Drawing from Photos

Drawing from Photos

Why is copying photos treacherous?

There is one challenge every fine artist faces. A drawing surface is flat, but the world is three dimensional. An artist has to create an illusion of depth by depicting objects with outlines and contours and by rendering tonal values. It is a special skill to interpret three dimensions on a two-dimensional surface. The process of drawing is happening in the artist's head. On paper, there is just a result of that process.

The skill of depicting three dimensions on a flat surface can only be developed on one condition – an artist has to learn by drawing from life. Such skill is impossible to develop by copying flat images or drawing from photos.

Copying photos is treacherous for art students who haven't fully developed skills of drawing from life because copying flat images suppresses one's ability to draw from life.

That is why many artists get trapped into copying. The more they copy photos, the less they are able to draw from life.

Is Drawing from Photos Art?

Contemporary Art Academies in Russia do not promote photorealism. There is no objective to create artworks that look like photos.

The philosophy of education is different – to develop strong individual style and good taste in art. The psychological problem of whether to draw like photos or create original works of art was solved way back in the history of art education in Russia. When we see artists who strive to achieve hyperrealism and compete with a photo camera, we call it photorealism. Some artists do large-scale hyper-realistic artwork, but this still falls into a competition between an artist and a photo camera. What is the point in making something by hand that can be done by camera, especially with help of Photoshop?

The meaning of making art always comes to the point that it doesn't matter how good you can copy, what is important, is what kind of person you are. And the first questions that we need to ask an artist are: "who are you; what do you think about; how do you think; what is your philosophy; what is your worldview?" This is what makes an artist original; not how well one can copy a photo in watercolor, drawing chalks, oils, or any other art medium.

Ability to make hyper-realistic copies of photos is a skill, a great skill I may say, but it doesn't make a craftsman an artist.

An artist is a person who tells the original message in one's works of art, who is delivering his or her thoughts and ideas. Art is not only about how to beautifully and realistically depict the world, but also why to do it; what is the reason behind one's artwork.

One may say: "look how beautifully I copied this object; do you like it?" And the answer is: "yes, I do; but what else is there; what did you want to say in your work? What is the purpose of your art?" This is the most important question an artist has to answer to become an artist.

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