Ten Things You Must Never Say To An Artist

ear muffs ,fingers in the ears ,head phones ,sorry i am deaf personal cards

Thanks I needed that to make me realize that everyone has an opinion and we just need one of those to say, 11. Wow I really like that, I’ll buy it. Do another one, they are funny. B

exactly!!

very well said:)

Love it Janis. May I add to it for #11?
Digital Art isn’t real art. If I don’t understand how you did it, then it isn’t ‘real’ art…..........a thoughtless critic.

Or how about you have come such a long way with your art !!!!
Oh was it terrible before???

All of them sound pompous!
I love your work!

Janis keep this in mind , it makes life nicer , ” t’s one Dickhead born every minute ” !!!

Thanks. I’ll keep these in mind when I talk to artists, because I might end up saying something like that! But one of the things I hear the most is “What is this a picture of?” It seems that if you can’t tell, you shouldn’t tell the artist that!

What makes it even worse…is if you are a beginner like me..and someone (who doesn’t paint) says…oh…”That part doesn’t look real, why don’t you just change it ….” and you do…. and ruin it! Maybe it (the “well meaning” criticism) can help me to develop trust in my own instinct?!

this cracked me up. all of them are true moments.

I tell people I am painting/drawing what is in my head so they can not argue with the result as they can not see inside my head.
Glad u have kept your sense of humour!

Shoot them is RIGHT!

What a fun way to start a day! I think we’ve all heard this kind of remark. e.g. Make your painting match the doormat/curtains/cat ( = adaptable art – and doesn’t this actually apply to many painters who work in series of almost identical works?

One of my personal favourites is from someone I gave a painting to (and immediately regretted doing so). She said: “I’m glad you gave me something I can recognize (flowers, actually). I wouldn’t have hung it up if it had been one of those funny ones (abstract).”

Mmmmmmmm As an opera singer I was also subject to inane remarks. One of the commonest was “What do you do during the day?”

As far as people criticising my work is concerned, no news is not necessarily good news, but I’d rather people kept quiet if they can’t say anything nice. OK Saying: “That’s nice. What is it?” is not so nice, either.

LOL love it :o)

I’ve been asked ‘Why don’t you get a proper job, like a painter and decorator?’ before. LOL. It seems that some people just do not understand what art is about, but think they do, so they express their views in a way that is blunt to say the least. By the way Janis, I think your use of colour in your work makes it one of the most inspirational portfolios on RedBubble. Thank you and congratulations :-) Matt.

i keep getting
11) you dont have enough drums in your crap music.

i bite my tongue and figure it will happen as often as i get good things i suppose..

that made me laugh! my worst comment was: “what were you smoking when you wrote that?” My mother, about my artists statement – the first time i was brave enought to put it in words!

Love it Janis, I have heard some of the same and lots more. Heres one that really made me angry,”females go to art school to find a man” Art school is not really school.

Funny, Funny, Funny. I think we have all had similar comments said about our work. We all can relate. Thanks for pointing them out to others.

Heheheheh…LOL So funny yet so REAL !! – I had one similar to #2 here (please,please post this in the art/war stories!!!)

Valuable advice, Janis. From this point of view, they sound pretty funny, but it would be real embarrassing to say any of these things.

LOL!

but what a beautiful painting of wildflowers!

Yes, I can identify with these. I met a woman I knew at a local art show and unbeknownst to her we were standing next to one of my abstract nudes. “There’s a lot of rubbish here this year, isn’t there,” she said. “I mean, just look at that one.” She points at mine. “It looks like she’s looking up her crack.” Nice …

“That’s mine,” I said simply and smiled.
Don’t know if it had any impact.
BTW the painting at the end of this piece is beautiful.

If someone tells you your work doesn’t look real then the correct reply is “Buy a F*ING photo then!”
It’s not just things you should never say to an artist either, it’s whayt you should never do. My wife took it upon herself to scrape an image of a figure off one of my works as the reference was a photo of her and she didn’t like the image! I do admire her skill though as it was an acrylic picture and I only noticed when I looked and saw two disembodied boots walking unaided on the beach scene I had painted! I guess I’ll have to live with it as you aren’t allowed to brutally murder your spouse even in the case of extreme provocation!!!

Nice Frame…

I like the frame..

Is that all you have to do to paint clouds..?

Do you like painting?

My Mother/Aunt /Daughter/paints..

I must show you …. [insert name of 2 year olds] drawings, after me showing some quick sketches of planned paintings.

It won’t win the Archibald though, will it..[said by person watching me paint a landscape[The Archibald is Australia’s the most prestige’s portrait prize ] [No it won’t…]

Can you do me one just like that ? But with soft green and not the dark green and also a square format and can you frame it with matt exactly to match the curtains, like the ones you did last year?

Neat little list here for us artists, and very amusing! Love the wildflowers.

LOL! One reason I love digital On Screen art: I no longer hear “which way up does it go”, although it hasn’t banished the phrase “what is it supposed to be“

ARGH! The relief of a communal rant!! Thank you! ;o)

Certainly love yr art – will go off to see yr other posts ;o)

this made me laugh Janis – esp. comment on people who have never painted giving advice – sounds like my hubby – cant draw or paint but very critical of my work, but then I do ask for his advice so my fault! :-)

Sooooo true!! he is big on perspective and where the shadows should fall, all the technical stuff!! :-)

If it wasn’t all tragically true it would actually be hilarious!!!

You made me smile when you said how does he feel about Picasso – he would say Who? I will tell him that!

I just read this.. I am so happy some one said it.. you nailed it too..

LOL – You forgot to add “I see what you’re trying to do”.................KILL KILL KILL

Hilarious!!!! And soooo true!! thanks for the laugh :))

For a writer the hated one is
“Oh so you’re a writer! have you anything published?” said as if you can only be a writer if you have been published
second worst
“Would I have read anything of yours?” derrr I dunno have you?
“Would I like what you’ve written so far?” again derr I dunno have you read it yet?
and the old “Is It a …?” (Insert style here – mystery, comedy, romance, historical, crime, sci-fi, action, biographical, etc)
and if you say “yes” then they say “Oh I never read them”
and if you say “no” then they say “Oh I only read them!”

hopeless!
Chookas! ♥

Yes Janis…here’s a few to add to your list:
1. Yes, but I need it to match my beige sofa! :0
2. Can you just copy this and sign like the original artist’s signature?
3. Seeing you are not doing anything, you could get a job at Bunnings.
4. If you could just put this over there and remove that, it might not be half bad

The first one is my fav one :) and I really enjoy all the comments xx

lol I ve heard a few things also …. altho I cant remember them at the moment !

Lol so cool:) Yeah it feels bad if u get bad comments from someone who doesnt know painting,drawing and all!!!!! I know that feeling:)

you are very patient Janis. if i were you, a few people would be already dead.

Being retired and starting to paint this past year and someone said Oh ,you finally found something to do with your time .Yikes ! anyway good one for this morning LIZ

I’ve gotten these:
1. When I went to art school they taught us to never use white like that!
2. I like your new works, you are getting so much better! (after 10 years of being a full time, selling artist)
3. Do you really think this work is worth that much?
4. Where did you go to school? (I didn’t, I am self taught) Ohhh, well I hope you can sell something then, I only buy professional art.
ARGH!
Thanks for the list, it made my Friday just that much better! :)

Hmmm… It certainly can be infuriating at times… I relate… And empathise…
May I add one please?
I was working on building a portfolio of work, with a view of doing a BA in Fine Arts… A “friend” and fellow artist on seeing ” Dance Of The Phantoms” said: ” Very good Delphine, wrap it up for Christmas and give it to your Aunt”... Oh well, can’t please all of the people all of the time… So, as far as my art is concerned I must please myself… :-)
Thankyou Janis… was great to get that one out…

Delphine x

“Is that figure from the front or the back?” From a review panel of the California Art Club. Ugh!

The old bat that drags her interested friend away by saying, “Oh my neice can do that, only much better.”

My granny always looked at my work and said ” thats lovey, George, What is it ?”
and after painting a lion, my sister in law said “Oh a warthog, nice painting !!”

Hilarious! I always get irritated when someone says “That reminds me of that movie/drawing/painting/story” or “I saw something similar to that…”

“Hear you were a painter, my wife and I are thinking about changing the colour in the kitchen.”
“Is it suppose to look like that?” or “Why didn’t you use all the colours?” My Dad’s favorite expression is “Show it to you Mother, You could frame dog s____ and sign it, and she would hang it up somewhere.” Love the comments Janis, and understand completely. LOL

HHha!!..that’s great janis..and yes I’ve heard a few of them before ..I’ll add some when I think of them..good one!!!
xxxooo

I especially like the one that said.”.do you have that in yellow”..I can relate to that one ..because I’m pretty sure that someone down the track has said something very similar to me ..like I could just whip up another one in front of them with a different colour…hha!!!

too good janis!!
xxxooo

Is that hanging the right way up? ..haha! I’ve heard this question before! :D many times actually. Quite frustrating.. So I just say: Hang it up however you want when it’s on your wall.

or I get asked a lot:

are you really that serious about art?

Tales of the people you know that don’t know much or anything about painting but still like to make conversation.
You can only smile!

Customer ,Is that price ticket $8 or $80? ” .....Me, ...No it’s $800 .. customer ” Wow you must be really famous!”
While drawing a monstera vine going up an old barn, a guy came up behind me and after a few minutes said “Hmm it won’t make the Archibald though will it. ?”
NO I said [Archibald it the top portrait prize in Aus.]

ahhrgg said that!!

One of my favourite quotes that I have had said to me as well as read in a mag was, “Thats an amazing picture, you must have a really good camera” Yeah it did the whole damn thing by itself, I had nothing to do with it!

My best was how did u do the background?? it looks a bit messy. that was the desired effect.
Great article and fun reading all the other comments. Again, thank you Janis you keep enlightening us all the time.

LOL
I love reading your journals, Janis :) Though I must say I’m guilty in using ‘That reminds me of…’ now and then, but always in a sense of ‘that brings back such a lovely memories…’ Hopefully you won’t kill me for that, would you? 8)

Hi Janis, people also say to me too, ‘Gee you must have a good camera’, I say, ‘Did Shakespere have a good pen”? While they are thinking about it, I’m walking away.