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Andromeda · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 10:51 am

I've always loved painting in general ... painting, drawing ... visual arts .. love it.

I'm currently in an arts school, my course: Fine Arts-Painting

You know what ive noticed ?

there are quite a few of my lecturers, painters themselves ... who 'look down' on digital painting ...

dammit ... why the hate ? WHY ? ..

I keep getting dissed cos my stuff, they say its 'too much like an illustration' ... wtf ?

ANGST BABY ! ANGST !

im not talking about pop-art vs fine arts here ... im talking about digital painting vs traditional painting...

its just another medium, another way to paint..

[Shizo] · member Member # Joined: 22 Oct 1999 Posts: 3938

No angst. It's just a natural human reaction. If people see that their skill is becoming extinct, they hate on that fact, pushing away any sort of understanding of the "new way." They may be too stubborn to re-apply their skills in the modern and popular medium. And since they can't make it in the current industry, they recede into teaching general art skills to the generation of new artists.

That's my take on it..

Nilwort · member Member # Joined: 26 Jan 2002 Posts: 319

Well, I've noticed in my experience with digital painting that the brush "strokes" are much less permanent than when you are painting traditionally. With digital, you can lay some color down and then proceed to smudge it around and tweak the hell out of it (and it can loose its original quality), where as with traditional painting, you can still do similar sorts of techniques, but it remains very paint-like.

Compared to actual paint, pixels are impartial and can change into anything depending on what program and tools you use and how you set up your project. Pixels are also limited by the fact that they have no physical depth. Real paint builds up with layers and has a more varied surface than a completely flat screen or wacom tablet.

Traditional painting is also 10,000,000 times more scary than digital painting because you are stuck with what you do. If you end up with something you aren't happy with, there is no ctrl-z or recycle bin! You either have to burn the thing or hide it in your attic. I actually have a blank canvas that has been staring at me for weeks and I haven't touched it...

Your teachers are probably used to helping people learn, and the most efficient way to learn is with traditional paint because more is at stake with every stroke and it forces you to be more aware of how you are working. Digital painting gives you a lot of control over your work, but is a less intense experience than painting traditionally. It is for me anyway.

eyewoo · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 1:12 pm

When acrylic paints were first introduced there was a similar reaction - somehow using acrylics was not real painting.

Digital is now the new kid on the block - looked at askance by all those who thought they had carved out a niche for themselves in an established area... but who now find the area was not fully defined when they were setting themselves up. That's the way it will always be. One day, digital will be the old guy and digital artists will focus their barbs on something new... like a program that interprets thoughts into a visual picture... or whatever else you can envision...

...so, it's upsetting and painful to be at the edge, especially in an academic environment that is based on traditional boundaries. But do keep in mind that there are things to be learned from the dinosaurs... Smile

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Godwin · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 4:12 pm

Jimmyjimjim · member Member # Joined: 12 Dec 2002 Posts: 459

I think there is also the fact that many tradirional artists havbe only seen the cliche of what digital painting can sometimes be- smoothly airbrushed sci-fi or fantasy pieces and anime characters. To be fair, digitally created artwork is rarely seen outside of a commercial context.

Godwin · Posted: Thu Mar 09, 2006 7:15 pm

And rightfully so because its roots are in the media industry, so what's the big surprise that those are the usual subject matter digital artists dwelve in? People should stop being so darned stuck-up, it's another medium just like paint, you could create an image with the same meaning, same composition, look, colour same everything perhaps other than texture, but would it, having been in oil or a print/projection work, make any difference to those things that are invariable? Just as you could choose to use pastels, oils, watercolour, graphite, charcoal, mixed, why couldn't you choose digital? Sure there's acceptance of digital video and film works, digital animation, but what about digital painting?

I guess I was lucky that my tutors in JC understood the potential of digital media and allowed me to base my coursework on it, I'm surprised that university lecturers, who're supposedly more experienced and exposed (or arrogant and stubborn?) would be blind to such things. Thus I ask if you're in LaSalle, because I was thinking of applying there and I dunno, I've always had the impression that local schools are never as good as they are made out to be - the conservative mentality, money-mindedness, senseless academic competition lahdeedah.
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Andromeda · Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2006 9:30 am

Godwin ... i am .... in .... Lassale ... Lassale SIA College of the arts ... why ?

Are you there ? ... tell me youre not there .... fear !!

The Insane Lemur · member Member # Joined: 19 Oct 2003 Posts: 768

whnever I tell people that Ive painted in digital, they either think its harder or easier, and some just think digital meens you press a button to generate it. I suppose there will always be a misunderstanding about something, digital just happens to be it right now... i simpy liken photoshop to paint that dries real fast

[Shizo] · member Member # Joined: 22 Oct 1999 Posts: 3938

Skill is a skill. Tool is a tool.

There are sh*tty oil paintings, as well as sh*tty digital paintings/artworks.
All tools have some things better than others, but it all comes down to skill. Actually, i think digital is the best tool out there right now. Smile

Hooray for digital!!

PS: About misconceptions. The term "computer generated," or CG, may confuse a lot of people not in the know.

Godwin · Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 9:39 am

Andromeda · Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 9:39 am

this topic is currently on my list of 'want to know more about' right now ...

anyone can link me to somewhere ? so i can find out more ? books, etc ...

Lunatique · Posted: Sat Mar 11, 2006 7:21 pm

I've pretty much decided that it's not my fight. I feel that with the way the world is right now, it's probably more practical to adjust your own mentality than trying to fight an uphill battle. When I want to get all artsy and consider the whole gallery scene, I paint with traditional. When I'm feeling all hip and cutting edge and doing stuff for the entertainment industry, I do it digitally. It kinda works itself out quite well too, because commercial work does require speed and ease of editing--which is what digital excels at. Fine art couldn't care less, so using traditional paint is about right.