My Grandsugar Is A Prodigy Artist With Very Limited Interest? (day, painters)

[openmike]

Ok she is 15 and does animation as good as Disney. Her abstracts are astonishing . We asked her to do a mini lithograph that would win any major art best of show anywhere. We have best of show from Gasperilla in Tampa and she can do circles around any artists participating. We are asking her to do a Paris setting with parasol's ( black with the pointed tips often depicted in fine art). She did a old cabin scene in five minutes in charcoal which we framed and consider it a masterpiece!! She refuses to take lessons in fear of losing her style which is unique. Advertising looking for a logo for a foundation, product or organization especially womens causes, products in abstract form........incrediable. She simply lacks motivation to pursue art .

[Cruithne]

It doesn't sound as though she has limited interest since she is producing artwork.
She probably has the sense to realise that making it as an artist and actually making a living from it is extremely difficult as well as extremely expensive.
Art materials are not cheap and it takes many years to establish yourself as an artist. Most young people simply don't have the financial means or patience to accomplish that. That's why most artists start out in a field such as graphic design, illustration, textiles, commercial art or architecture and then pursue their actual artistic growth later in life.

[imagardener]

I was self-employed as a photographer and am now a painter (since retiring). I can tell you that desire beats talent 8 out of 10 times. Many successful photographers were NOT the best at photography but were the best at making people think their work was fantastic. We called it the "green ribbon". Kaching.

Haven't seen this being as true in fine art painting because most painters are repped by different galleries. So an artist needs to win critical acclaim to impress the gallery. Some artists open their own galleries such as Kennedy Studios which has retail outlets in many vacation spots, and some just have one studio-gallery. Their spouse may be the manager so the artist can create work.

Most art careers are low-paying but the artists don't want to do anything else. I see women subsidized by their well-to-do spouses so they don't really need to make money. It's not a hobby if they get awards but it's not a business either.

I've noticed that many of the top selling artists are male and wonder why. Because they HAVE to make a living? Or are women artists also mothers who can't afford the time to devote to their art? Georgia O'Keefe, no children and divorced, was not financially successful until later in her career. You have to be obsessed to be a successful artist and even then might not make a living and your work might not be noticed until you're dead.

Let your granddaughter follow her dreams. many successful dentists, CEO's, etc are also good artists. It's not the only talent many people have.

PS Taking a class is not always a good idea. I've taken many crappy classes and regretted it. I search for nationally known artists giving 2-3 day workshops whose style I like so I can see how they achieve it then I don't copy it haha. Being part of an artistic community however can be supportive although there can be mean-girls, mean-women and men who take advantage of young girls (happens at every college campus too).

[Led Zeppelin]

Originally Posted by openmike

Ok she is 15 and does animation as good as Disney. Her abstracts are astonishing . We asked her to do a mini lithograph that would win any major art best of show anywhere. We have best of show from Gasperilla in Tampa and she can do circles around any artists participating. We are asking her to do a Paris setting with parasol's ( black with the pointed tips often depicted in fine art). She did a old cabin scene in five minutes in charcoal which we framed and consider it a masterpiece!! She refuses to take lessons in fear of losing her style which is unique. Advertising looking for a logo for a foundation, product or organization especially womens causes, products in abstract form........incrediable. She simply lacks motivation to pursue art .

Let's see some of this prodigy's work. Post it.

[banjomike]

Originally Posted by Cruithne

It doesn't sound as though she has limited interest since she is producing artwork.
She probably has the sense to realise that making it as an artist and actually making a living from it is extremely difficult as well as extremely expensive.
Art materials are not cheap and it takes many years to establish yourself as an artist. Most young people simply don't have the financial means or patience to accomplish that. That's why most artists start out in a field such as graphic design, illustration, textiles, commercial art or architecture and then pursue their actual artistic growth later in life.

All very true.
Fine art is a thing all it's own, but some of the principles that are taught are useful in adjunct trades like graphic design, textiles, etc. But each is its own specialty, and requires as much training as fine art does.

At 15, I wouldn't push her just yet. Teaching art has undergone some pretty radical changes over the past couple of decades, but for the moment, any art career is tough to break into if it pays anything, and the fields like computer animation now have so many college kids taking classes in them that there's a surplus, so even the good ones don't get squat for pay.

But things are brighter on the far horizon. Artists are naturally very creative thinkers, and industry is learning hiring creatives is the best way to stay up on the edge of innovation.

Not because of their skills, but what their creative brains bring into other things; production, engineering, personnel management, and other jobs all benefit from creative input, which increases output, competitiveness, and worker job satisfaction. Artists tend to always think outside the box.

By the time she's grown, she may find her place in that now new scene, and it may have nothing at all with her ability to draw. Her ability to visualize may be much more important than sketching a new whatever.