But, is it art? (long)

[Speedster]

Hi all!  Well, after a year of lurking in the shadows I decided to pop in now.  I was inspired to do so by the amazing work that Harry William recently posted of the CG Art he has been doing, IMO among the finest I've seen in 10 years as a KeyShooter!  See https://forum.keyshot.com/index.php?topic=27659.0

I'm hoping this post may start a serious dialogue and brain-storm that can benefit all of us in this trying time...

I've been in business as a medical device product designer for 48 years now, and this strange "pandemic" year has been my busiest yet.  A good and bad thing.  And frankly, I'm a bit burned out, and have decided to chill for awhile, and focus again on my own work, and on my recording studio, a story for another time! 

I've created many art pieces over the past few years, and have shared a few here on the Forum.  Some have been used as book covers and illustrations, and I am printing a select few as limited edition signed/numbered giclée prints in my own studio on an Epson P800 printer.  Sales OK, but by word-of-mouth, and only one gallery.  Not on my website yet, and no social media presence yet.  Soon!

So... as I work to expand my gallery presence, I've run into a frustrating issue, and suspect some of you have as well.

Is CGI really "art"?  I can already hear the yowls, but I think this is a valid question that merits discussion, especially as KeyShot has moved way beyond product and automobile rendering. 

Santa Fe, New Mexico, where we live and have our studio, is known world-wide as an art city, with hundreds of galleries, most Southwestern themed, but some contemporary.  Most are high end galleries with strong expertise and presence in the collector world.  Many represent "emerging" artists, working in multiple media, but not CGI. 

I've had meetings with many galleries who had expressed interest in my work, that is until they find out it's all computer generated.  To them, CGI is NOT art!  One gallery owner even told me that a work is not art unless it has been applied with a brush, which I guess leaves out Masters like Da Vinci and Michelangelo, who also worked in pencil, charcoal and chalk!  I know an artist here who takes a photo, prints it large on canvas and then paints it over, like a number painting.  Takes him about a day.  But hey, his "art", touched by a brush, sells for big bucks in a major gallery.

Any ideas on how to counter this crazy thinking?  PLEASE, feel free to pipe in with any ideas!  Below are a few of my prints, all in SolidWorks and KeyShot Pro, with the usual collection of post apps.... Post some of yours as well!

Bill G

[TGS808]

Any ideas on how to counter this crazy thinking? 

Don't tell them it's CGI. Next time they ask, tell them you can't reveal your proprietary technique. 

[Zeltronic]

The sale of "Everydays: the First 5,000 Days" ($ 69.3 million at Christie's), a work by American artist Beeple, testifies to the revolution underway in this long-confidential market., As far as I'm concerned there is no doubt  that CGI can be art

[TGS808]

The sale of "Everydays: the First 5,000 Days" ($ 69.3 million at Christie's), a work by American artist Beeple, testifies to the revolution underway in this long-confidential market., As far as I'm concerned there is no doubt  that CGI can be art

That sale was a scam and an inside job. The entire NFT thing is a grift.

https://davidgerard.co.uk/blockchain/2021/03/11/nfts-crypto-grifters-try-to-scam-artists-again/

[Anindo Ghosh]

That entire article by David Gerard is so full of balderdash and crypto-bitterness that I feel bad for the guy. He's a sad, sad person who hasn't come to terms with a lot of changes in the world - read some more of his stuff, he's rather amusing.

Not to say the NFT scene is anywhere near mature yet, but the cryptocurrency denial cruise ship David is trying so hard to push back against has sailed.

[theShopFloor]

There is no question in my mind that it is definitely Art. Whether or not people think it is good, doesn't disqualify it from being art. Great art is a personal thing and you know the feeling you get when you see it. it is undeniable.

[KristofDeHulsters]

"The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power." I think the 'art has to be touched by a brush'-guy, should definitely recalibrate his compass on what he considers art because he is really missing out by thinking that way. The last part of the dictionary definition is the most important one in my opinion: "to be appreciated primarily for their beauty and emotional power". If your images are created primarily for the aesthetics, it's considered art. If it's to explain/sell something it is more visualisation.

Anyway my two cents on the matter!