Do you have to be born a good artist?

[Lintjinks]

Tone deaf

Beethoven was still composing symphanies when he was completely deaf, and you guys are bitching over a little off key glitch? Suck it up ya goddamned pansies!

In the born with talent department:

This is rather scary.

Nonsense. She wasn't born with talent, she was born with a quick learning curve. Just look at her enormous progress over the years. She didn't just start blasting those paintings out of her ass as a 1 month old infant, she learned it - albeit faster then most.

Right on. I'm of the philosophy that the "talent mirage" is a load of crap Americans came up with for an excuse for their laziness-induced ineptitude. We're born with certain inclinations, yes. I was born with a very strong inclination towards music, but I didn't excel in music until I gained the discipline and hard work habits to do something with it.

These days, I'll often do some kind of performance, and I get loads of "You're so talented!"s. I can't <b>tell</b> you how many times I've heard that phrase, because it's in the thousands. I hear it, I kid you not, at least once a week. It's the standard "creative field" compliment. I'd like to see someone chalk an excellent biochemist's abilities up to being "talent". I just smile and say "thanks" a lot, but it's not true. My abilities came from work and diligence: years upon years of it.

I also can't tell you how many times people have told me, "I so wish I could, but I could never do music like that. I'm just not musically talented." There's another one that drives me batty. Here's my take:

People are capable of accomplishing whatever they want if they're willing to work for it, keep an open mind... and keep trying.

I guess (to hit the appropriate topic) the same goes for drawing. I took up drawing a few years ago, and it used to take me... I dunno... 6 hours to draw one measly crappy pencil drawing. These days I'm a lot faster, and a lot better (although not nearly as good as I want to be), and I get the "You're so talented!" comments. The thing is, I'm not talented, I've just worked hard at it for years, and studied a lot. I probably should be better than I am for all the work I put into it, but I'll keep on plugging away. : D

"You're so talented!" is a cop-out. It's saying, "You can do what you do by just being born with it, so I don't have to worry about even trying!"

I want to say to people who tell me that: "You could do this, too. ANYBODY could!" The problem people have is the workload that goes hand-in-hand with having "talent".

[LAGtheNoggin]

Soooo... Simply enough, the word 'talent' should be removed from the dictionary and stamped to death?

Because yup, I have no quibbles with that, I'll even bring my own stamping boots.

[Soap Soaperson]

Oh no! The topic is now moot!

[Lintjinks]

No fair... I want stamping boots.

[Rkolter]

Talent does exist in the art world!

It expresses itself as a natural understanding and/or inclination towards artistic expression.

There are definately people who have artistic talent, and I suspect there are different levels of it. Everyone has to work to become skilled; in some cases, the same amount of work produces better results than others. Why? Because some people just "GET" art.

Saying someone is talented isn't really complimenting them. I can see where it would be insulting to some, who feel it's a statement about their luck, and not the skill that they had to work their butts off to develop.

But to say Talent doesn't exist, is kind of silly.

[Hyrodragonslayer]

My answer to the original question is a big fat no. I used to suck ass. I practiced so damn hard and I eventually developed my own style.

[Tandt]

lintjinks said:

"You're so talented!" is a cop-out. It's saying, "You can do what you do by just being born with it, so I don't have to worry about even trying!"

Maybe we should redefine talented to mean "Wow, you've worked very hard at what you do!"



Susan

[Luprand]

That's usually how I look at talent anyway. Especially in the case with my friend Jillian, who combined the ability she had with an almost unsettlingly prolific habit for art (this past semester she filled up four sketchbooks) and blows me away with what she can do.

And as for the tone-deaf thing ... I've probably told the story of Heber J. Grant before; he conquered his lack of singing ability through six hours of practice a week. With enough practice, almost anything can be done.

--Sij

[Collapse]

Okay, how about this then... we've lived in the same house, with the same doorbell, for eight years. The doorbell is a single tone, and I am told it rings at a different tone or pitch or whatever depending on whether it is the front door or back door button being pressed. When my mom hears the doorbell ring, she can tell which door the person is at. After eight years, I still cannot tell which doorbell is being rung. I can't even tell the sound is different unless one is rung immediately after the other.

[Joel Fagin]

*snip doorbell*

Physical limitation, I expect. Sometimes I can't hear the high pitched whine broken monitors make when other people can. That's different, but ears have always been a little iregularly precise from person to person. Too many moving parts and very low manufacturing tolerances.

- Joel Fagin

[Cope]

For some reason, I am capable of hearing silent dog whistles. It worries me...

[LAGtheNoggin]

*snip doorbell*

Physical limitation, I expect. Sometimes I can't hear the high pitched whine broken monitors make when other people can. That's different, but ears have always been a little iregularly precise from person to person. Too many moving parts and very low manufacturing tolerances.

- Joel Fagin

Which is why Audiophiles are so easy to fleece, hurrah!

[Warren]

Which is why Audiophiles are so easy to fleece, hurrah!

I've always said that if you need meters and machines to tell you it sounds better, it doesn't.

*plots to sell genuine-imitaion-wood knobs for $400 on Ebay*

[KODAMA]

XD wtf? Born with the ability to draw? :'D Only einstien could've pulled off a cool trick like that with his completely connected brain.

:'d but hmm.. if I had been drawing since 5th grade, and then someone met me today.. it would SEEM like I had been drawing since I've been born. XD but uh, it's only about 7 years.

[LAGtheNoggin]

Obligatory yearly KODAMA reply:

X3 IT'S KODOMA! YAY! XD

:'D

^.^;

[Faub]

The thread is too long. I need to lock it.