Art Appreciation
I've been an artist of one kind or another since I was a kid. When I got to college I already knew a
great deal about the type of artwork I enjoyed doing. But I was required to take an art class for a
general education credit and so I did. As a beginning art class it wasn't that difficult for me. Most
of it was pretty easy, in fact. It didn't hurt that once or twice a week we had a nude female model to
work from, that's one class I always looked forward to attending!
One of the endeavors of the instructor was to broaden our minds, expose us to different forms of art. Well,
by that time in my life I pretty much knew what I liked and what I didn't like. Over the course of the
semester we got hit with slide shows and other displays of abstraction, post-impressionist, etc. I must
admit that 90 percent of it left me cold. I didn't like it. Still don't.
Though such works do not appeal to me visually, I could appreciate the labor and love that the artist
put into their work. Even if it appeared like a 5 year old smeared the canvas with some paint I could
still give the artist credit for their effort. As an artist myself I know how much time and energy is spent
trying to create something and THAT I can appreciate.
Since late in 1997 I've been creating photomanipulations, primarily from my child-hood love for comic
book superheroes. Having found a number of manipulations on the internet that others had done I decided
to try my hand at it myself and I've been doing it ever since.
Several months ago I was in a chat with an individual about his artwork (He had submitted a piece to
me in order to get my opinion). The piece wasn't bad. I'd seen better and I'd seen worse. As we talked I
gave him some hints and tips on how the piece could be better. I guess he didn't like that. As the
discussion continued he brought up the name of another artist well-known on the internet, an artist that
he admired (or so I believe, considering the subsequent course of events). I tried to explain to him
how I felft about this other artist's work. I didn't do a very good job of that.
A few months after that discussion the artist of whom we spoke sent me an unpleasant email. This other
person had gone to him and told him what I had said (and most likely made it sound even worse that it
was). Needless to say I responded in kind and there is no hope of friendship between the two of us.
This brings me to the point of this article. We all have different tastes in art. Art is a subjective
concept and each of us sees the same thing in a different light. What I like, others don't. What I don't
like, others do. For every artist there is a base of appreciative fans and the artist need only find
them. I can't say how many times someone has told me that they like X's work better than mine (and I
get floored by this as I consider X's work not on the same level as mine). But I don't get angry, I
understand the how's and why's of "appreciation".
This club is not for me alone. I didn't create it just to show my own artwork. I created this club to be
the premiere collection of erotic photomanipulations of superheroes and heroines by any and all artists.
That means art I don't like as well as that which I do like. From my private collection I've posted every
piece I have because I know that out there somewhere someone will appreciate it.
To the fans I'd like to say, "Let the artists know you like their artwork!" Artists create from love
for the medium, but we feed on an audience like an actor on the stage does. We need to hear that what
we do is appreciated. I've known a number of artists that are no longer active, and I can't help but
feel that they felt unappreciated. Show only your appreciation. If you don't like a piece, say nothing
about it. Give that artist his due, someone will let him/her know that they like it even though you
don't.
To the artists that participate in S.E.P. I'd like to say that I strive to remain positive. I have no
wish to offend or hurt any of you by my comments. I know how hard you work but understand that I am
only human and your style may not appeal to me. I may have nothing or little to say. If my comments are
not appreciative in nature then they are constructive in nature. Don't take this the wrong way. My
role here is to teach and nurture. I feel that the techniques I've learned and the methods I use may
be useful to others. But human nature must exert itself, my criticisms will lean toward the type of
artwork that I most enjoy, that isn't to say you can't take what I say and apply it to your own style
of art.
This club is here for us all to enjoy and I will continue in my attempts to keep it a pleasant and
worthwhile place to visit.
Black Alchemy
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