Self Taught Artists
SELF TAUGHT ARTISTS…
By David Langevin
We often hear painters refer to themselves as “self taught.” What they usually mean is that they had no formal training in a University or College art program. The reality of the situation, as anyone who has taken painting courses in these programs will attest to, is that we are all self taught when it comes to learning how to paint.
A 1990 survey of University Fine Arts Programs across Canada revealed that none of them offered courses that specifically emphasized technical training in materials, or courses on the business of art and the art market; two aspects of an artist’s profession that most would consider essential. Currently, programs focus on art theory, art criticism, the creative process, and art history.
Technical training for painters refers to the physical and chemical laws that govern the application of paints and mediums, and their interactions with each other. It is about how paints and brushes are made; the difference between Ivory Black and Mars Black, or Flake White and Titanium White; how Turpentine and Mineral Spirits differ, or Copal and Damar varnish, and so on. It is about how artists like Titian, Rembrandt and Monet achieved their effects with oils and what pigments and mediums they used. This kind of information must be learned, for the most part, outside of the academic system. For anyone who is serious about painting you run up against these very practical matters almost every time you pick up a brush. If you are serious about making a living as an artist you run straight into the business of selling art and selling yourself – the art market. If they don’t teach you about these vital issues in most art programs, where and how are you going to learn them?
The artist’s education has indeed changed over the centuries. If you showed potential as a young artist during the Renaissance in Europe you would have to apply to be taken on as an apprentice in the studio of a Master. There you would learn the painter’s craft: Preparing materials for the studio from the raw ingredients; grinding pigments into powder and mixing it with the binder; preparing mediums, canvases and panels, and so on. All the while working hard to develop your artistic skills with intensive drawing exercises. It would usually be ten years or more before you would have the opportunity to actually work on a painting. By the time you were allowed to help out with the underpainting of a minor commission piece you were an expert in the knowledge and handling of materials and techniques.
Artist’s training changed in the 18th century with the shift from Master/Apprentice Studio to the Academies. These institutions were much closer to our modern system with a teacher and a room full of students. What was gradually lost in this new format was the direct information regarding materials and their application, and equally important, the direct contact that the artist trainee had with a successful master painter and the day to day business affairs related to the professional career. By the time the Impressionists learned how to paint in the 19th century they had a minimum of instruction regarding materials and techniques. Instead, the Academies emphasized style and subject matter, the very thing that the Impressionists rebelled against. Moreover, by the beginning of the 19th century we saw the introduction of the Artist’s Colorman who became the manufacturer and distributor of materials for painters. So painters lost the intimate knowledge of the materials gained by making them themselves. They were also left to make their own way in the art market without the benefit of the contacts and experience gained by working with an already established studio.
The last few decades has seen a resurgence of interest in the technical training of painters, particularly in Europe. It is mainly due to the excellent work done in the field of art conservation that has helped us learn more about how painting materials can be used. In fact, it is conservationists like Eastlake and Maroger who wrote some of the first modern’ how to’ books on painting materials and techniques. Most are out of print but can still be found in some libraries (especially museum libraries) or on the bookshelves in the conservation departments in bigger museums. The standard in the field is still Ralph Mayer’s The Artist’s Handbook of Materials and Techniques, now in its 5th edition.
Another great resource that we have in our modern society is organizations like the FCA. Here artists can get together and share information, knowledge and experience. Less experienced artists can learn from established professionals through workshops, talks, and more informal contact.
During the renaissance and even later in the Academies, you didn’t choose to be an artist like we do today; you were chosen. Now we have many institutions, resources and organizations at our disposal to help us learn our craft. You just have to be willing to learn and seek them out for yourself.
This is why most artists today really are self-taught…
