
Both paintings are beautiful examples of a master artist turning reality into art through simplification, abstraction, modification, emphasis and exaggeration. SAMEE.
I hope that considering these five components is helpful for you. As artists, we should consider them when we become stuck. How can I simplify some areas? What can I emphasise? Can I exaggerate anything, such as a light effect or a strong edge? Is there anywhere on my painting where I can place some interesting abstract marks? And could I modify anything to improve the image?
To illustrate the last question, here is a painting I started from life last week of a model wearing a fur hat. She was wearing a black top, so I went with a dark grey (black was too harsh). Because of the warm colour scheme, the top looks blue-ish, complementing the orange/brown fur:
If ONLY I'd thought more, though, and changed her top to be the same colour as the hat, as shown in this mockup:
Repeating the hat colour ties the image together in a much more pleasing way. The blue-ish top in the original image jars a little, compared to the mock up. It is too stark a contrast, dragging the viewer's eye away from the face. If I work on this painting further, I will definitely make that change.
That's where I've got to in this thought process about what makes something "art". I may gain more clarity over the coming weeks, but I hope that this has given you some food for thought.
