Room for all! One person’s opinion.
You don’t have to ‘get around’ much to realize that odds are that whatever we see out there has been done before. And we can bet whatever style or imagery we find ourselves developing, someone else has done it too. That is not to say ours is any less valuable. It IS to say that we cannot own our style or combinations of ingredients. And it is fool-hearty to be resentful of others who might appear to paint like us. Really good artists may influence an entire generation of artists. It is simply a consequence of being seen.
We are visual creatures, hungry for input. We will be influenced by everything we experience. To show our work, or teach, is to invite influencing other artist. The only safe way to be sure we do not influence others is to keep our work under our bed! If someone appears to copy our style, then perhaps we should reflect on what makes us unique and develop that part of our painting further. Embracing the success of all artists is a worthy goal.
- Lynn -