I attended an art festival last weekend, and there were so many fantastic artists that
I didn’t know where to look next.
It seemed that every booth was crammed with creativity and unique interpretations from traditional to impressionistic to daring cutting edge designs.
Nearing the end of my artistic tour, I wandered into a booth filled with large, acrylic paintings.
Staring at me was an animal head that looked familiar, and as I studied it, it became obvious that it was a painted version of a very popular photo I’ve seen on the internet for years.
The workmanship of the piece itself wasn’t bad, but the original reference work for this piece shows through, and it’s clearly not an original idea. The only thing original is the fact that the subject was cropped at the bottom. My opinion of the artist was quickly falling, and as I looked over the rest of the booth, I found at least one more instance of an obvious case of plagiarism.
This is a perfect example of why using photos as reference material is a tricky business. Photos are important in so many cases that an artist often can’t get along without them.
Photos Capture Fleeting Moments
For example, if you’re painting flowers you have a very short window to capture your blossoms on canvas. A vase of flowers will wilt within a few days, so if you’re painting with egg tempera or doing a detailed oil painting, your subject will wither and fade before you’re even partially done.
If you’re painting animals, your subjects won’t remain posed for more than a few minutes, or you may want to paint exotic creatures that require a photo safari and a wealthy patron.
When you’re trying to capture the shape of clouds, you have only seconds to record their image before they transmute into an entirely different shape.
Photos Don’t Capture The Essence Of A Subject
A photo captures one instant in time. However, this isn’t necessarily a true representation of a subject. Have you ever had someone take a candid snapshot of your that was particularly horrid? That’s not really how you appear, is it? That applies to any photo you see or take.
A thoughtful artist will have a bunch of photos, so he or she can make an informed decision on how to portray his subject and not rely on a single representation.
Use Photos For Gathering Data
If an artist is creating a painting from references, he should have a variety of pictures to give himself more information about the subject. The various bits of data that you compile from studying photos should be used to express your personal understanding of the subject.
You may understand the shape of an oak tree, but are you familiar with the texture of the bark? You may know that a day lily has elongated, golden yellow petals, but do you know what the stamen looks like and how it attaches to the flower?
Use Photos As A Springboard To Creativity
Photos can be useful to start a composition, to add compositional elements or to enhance details, but they should never be used as a be-all and end-all of a painting.
If you rely too heavily on reference photos, you’ll deny yourself of the fun of spontaneity, creativity and painterly interpretation. By limiting yourself to what you see in a single photo, you’re limiting the scope of your artistic ability.
Then, What’s An Artist To Do?
When you’re developing an idea for a new composition, spend some time making thumbnail sketches of your proposed design. Use your own memories, sketch from real life and compile a bunch of related reference photos.
Take notes and make a color study. Erase, change up the colors, add or subtract superfluous components. Your painting is a work in progress. It builds and grows as you crystalize the scene in your mind.
An artist is someone who is receptive to new ideas and inspirations and translates those concepts with his own interpretations. A photo references is simply another tool in an artist’s bag of tricks, and learning how to use this device intelligently will help you develop into an artist who is never accused of plagiarism.
