Beyond Compare

How often does an artist hear it said that you shouldn't compare your own work to that of others, yet we strive to be like our heroes. Maybe that's not true of all types of art and artists, but as an impressionist myself, it definitely applies to me. Since I started to paint in an impressionist style, I have constantly looked to the work of other impressionists and wished that my paintings turned out like theirs. I see others that have copied the style of successful artists and have become "carbon copies" of their teachers. The example which springs to mind is, one of my heroes, Ron Ranson. There are lots of videos on the Internet by people copying Ron's style. To me they have missed the point. Ron Ranson's inspiration was Edward Seago, yet Ron's style is his own. An artist's painting style should be as original as their handwriting style, but we can learn from other artists' work without copying them. The important thing to do when viewing another artist's painting, is to ask yourself what it is that you like about their work and try to incorporate those elements into your own work. It's not always easy to do, but it's a skill which once learned, goes a long way towards helping to produce more satisfying paintings yourself.