From the article: What Makes a Painting Good or Bad?
What do you think makes a painting good or bad? When is a painting acceptable as fine art or not, what makes it cross this line, and what are the criteria for judging it? What's the best/worst you've ever seen for sale? Share your thoughts here. Share Your Thoughts
Good and Bad
- Art is like anything else. Of course there is good and bad art. It takes more than mere skill to make good art, if that all it is, then it's just mechanical drawing. Art has to touch the soul of both the artist and the viewer. "A work of art which did not begin in emotion is not art.” -Paul Cezanne
- —Guest Flora
Don't judge a painting by an art show
- I have been an artist for about 40 years now, I started as a child and painted prolifically during my teens; yet I have rarely seen a really good painting win at an art show/contest and I have been perplexed at this for a long time. My parents had an art gallery for years after my Colonel father retired from the Air force and I saw very wonderful artists work that I admired. I believe a good painting should come from your soul, but besides that, any good artist has an 'eye' to see composition, color, etc. and then needs training to hone in on techniques, etc. A bad painting 'looks' unfinished and has bad use of color, composition, perspective, and sometimes just a bad or boring subject. A bad painting looks flat and one or two dimensional whereas a good painting looks three sentimental and at least uses three values, preferably more. Shadow, regular light and then highlight, depending on the subject. Sometimes painters don't learn to draw but that's the foundation of a good painting too.
- —themasterstouchtoday
What Makes a Painting Good or Bad
- I do not think there is a good or a bad painting. I believe that someone out there is looking for a certain picture and yours might be that one or not. If you like what you are painting, then that makes it a good painting. Paint for yourself first!
- —Guest Betty
What Makes a Good Painting.
- Knowing when to stop! So often, in painting, as in writing, less is more!
- —Guest stellamari
Good or Bad?
- What others say is not important, e.g.; my "the thinkers", abstract self portraits in Warhol style, had many positive comments from About.com forum members, so I entered it in our local exhibition. Not even an honorable mention. However, I enjoyed creating the painting, so as far as I'm concerned it was the Best of Show. Like Picasso I have had different painting periods. Like Van Gogh I have only sold a few and one of my pieces was stolen. So look at that; I have arrived already. Don't call or write for my autograph; let me sleep, dream and enjoy painting whatever I paint).
- —wiltonnelson
Guilty on all counts
- I'm learning never to ask a member of my family what they think. Art and beauty are in the eyes of the beholder... what I see is totally different from what they see.
- —Guest laurel
Bad or Good
- Bob Ross...BAD! Vincent Van Gogh...GREAT! Enough said.
- —Guest Valentine
Artist or Dauber?
- What makes it Good or Bad? Once I can figure that out I will be able to call myself an artist not merely a dauber.
- —mickeyobeart
It's Very Simple
- Art is communication, everything else, no matter how well it is executed is just decor. To borrow a cliche, "Art must speak to you".
- —Guest Anar Higgins
It's All Taste
- With all the different styles and techniques, there is no such thing as a good or bad painting. There is of course good and bad drafting skills, meaning if an artists intentions are to paint a man, but it actually looks like a horse, then obviously its bad. As a so called "artist" myself i hate it when people ask me if a particular painting is good or bad, or what does the painting mean? My answer is always the same "why are you asking me? if you like it, buy it, if you don't, then don't buy it". It's all a matter of taste, you wouldn't go out and buy a car because someone else likes that car or likes that colour. So why is art treated as such?
- —Guest matthew
Art, Pleasing
- I have been painting for five years and I think good art is just something that is pleasing to see for the person viewing it.
- —Guest john summers
If It's Good, It's Good.
- We all agree that everyone has different taste. So do you like it? But there are other criteria than personal taste that define a good painting: Value. If a Picasso is worth a couple of million, does this mean it's good? Hell no, I've seen Picasso's that are ####. But I understand it's value; after all it is #### made by a famous painter. It has a historical value. Also of historical value are those paintings that are the first of a new style. Those that have broken with earlier tradition. Technique. How was it done? What skill and time some paintings must have taken to make. Truly masterpieces. Emotion. What emotion does a painting evoke? Does it have a "wow" factor? Does it bring a tear to the eye? Does it depress the viewer? And what seems to be coupled to emotion is size. How bigger it is, how stronger the emotions seem to be. So if most, or all, of the above apply to a certain painting, you can be sure that it is a good painting. Note that critics are not mentioned....
- —Guest Mac Gray
There Shouldn't Be Rules
- I don't think there should be rules about what makes a good painting. Your experiences in life are all different. What makes someone happy or sad is all different, also sometimes a persons age makes a difference in what they like in art.
- —Guest sophia
No Such Thing in Painting
- If it means anything at all someone still put their soul to work painting it which means something. There are no good or bad paintings or painters. There are however people who like different paintings for different reasons. That can change also I think according to where they are in their own becoming.
- —Guest Reality2me
Captivating
- The old saying is: Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. We are all so incredibly different. When we see what the artist sees, then will our hearts and minds be captured.
- —Guest Paul J. Gibbs
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