Becoming an artist is easy; as long as you have the fire for it. Remaining an artist is the true challenge. You can start with a lot of passion, win many art contests but then at some point decide to give up. The reasons given for throwing in the towel are quite similar. For some people it is the amount of time and energy spent versus the return and yet for others it is the difficulty in growing their businesses/skills. They end up feeling like they are stagnating. However, there is one reason that some people do not mention loudly for fear of being judged and it has to do with the form of art they are practicing.
Beyond painting and drawing
When you think of art the first images that come to mind are the likes of the Mona Lisa, Van Gogh’s fields, and such famous masterpieces by master artists. Art comes in so many different forms and you need to make a point of finding out about each, perhaps even experimenting with them. You may be great at sketch artistry and painting but there is some other form of art that you would be even better. Here are some ideas:
- Sculpting
This may not be a popular category in art contests but it is undeniably an impressive form of art. There are very few sculptors dealing with marble, wood, and concrete anymore. This is because of the sheer amount of resources necessary to make the huge sculptures of the olden days such as The Thinker by Auguste Rodin. This is not to say that you cannot do small wood carvings and sculptures on your home office desk.
- Abstract art
Now this one is a bit complex for several reasons. For starters, the interpretation viewers may be totally different from each other’s and from that of the painter. Secondly, abstract art can be confusing not only to the viewers but also to the painters. You start with streaks of lines and random paint blots on a canvas wall and then build upon it. It may not be popular in art competitions either because it is hard to come up with standardized criteria to evaluate the different pieces against a specific theme.
- Ice and wax carving
Can you imagine working with melting ice, yet you have to make a life-sized carving of an animal or even a person? Ice and wax carving are slowly becoming a mainstream form of art. You simply need to learn how to work with these materials. Ice for instance will melt on you if you do not keep it in the right temperature. Wax will also start melting and become difficult to work with at some point if the temperature is too high.
So, you do not have to be a painter or a sketch artist to engage yourself in art or even submit your work into art competitions. The abovementioned are just but some of the many options that are available. Then again, it is art, you can be creative even with the materials you are working with.
