Vanilla Beans: The Fourth Quarter
Think you need talent to color like an artist?
Think again!
Let’s talk about the things far more important than talent.
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WHAT’S NEW ‘ROUND HERE?
We spend a crazy amount of time preening.
If you look closely at the end of their wings, they’re wearing rows of blue porcupine needles.
Feathers grow through the skin wrapped in a temporary shell. These shells are exactly like the clear tubes which manufacturers put on the end of paintbrushes to protect the fibers until you unfurl the brush at home. The geese are constantly chewing the blue shells to crack them open and release the feather fibers (barbs). It’s a never ending job with new feathers growing in new places every day.
Honestly? The whole feather growing process looks very uncomfortable.
I purchase most of my art supplies from Dick Blick. Shop using my affiliate link to support this free newsletter.
Last week’s wandering essay on teaching led to some great reader emails.
Thanks to you, I’ve learned there’s a topic here, worthy of a closer look.
So let’s put off my previously planned studio discussion to explore more about the process of learning to draw or color.
And just a word of warning: this’ll be a lot of personal observation mixed with a healthy dose of strong opinion. The AARP is bugging me to join them now (which I’m sure is very exclusive!) so I think that means I’m old enough to maybe know something about something.
As always, if the advice rings true, I might be right.
If not, don’t worry. It’s a thought exercise.
THE FOURTH QUARTER
Earlier this week, I released “Painted Daisy”, the June project for members of Color Wonk.
Color Wonk is my monthly intermediate group. Every month, we take on a new fine art concept. The goal is to improve one simple thing with each project. This month we’re learning how not to blend.
From the teaching perspective, new lessons can be tricky. Sometimes I release a class and you say,
Oh, cool! I can totally do that!
Other times, you shake your head in dismay.
I’m supposed to do that? How? I don’t have that kind of talent!
The good news is: I don’t have that kind of talent either.
In fact, I’m pretty sure I was absent the day God handed out talent. Maybe my bucket had a hole in it. I’m not saying talent doesn’t exist because I’ve seen plenty of talented people both in art school and in professional studios…
Which is precisely why I know I’m not one of the talented few. I didn’t get the Fast Pass.
But that’s okay— you don’t need talent to be an artist.
Oh ohhhh… Amy’s sounding like a hippy all of a sudden.
Nope. I’m absolutely not a creativity guru who thinks every half-assed scribble you make is art. I draw a very strong distinction between doing something artistic and being an artist.
Listen to me closely: Anyone can be an artist but not everyone can be an artist.
What I’ve noticed over the years is that artists are made when four factors come together:
Opportunity, aptitude, enthusiasm, and education.
And here’s the key— you need all four to make it happen.
This is what I mean when I say ANYone can be an artist, but not EVERYone can be an artist.
Because we don’t grow up in ideal labratory conditions. Circumstances are different for us all.
More than one of you reading this today has the potential to become a concert violinist. Many of you have the ability to win an Olympic medal in Luge.
But it all depends upon opportunity.
If you live your entire life without touching a violin or a luge sled, we’ll never know what might’ve been.
Potential isn’t worth jack squat if you never connect with your ideal thing.
Some of you didn’t have art supplies growing up or you didn’t touch the right medium… which, by the way, is why it’s such a crime to restrict kids to nothing but crayons and cheap poster paint.
Anyway, sometimes you don’t find your special art thing until later in life.
Raise your hand if you found Copic after age 30 and something immediately clicked. See?
Opportunity unlocks the first door.
Okay, so you touch your Copic and the angels sing…
But here’s where talent kinda-maybe-sorta pops up. Now I don’t mean talent-talent, we’re not talking about Mozart who wrote two operettas in the womb.
But you do need a slight aptitude for whatever it is you’re trying.
Most of us who try luge are gonna break our keister. But anyone who survives the trip without dying has a really big advantage.
Knowing instinctually how to not-totally-suck at something kinda helps.
You’ve got to have a natural connection with art for the opportunity to matter.
But opportunity and motive aptitude aren’t enough. Sometimes Doors #1 and #2 open but frankly, you don’t care.
If you’re not interested in art, the art ain’t gonna happen.
We’ve all seen the kid who was dragged to piano or tennis lessons and hated every minute. They quit and get a face tattoo as soon as they can.
You’ve gotta like what you’re good at to be great at it.
Clearly my mother didn’t drag me to grammar lessons…
Enthusiasm is the only thing that keeps you coming back, especially when art gets hard.
Heck, enthusiasm is often the thing that can blow all the other doors wide open. Desire can make opportunity happen and passion can override a total lack of instinct.
Which makes me wonder why I didn’t list this one first. Darn it.
The fourth quarter of the circle is the reason why you’re here today.
All the opportunity, aptitude, and enthusiasm for art are completely meaningless without an education.
You can buy the markers.
You can spend your evenings blending.
And you can have a grand ol’ time doing it.
You wouldn’t be the first person to make a hobby out of collecting coloring books and filling them with color gradients. There’s no shame in this and I’m not throwing shade. If you’re happy, it’s all good.
But if you’re not happy?
If you’re waiting for your totally average coloring to somehow magically look like art?
Like if you just color enough pages, one day you’ll sit down and somehow color like Rembrandt?
I’m sorry, but that’s not how art works.
A lot of you are three quarters into the art game and you’ve stalled.
Until you open the next door, you’re stuck.
Without education, the skills you have now are the skills you’ll have five years from now and five years after that. You have officially plateaued and this is where you’ll stay for the rest of your life or until you quit and try luge.
The fourth quarter, the key to progressing from colorist to artist is education.
And it’s the thing we always try to cheat.
Watch a few YouTube videos. Follow an influencer. Buy a book with 50 texture techniques. Practice on Saturday AND Sunday.
This is not the way.
The reason I can color the daisy is not talent.
And you can color the daisy without talent too.
The fourth quarter— education makes it possible.
Now I know— I’m an art teacher and I sell coloring classes. I just wrote an article about how important it is to take classes.
Shocking, right?
But if you’re lost and need directions on how to get to Kalamazoo, isn’t it smart to ask someone who’s been to Kalamazoo and knows the way?
Next week, we’ll follow a tiger and see where it leads.
IF YOU LIKED TODAY’S ARTICLE, SUPPORT FUTURE FREE LESSONS
So many floral lessons focus on the color…
Let’s color a pink flower! Let’s color a yellow flower! Let’s color a purple flower.
Painted Daisy reveals the futility of color thinking. We’re working our way through every color of the rainbow to learn how and why the important things never change.
And for added fun, we’re not blending anything!
Our monthly Wonkstream broadcast covers the entire coloring process.
ATTENTION BEGINNERS
ONLY THREE WEEKS LEFT!
My beginner marker and pencil courses have a 6 month enrollment window.
Marker season is January - June. Colored pencil season is July - December.
Once enrolled, you have lifetime access and can work the lessons any time. When you’re in, you’re in forever. I simply block new students from joining the off-season course.
The Blend closes to new students on June 30th. The Blend will not reopen until 2026.
THIS WEEK IN COLOR
CURRENT PASSWORD: RubberDuckie
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