I've noticed that many of today's "artists" are very concerned with what happened in the past. " What was Rembrandt's favorite medium?, How did they prep their panels? What did Sergeant eat for breakfast? What bugs did they mix into their paint? Did they trace or didn't they? And on and on and on! Reading history is wonderful, as long as it is used to discover the new.
Dwelling on the past and obsessively trying to mimic what was done 500 years ago? Well it's a good thing Doctors don't do the same thing, I don't think we need to bring back bloodletting.
I'm kind of with you on this one. I wouldn't mind making my own oil paint once just to get the appreciation of the work the old masters (or their apprentices) had to go through, but my time is better spent trying to improve my skills. It's good to study and know the proper process in order to create work that won't fall apart in the near future, but again, I need to spend more time improving my skills so I can create work that hopefully someone will want to appreciate in 500 years. Its all about balance and priorities.
ReplyDeleteI agree - knowing the materials always helps, and you have to keep your eyes open. I remember reading an article a few years ago on how Nu Pastels faded fast because they weren't being help up to the old standards. In that case, someone needs to go back to the old ways...
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