Some authors write a novel, throw it out to the public and start something different.
He or she may revisit a scenario or a character upon occasion, but the author generally writes new stories every time he puts fingers to keyboard.
Other writers prefer to spend years getting to know a group of people.
They write about the protagonist over and over while setting them in new places, seeking adventures and with new casts of characters.
Spending so much time with these folks, they develop an intimacy that can only develop over time.
What’s Your Style?
What kind of a painter are you? Are you continually painting new subject matter and trying new techniques, mediums and colors? Or, do you learn everything you can about a subject and paint it in all its forms, variations, angles and colorations?
There is much to be said for both approaches to art. If you’re always painting something new, your work’s never in danger of becoming stale or tiresome. Every piece will have a fresh look. You’ll broaden your scope of experience, and experimentation with new materials and ideas allows you to grow in technique and thought.
On the other hand, if you devote yourself to taking one subject to the limit, you’re becoming an expert in its peculiarities and variations. To understand all facets of your subject and its portrayal is an accomplishment.
Doing It All
Each style is valuable, and over the course of time you may do both. As you begin your artistic adventure, the exhilaration of trying everything is exciting. It’s a new adventure and you want to experience it all. Perhaps you start with acrylic paints. As you learn about the medium, you incorporate different additives. Then, you begin adding other types of inks, pencils and markers. Now, you’re a mixed media artist.
Practice Makes Perfect
Another artist may choose a different path. He or she becomes enamored with a paint type and wants to learn everything it can do. A watercolor student may love the way the paint flows and behaves unexpectedly. Paint pigments behave differently from one another, and the effects of pigment concentration, additives and paper variety has almost unlimited variations. An artist can pursue the quest of mastering his chosen paint for a lifetime and still be surprised with new discoveries.
Pick A Subject
The same is true of subject matter. A floral painter can paint scores of roses and never create the same painting twice. Although not primarily known as a floral artist, Vincent van Gogh painted sunflowers throughout his life. He did two series of sunflowers at different times, and sunflowers are also included in other paintings.
Claude Monet was stuck on haystacks. He painted landscapes featuring haystacks for years. He painted them at different times of the day, during the various seasons and with different color themes. As he matured, he focused on the effects of light and atmospheric conditions. This mundane subject was, for him, a never-ending learning experience.
These well-known names in art didn’t need anything exotic or exciting. Common field flowers and the view out an artist’s door were all they needed for inspiration.
If you’re a committed art student, you’ll most likely be painting for years. As you grow and learn, you’ll go through different stages in your artistic life. There’s value in both of these styles and either may fit with your artistic endeavors over time. Don’t get bogged down in one narrow viewpoint of art. There’s a lot to learn and many different ways to go about it.
