Welcome back to my fun segment where I answer art’s most pressing questions! Today on Ask an Artist I’ve got two excellent questions somewhat pertaining to art appreciation.

I pulled both of them from Quora where I like to hang out and help others artists from time to time. If you’d like to see some of the other artsy advice I’ve given you can check out my page here.

These questions were also featured on my last YouTube video where I give the same answers, but discuss them a little more in depth. And if you have anything you’d like answered, go ahead and leave your question in the comments below here or in the YouTube comments for a chance to have it answered on the next segment!

Q1: How do I stop simply depicting objects and start making art?

That is a very deep question, I love it! I think your ‘objects’ will become ‘art’ when your choice of subject gains meaning behind it. It’s one thing to paint a jug of milk sitting on your dining room table for example, but quite another if that jug of milk is conceptually a critique about the old fashioned notion of women being bound to role of wife/mother/provider/nurturer.

See the difference?

Base your works on something that is meaningful to you/society/your niche and even if the technical aspect remains the same, you will all of a sudden be creating art instead of rendering objects.

Personally I spent over a decade devoted to learning how to correctly portray the figure before I felt comfortable actually using my skills to get more creative and fill my works with meaning, and I’m glad I waited. It sounds like you might be hitting that point within your practice as well - how exciting!

If you would like a little help creating meaningful works or learning how to talk and write about them, check out this video I have on my YouTube channel. How to Write an Artist Statement: Motivational Step by Step!! Even if you’re not ready to sit down and write about your portfolio it could inspire your new level of art-making.

Congrats on feeling ready to move forward:)

Q2: How can I support an artist I like without spending money?

Sharing their work while giving full credit and tagging etc. is a fantastic way to help artists. It’s one of the main ways we grow! You can also help send folks their way if, for example, your friend got a new place and thinking of buying art.

If you know the artist personally sometimes you can send opportunities their way. Like if an art teaching job opens up or there’s some big art contest happening, I’ll often have a few friends forward me links when they hear about them. Definitely showing up an being supportive at any art shows is a big win too.

That’s so awesome when folks like you show artists some real love!