Agree 100% with you Carolyn, I think a self taught artist is just about the only real artists - the kind that do it with passion and sometimes also the ones that don't make millions. That aside any form of art done with real passion show emotion and mostly also the mind of state of the artist at that time.

I totally agree: both the right and the left brain should be put to work together in order to achieve a true masterpiece. The Spanish poet Gustavo A. Becquer (1836-1870) sets it perfectly in his 3rd. Rhyme (Rima III).

Have I met you before? I say and write this frequently. I laugh inside when someone says they are self-taught and wonder if they realize that they are only fooling themselves. If they look a bit more, many many people served as teachers even if it was indirect as a painting in a book.

The fact is that despite my education (BFA) it was still choppy and incomplete.  Those of us who attended art school may have done so at a time when abstraction dominated the "art world." Each "school" simply has their own philosophy that they are trying to teach.  Many realists artists may have majored in illustration thinking that we could at least focus on realism. Much of our learning needed to be pursued on our own. I needed to further my education in order to get a better basic education and I learned much (most) by doing my own research, traveling, reading, maybe taking a workshop, etc.  We all learn from others and it is a matter if we keep working toward improving our skills or expect to be spoon fed.

Self taught generally means "I don't have a formal education or I didn't go to college." Well, unless we grew up in Russia where kids had a 4-5 year long formal art program starting at the age of nine, or we were fortunate to have people hand hold us until we are 25, we all needed to pursue art by searching, looking, and pursuing our interests. People who claim to be self-taught seem to have this idea that people with formal education were spoon fed or something. Nothing could be further from the truth. I needed to undo some of my education...

I recall listening to a podcast of a successful realist artist and she claimed to be totally self-taught --- no books, workshops, or anything. (What a liar or naive artist.) Frequently, we learn by just being near other artists, or watching someone shade an object. I recently met one of those Russian child artists( who also has more higher education) and he gives most of the credit of his success to someone he simply painted outdoors with for many years. At times, our teachers are very unexpected.  It is important to give credit to or acknowledge those who helped us along the way even if it is by indirect exposure. An elementary art teacher once told me to simply start drawing... even open a magazine and draw from it. This little piece of advice changed my entire life and he did not show me a thing.

Enough said... give credit to those who helped you and remember the grass isn't always greener on the formally educated side of the hill.

Sorry for rambling Carolyn. Very good article and nice advice.

Hi Kate just wanted to add something to the conversation.

I know some really good artists from both ends of the spectrum - those who have had formal training and education and those who consider them selves "self taught". I have to say I consider myself neither, so there is no bias.

However a have found that a great deal of snobbery and jealousy comes from those who HAVE had formal training and I can understand why - you got to college for over 3 years to learn your craft only to discover that whilst you have accumulated thousands in debt to study, you have also had to "undo" much of the education that you have been taught. A self taught artist on the other hand just follows their passion and has the ability to deliver REAL art which is an expression of their own individual creative identity.

I quote your words Kate "People who claim to be self-taught seem to have this idea that people with formal education were spoon fed or something. Nothing could be further from the truth. I needed to undo some of my education..." Your words not mine!

Hi Kate just wanted to add something to the conversation.

I know some really good artists from both ends of the spectrum - those who have had formal training and education and those who consider them selves "self taught". I have to say I consider myself neither, so there is no bias.

However a have found that a great deal of snobbery and jealousy comes from those who HAVE had formal training and I can understand why - you got to college for over 3 years to learn your craft only to discover that whilst you have accumulated thousands in debt to study, you have also had to "undo" much of the education that you have been taught. A self taught artist on the other hand just follows their passion and has the ability to deliver REAL art which is an expression of their own individual creative identity.

I quote your words Kate "People who claim to be self-taught seem to have this idea that people with formal education were spoon fed or something. Nothing could be further from the truth. I needed to undo some of my education..." Your words not mine!