Painting and the painting #2.

When Picasso painted “ Guernica” it was the first time he did it.

When Pollock painted “ Blue poles” it was the firs time he painted it.

Sometimes Artists lose sight of the fact that great Artists who went before them were just people like them and if Pollock and Picasso could achieve greatness so can you.

Picasso had his failings as a man, but all men have clay feet, yet his Art was a tribute to his genius. Without his failings maybe we not have the gift of his Art.

Pollock was a man of major contradictions, who had a drinking problem which unfortunately led to his death and the death of a young woman, a very tragic outcome. Yet his complexities made him the Artist he was and out of this complex troubled man came “ Blue Poles” one of the major works of the 20^th century.

And so with you and your Art all the complexities that make up you is also what produces your Art.

No one can make your Art quite like you.

Your Art is a constant reflection of you at a certain time, day, place in your life. For all that makes up you, your triumphs, your failings, your pain, your happiness, your mixed up feelings all this is what makes up you and then it is reflected out through your Art.

That is why I am so strong about painting original Art because it is a reflection of you and who you are. And I suppose those who copy other Artists work it is a reflection of who they are.

You see to copy another Artists work is safe, you do not have to be responsible and the thief is quiet. If people love your copied painting, they will call you talented and you will listen and be deceived, because to copy takes no talent you are just a skilled factory worker. But if people do not like the painting you can say that you just copied it and it’s not your work, no responsibility and the thief is quite. But the truth is they are your brush strokes, not your creation and all you are communicating to the world is that you have no original thought and you are afraid to reveal yourself for fear of rejection, therefore “ If you reject my copy of Modigliani you are not rejecting me you are rejecting him and I will find someone more popular to copy next time.”

Copying is living in the shadows and not being responsible for your Art, it is easy to do and you profit off the backs of Artists.

The true Artist lives in the scary, all the time knowing this might not work, but they give it there best shot and do all they can to make it work.

If it does not work, they can look back at it and learn from the experience and paint another painting, never knowing if it will work or if this will be their “ Blue Poles” or “ Guernica.”

This is the journey of the Artist, this might work, this might not work and I get to do this again tomorrow.

The wonderful thing about being a true Artist is that after you have painted your original painting you can say,

“ This is mine, I did this for you.”