17 Comments

Thank you for this wonderful and thoughtful post . It continues to dishearten me how many creative people subscribe to the notion of “not having natural talent” and then abandon efforts to engage in art . I am grateful you touched on the belief that excelling in art requires one to capture high realism in their drawing and painting as the gold standard . Also that time, practise ,play and consistency all serve an artist well to grow and expand !

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Exactly! Practice, play, consistency - love it! Thank you for your comment Heather ❤️

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Thank you for this! I'll be saving and returning to this essay often, for inspiration and a prompt to continue practicing my drawing. Interestingly, what started me drawing at age 54 (after making the assumption in my teens that I did not possess a natural aptitude for visual art) was a course entitled How to Draw without Talent. While I do think some folks possess a natural aptitude for drawing, I have been delighted to find out how much of drawing can be learned. I have since revised my opinion that talent, already a somewhat ephemeral concept, is essential. And I decided that even if I am not "naturally good at drawing", I can still enjoy the process. Appreciate this Lisa! I think your post will go a long way to encourage others who lack confidence to overcome their reticence and go for it.

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Oh thank you so much for your kind comment!! And for sharing your experience! I absolutely agree that a ton of things in art can be learned. We don’t have to be born geniuses to enjoy and create beautiful art ❤️ that’s so wonderful you came back to creating art!!

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When I was 7 years old, my teacher told me that my drawing was ugly, that I didn't know how to draw and that I would never know how to draw. I believed her for 40 years. At the end of February 2022, I decided to check. Now, I draw every day and I'm making progress.

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Thank you so much for sharing your story! I had a similar experience. I am so glad that we both decided to go back to art ❤️

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I am glad too, best decision of my life. My Youtube channel is to tell people that not everyone will be the next Van Gogh but we all have the right to try to do what makes us happy and that practice gives progress. No matter the age, the background and the knowledge : a paper, a pen and 10 minutes a day are enough to have fun with drawing. ❤️

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That’s a beautiful message!!

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Thank you Lisa!

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I also believe that drawing and painting to a degree of photo realism are just one of so many forms of artistic expression

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I think people forget that a talent was just a currency, it's basically saying that you have something in your hand that you must turn into something/work with if you want to reap. Talent is just the result of practice, trial and fail, discovery, tears, hope ! It's funny because when someone wins gold at the Olympics, no one talks abotu talent, it's "mastering your craft" but when it comes to art for exemple, it's "oh you're lucky".

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Oh yes, there are so many strange beliefs around art! And around talent as well... My answer is practice your craft! Thank you for your comment Lyly❤️

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you’re welcome dear ! practice practice and practice + curiosity

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Is that a magnolia? So gorgeous

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Yes!! I love magnolias ❤️ Thank you!!

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A very nice article about talents. There are many takeaways in this, which contain many important points about talent.

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Thank you!

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