[PixHortHiT]

something I�ve come to wonder about is why we paint so much dragons, trolls, demons, monsters, wars, weapons and so on..?

Is it the time we live in that reflects in the work we do or is it personal preference and if so why is it so many are into stuff like this?

Why dont people paint fluffy cuddly puppys n�stuff, lovers in sunsets, romance and things of that kind, why is it we portrait such monstrosity, anger, hate, violence and suffering, are we venting our souls by doing it or are we only sick twisted minds trying to push our madness onto other people?

[proViolence]

In what way should you release your anger then? And disturbing imagery is much more interesting than fluffy stuff, good feelings often make cheesy imagery.

* KILL ALL THAT'S FLUFFY *

[ February 28, 2002: Message edited by: proViolence ]

[Ripelly]

gee.

must be because of the computer games and movies and news filled with blood, severed heads and whatnot.

[gekitsu]

well, i can't speak for tghe others, but i paint utopic stuff for the same reason that i read science fiction:
i dislike this totally rational sticking to the reality. i live in the reality all day, why should i also paint it?
furthermore, i see a strange but beautiful kind of aesthetics in war, weapons, demons and all the things that depict my sometimes ill mind.

[PixHortHiT]

Ok, first of all I just want to say I�m not different from you guys on that point, I like blood, guts, explosive actionscenes, and wartype stuff but I just came up with this idea and couldnt get it out of my mind.

Is it mainly because we�re guys?

(not speaking badly about women)

[proViolence]

My gf is sometimes even worse which disturbs me a lot

[PixHortHiT]

Ok so that theory is disproved, what else could it be?

This thread could come to be very interesting, if more people could come out with their own theories regarding this topic..

[Ripelly]

every-day-situations are boring. you are exposed to that fluffy-cuddly-crap constantly.

[ February 28, 2002: Message edited by: Ripelly ]

[Frog]

Personally I hate all that stuff!! It's sooo boring. There's so much other stuff to draw or render it baffles me why so much of the CG community is stuck in fantasy art, sci-fi and HR Geiger rip-offs.

I think it's fine to work to a theme for game art, or commisioned illustration for books, or concept art for a film because in these fields artists are commissioned and the subject matter is client dictated, but it would be nice to see a little more variety in people's personal work, rather than the endless dragons, skulls and spaceships. Sometimes when looking through websites and portfolios I can't help but be impressed by the amazing technical skill and craft on display yet still feel disappointed by the downright cheesyness of the subject matter.

BTW, before donning my flame-proof suit, I would like to quickly add the proviso that this is of course a personal opinion and in no way directed at any specific individuals, merely a general feeling I have been develloping of late.

[eVilAsmo]

Is it the time we live in that reflects in the work we do or is it person

The time and location in which we live is imho much more of the person than most of us give credit for. Currently, most of us live in a very pacified, civilised, mundane world.

I'd like to think I speak for others when I say my work is often escapism. If you produce an image of reality, people will judge it as reality, and reality is just more rules - and for the most part I'm sick of rules.

In addition to this, it has for some time I think been seen as socially desireable to be the dark and twisted one.. there's something mysterious and romantic about it. I think many people strive for that.

Personally, I find the demons, monsters, ghoulies, vampirism, guns etc v.enjoyable..

On the subject of cute fluffyness... it has been said that anger, pain, depression, repression.. all these things are wonderful motivaters and inspiration for some of the most powerful, emotive and effective artworks. Soul searching seldom yields fluffy kittens

I beg to differ that images of extreme tranquility or beauty are not mainstream though. On this forum alone, you can usually dig 3 or so threads from each day that have the most wonderful sunset, or beautiful river. I find it's about finding beauty in the smaller things.

I've ranted way too much, and prolly gone off subject.. so I'll return with a little thing my english teacher once said when asked why there aren't many happy poems in the anthology we were studying.. her reply:

"I suppose if you're deleriously happy, you're not likely to want to sit down and put it on paper, but are much more likely to carry on enjoying it"..

likewise, when that period is over.. I suppose you are much more likely to pick up the brush and paint what you now miss.

<-- cough

[ February 28, 2002: Message edited by: eVilAsmo ]

[dogfood]

This seems a far more likely topic for a psycology class (who'd be studying us).
Here's a shot in the dark:
We like drawings to affect the viewer. When we want the effet to be laughter, we may draw a juxtaposition (for example). When we want awe, we draw something dramatic. One of the easiest ways to bring a little drama is to draw something powerful. Introducing something into the scene with power, mystery and an uncertain moral alignment can have a visceral effect on the viewer (Dracula has more movies than any other fictional character). Ask why kids favorite Star Wars character was Darth Vader. He had power, something missing in your life when your mom's telling you to eat those brussell sprouts.
I know I'm out there, but that's my 7 cents.

[razzak]

i dunno aboiut you ppl, but i love my gut splashing scenes, but i also like soem nice peaceful scenes. i usually sit and mumble for a long time and i think whast picture i want to do, and brainstorm stuff in my head. lately all my pics have been dramatic, so the last one i did was of the chick in ahh my goddess playing the lute. i love that pic, it makes me happy everytime i look at it

[razzak]

damn my spelling sucks, sorry bout that

[balistic]

The stuff we do now isn't half as sinister as some of the stuff that was painted a few hundred years ago . . . scenes of mass damnation and judgment, defeated enemy armies impaled on stakes . . . if anything, I'd say art is brighter and less violent than it used to be.

I remember seeing this old Japanese scroll that showed demons tormenting people in hell . . . one guy was having a spike driven through his tongue and a spray of blood was shooting about fifteen feet.

[Mindsiphon]

The reasons people are like to create things like dragons and orcs and stuff is because:

1. they are creating these things for a game, book etc. etc.
Most games are scifi fantasy based.

2. The same reason people like to watch horror and sci-fi flicks or books or or even listen to dark and sometimes violent music.
Music and movies are influential to some artists.

2. To escape reality. Some would much rather paint a fantasy scene than something they see in reality everyday.
Viewing fantasy/sci-fi art is like a window into the artists imagination.

[eyewoo]

The choice isn't necessarily just between blood'n guts or fluffy kittens... There's a really interesting and challenging world that exists between those poles...

[James Bradford]

I think it comes from what the audience wants, and what the artist's interest (who is also apart of that audience). Demons and such involve a lot of human form which is also a big challenge in making something half convincing.

[Wormius]

I'll preface my comments by saying that my artwork has been described as fairly "non-threatening", so I may not be the best-qualified to comment on this thread. Still, it is something that I've thought about a great deal in the past few years. The conclusion I have come to is this:

Most humans, myself included, possess an inherent desire to witness or commit violence and destruction upon the world around us, either because they feel that the world is unjust, or because they just want to see someone else get hurt. Most adults have subjugated this desire to the extent that they don't go around hitting people with bricks, but that agression is still there, and it does affect the way we behave.

I think that art is a healthy way to express this fear/rage response. I have never (and hope that I will never) inflicted serious injury upon anyone else. In real life, I am just about the nicest guy you could ever meet, but I still enjoy slinging hot lead in a first person shooter to relieve a little tension every now and then.

If I had children, I would probably encourage them to channel their aggression into more creative outlets than blasting through a level of "Serious Sam", but I think it would be a waste of time to tell a little boy that he had to play "gather the fruits and berries" when he's got instincts from the dawn of time telling him that he needs to be whacking things with a stick.

I've watched this desire to lay waste to one's foes manifested in the meekest suburban housewife. It's there in just about everyone I've ever met, to some degree, and the only way to keep it from seeping out into the lives of those around you is to recognize it in yourself, laugh at it, enjoy it for what it is, and get on with your life. The worst thing you can do is deny that you could be motivated by such unpleasant emotions, and so justify your own petty cruelties with a self-deluding guise of moral superiority.

I am firmly convinced that most of the misery in the world comes not from the few loonies who revel in their own violent natures, but from the vast majority who wrap their hate and rage in a comforting blanket of denial.

Then again, I'm probably just some violent crack-pot who needs to be hit in the head with a brick.

[mythwarden]

A lot of these posts are good.

In my own humble opinion, a nymph bathing in a glen is far more interesting to see then a playmate bathing in some playboy magazine.
People are more interested in the story behind the picture. A nymph is suppose to be a woman in nature who has so much natural beauty that can blind a man.

What sounds more interesting to you?

Nyph bathing in a glen?
Or Playmate Bathing in a tub?

If your honest, probably the nymph because you've never seen a beauty as such before. The fantasy artist truly has to awe you with how he displays her from his imagination. Your expecting more from the nymph then you would from anything else in this life. The artist realizes this and has to pour an amazing amount of thought into how to get the vision across effectively.

This point is the same whether it be Demons or Dragons or whatever. It's a matter of interest. Your showing the viewer something that they had never seen in this life nor will they ever.

You creating something purely from the imagination and at that point, you're in the artist's mind, you're in his reality.

-myth

Lost in Kira : The Art of Brian Stokes

[BooMSticK]

I'll take the Playmate over a nyph any day, thank you!
,Boom

[Jucas]

Right now we are in a dream. But instead of the sleeping dream, we are in a waking dream. Everyone elses dream around us affects and twists our waking dream until you cant tell the difference between dream #1 and dream #2. So we keep telling ourselves "They like monsters, I like monsters" "They like Demons, I like demons" etc etc till we believe that is what we like, and what we should portray in our art.

Ask yourself. Do I enjoy drawing this? What do I really want to draw? Perhaps It will be something else. Something new, something original.

Meh, maybe I'm crazy. Well no doubt I'm mad. But could there be something to it all?

[Derek]

I don't find the every day boring at all, and I think those who do fail to look at the world too hard. This is a very exciting time to be living, and the way we costume ourselves, comport ourselves, and go about our business has some incredible aspects to it. I prefer to think that I live in the worlds that I create, but I know so many fail to look that hard or that deep, beyond what the media, pop culture, and cynicism show them.
Look deeper, there are wonders out there awaiting you and your work.
As for why we do what we do.. I don't believe in Utpoia... they can not exist. There are always going to be inherent conflicts of a multitude of sorts, some being simple differences of opinion and procedure, others much more drawn out and ugly. Artists represent all facets of life, and just because the majority of folks here don't always exemplify or illustrate the better parts of our nature in the forum, I think you'll find a number of them striving to create a lot of beautiful imagery... landscapes, figures, you name it. Still, we are constantly bombarded with the ugly. Some represent that in more concrete and familiar terms, some in mytholgical and horrific ones.
Think of today's headlines... wouldn't it be easy to assign names and events parallels and costumes and masks that are out of the darkest horror or fantasy? We respond to the world with our best defenses and our personalities. Some of us will respond through our art, directly or indirectly. So you'll see monsters, demons, great heros and battles.
That and of course, if you do it well it looks really cool...

[Frog]

I completely agree about the everyday not being boring at all, observing the everyday is a large part in what makes a good artist. I love being anywhere and just looking around me, there's always something to notice and observe.

I think that the themes of fantasy, sci-fi etc... are self perpetuating simply because people imitate the artists they admire; so if you're a fan of Geiger you imitate his subject matter and the same for many fantasy artists etc...

As for the argument about the nymph vs playmate: to paraphrase fleabrain our choices just aren't restricted to those extremes, there's also everything in between. Why not a cool looking high school girl?