I’m not an art fan. I mean, I can be dragged into a gallery and spend hours admiring the pretty pictures, but 99.999% of the time I’ll look at a picture or sculpture and think, “Wow, that really sucks.”
A lot of the problem is the cynicism that seems to have crept into the industry over the years – people buy the pictures on their walls from IKEA and the Argos catalogue, and people paint what Argos want to put in their catalogue – but I suppose that’s no different from music or film: most of it’s ultimately rather crap.
That’s probably why I find fan art so utterly charming. There’s an earnestness about it because people are so inspired by what they’re evoking that they just want to express their absolute devotion to it.
"Good art": Mograine: Retribution by Maya Brisa
[caution: NSFW after the jump]
My problem with most “art” is that when I think of art, I think of stuff like this:
…-ing terrible. That’s what it is! There’s just too bloody much bad art in the world. This is why I love Regretsy, because it lampoons stuff like this
… and that. Seriously.
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Again, I’m drawn back to the adorable stuff by Maya Brisa on DeviantArt. There’s so much warmth and life to her scribbles, and though she can draw well, it’s her caricatures that I fall absolutely in love with.
I really enjoy caricatures a lot of the time because of the playful humour they express. It’s almost impossible for a fan of Oblivion not to smile at this.
"Good art": Sheogorath by Anku Greedo
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The best picture I’ve seen for ages was actually the cover of The Economist last week. After I’d done squealing “BUNNY!“, I spent a good while really enjoying and appreciating every little detail on what was an exquisitely inspired image. I just love this.
I think that’s the key: when art is not for its own sake – when it’s made to make a comment, or express admiration, or to describe a dream the artist had, or for any other reason than “hey, here’s a picture: give me money”, then that’s when it charms and inspires me.
I’m not sure if what Christy does qualifies as “fan art”, because she’s a professional artist, but her hobby-work is always very inspired – normally by comic book culture – so as an artist drawing her favourite characters, I suppose it is actually fan art, albeit of a very high calibre. Either way, it’s fab.
"Good art": Swanky Wonder Woman by Christy
Her sister Ghostgirl – also a game artist – does some absolutely brilliant stuff in her spare time, too.
"Good art": Punk Rock Girl by Ghostgirl
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I think what I’m getting at is that it’s not that I don’t believe that “good art” can’t be done by professional artists, or that stuff is only good when it’s done as a hobby, but that when something is done for love – paid or unpaid, professional or amateur – then it has a sort of glow about it that cannot be manufactured.
Some interesting comments on this one via Twitter.
@beetemup linked me to some very, very good examples of art:
http://www.hifructose.com/
http://gorillaartfare.com/
http://www.fecalface.com/SF/
I really love this one: http://www.hifructose.com/the-blog/716-greg-qcraolaq-simkins-lets-us-inside-the-outside-pt-3.html
That’s great and makes me feel better about the world. Unfortunately, I live in a country where this is considered the pinnacle of artistic achievement:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turner_Prize
From Wikipedia:
In 2002 Culture Minister (and former art student) Kim Howells pinned the following statement to a board in a room specially-designated for visitors’ comments: “If this is the best British artists can produce then British art is lost. It is cold mechanical, conceptual bullshit. Kim Howells. P.S. The attempts at conceptualisation are particularly pathetic and symptomatic of a lack of conviction.”
It’s depressingly reflective of my experiences of art in the UK. I’m sitting here racking my brains, thinking of any exhibitions of work post-1960 that I’ve been to; of anything I’ve seen painted or drawn by anyone I’ve met; of any galleries I’ve been dragged around:
Has anything I have seen in England EVER made me think, “Wow, what’s really cool?”
No.
Not outside of comics and magazines, anyway. Perhaps I’ve just never been exposed to anything good in this country – but I can tell you that if I’d ever seen the likes of Simkins, I’d have felt very differently.