Well, the short answer is “Yes, definitely,” but I’m sure if you’re a graphic designer you might point to that “Designer of the Year” trophy sitting right at the edge your desk and proclaim that in the past year you were the greatest artist. In which case, you’ll want answers – you’ll want more than just the short answer in the affirmative, so I will duly oblige.
Realism is a copy of what already exists
As a graphic designer, I often marvel at just what some artists can achieve with their paintbrushes and even with their pencils or coal sticks. I’m talking about realism here – that art which makes you drop your jaw and go “wow” once you’ve picked it back up off the floor. There’s even an emerging trend called “ultra realism,” which will shock you when you realise that what you thought was the photograph you’re looking at is in actual fact a painting, or better yet, is a pencil drawing!
Things get really hectic with ultra realism, but going back to how Mother Nature ultimately proves to be the greatest artist yet, realism is indeed nothing but an attempt at copying what already exists. If something looks so good on a piece of canvas, then how must it look in real life, seen with the naked eye?
Abstract art is made up of the elements of Mother Nature
Even if you were to point at a sculpture which was intentionally made to look like nothing anyone has ever seen before, abstract art is still made up of the elements of Mother Nature. The unpolished copper metal the sculptor chose to fashion his work of art with comes from where-? Not only that, why did the sculptor specifically choose to use that unrefined metal, based on its consistency? The answer is Mother Nature came first and made it that way, with the sculptor serving as nothing more than a conduit of Mother Nature’s artistry.
All art ultimately chases the “natural form”
Whether you’re working on an animation for some TV commercial or if you’re designing graphics for a video game, etc, ultimately what you come up with is your creation, however that creation will likely be appreciated and approved of if it follows the natural form – if it obeys the laws of nature – the laws of Mother Nature. In other words, the subjects which form part of your work of art will only make sense if they follow laws such as those of gravity, density, spatial perception, etc, so yet again, Mother Nature prevails!
All art spawns from what already exists
None of this should make any artist feel chagrined though – I mean, after all, you’re the one who is making the money out of what Mother Nature whispers in your ear by way of an idea for an artwork and you’re the one who gets all the recognition. Embrace the process instead of trying to fight it and you’ll be opened up to a whole new world of inspiration enjoyed by few artists in this world and by even fewer art lovers who claim to harbour an appreciation for the arts.
