@mahlimae’s Sculptures Are Made from Earth, but Otherworldly
For more photos of Nicole’s sculptures, follow @mahlimae on Instagram.
Stones, clay, thistles, feathers, bones and moss — these are the natural elements Nicole Watt (@mahlimae) finds on her property to create her 4-inch-high (10 centimeter) sculptures. But they add up to something that feels very otherworldly — and that’s the intention. “I’ve had these little creatures in my head since I was a child,” says Nicole. “Even though I’m a mixed-media artist, I’m inspired more by words than visuals — folklore, myth, ritual. They stir something in me.” Eight years ago, Nicole moved from mainland Australia to remote Tasmania, a wild environment where her art has flourished. “In the city, my connection to nature languished. I grieved for that. When we found this piece of land it brought my creativity back to me. Now I live in the same world — the trees, the mist — that I picture [my sculptures] living in.” And that is the urgency behind these hollowed-eyed mystical figurines. “I see people moving away from their innate sense of connection to the earth,” says Nicole. “We’re forgetting something as people — parts of our history and humanity. For me, they’re a reflection of where we’re at right now. That’s why they’re so melancholy.”
Why do artists refuse to use references why why why.
It’s not a contest to see who can get by without them. It’s not cheating to look at a thing in order to know what the thing looks like.
You don’t get stronger or better by pretending. Nobody is impressed by the awkward whatever-it-is you just drew. Use references.
I don’t think a lot of people know that it’s not cheating. I recall seeing so many piece of art called out because they referenced a pose, someone recognized it, and then proceeded to shame them for it. There’s this belief, both by creators and the audience, that artists should just be able to translate the ideas from their head to paper, and if they don’t, it’s plagiarism, or not true originality (spoiler alert: there’s no such thing).
I myself didn’t start using references until very recently, because even I was under the impression that it was frowned upon. And that belief has seriously crippled and stalled my ability to improve as an artist.
As a restarting artist, I can confirm. I just never knew. I thought you were just supposed to know how to draw the body correctly and if you didn’t you had no talent.
(( I am going to say this again, loud and clear for everyone:
USING REFERENCES FOR ART IS NOT ‘CHEATING’!!!
If you can draw/paint without references, great! But if you need to use them, and feel that your art can be bettered by using references, please, use them! This is one of the biggest tips I can give to artists, is USE REFERENCES!
Anyone who would dare to attack someone for using references after ‘recognizing a pose’ is a dipshit, who doesn’t know a thing about art.
Do you know who else used references for their art?
Norman Rockwell
Alphonse Mucha
Gustav Klimt
Toulouse Lautrec
Vincent Van Gogh
Paul Gauguin
Edgar Degas
Gil Elvgren
Frida Kahlo
Pablo Picasso
Disney Studios
And thousands of others! So, artists! Go forth, and use references!!! ))
What do you think artists do when they ask someone to stand infron of them for 6 hours and then they draw this person. Do they cheat? Or when they place a still life and then paint it, cheating again? LOL
Soooo. I made this post originally on my personal blog (I’m eliciaforever), and it was nothing more than a little rant about a specific incident that I deleted after five minutes. But before I could delete it, it took the hell off on me, and now it has all these notes. And LOTS OF AMAZING INPUT.
And I just wanted to add in response to the above tags in particular, that shaming people for using references is something that happens to so many of us SO OFTEN. It doesn’t matter how skilled you are. People think art is supposed to be magical or whatever, and anything else is a crime. The reality of course is that art is a thousand times more deliberate than a lot of people think it is.
So yeah. Good info to pass along. Use references, kids. <3
Reblogging because I think it’s important especially for young artists to gain the confidence to use references.
Casual reminder: Donald Trump does not have a rags-to-riches story. That $1M loan equals $5.3M today adjusted for inflation. Oh and his business acumen? Check the markets over the years, that myth has been popped too.
Whenever I draw my brothers… I tend to draw them as if they were still 8 - 10 years old. In fact, They just turned 20. TODAY! It all seemed to happen so quickly. So today, my brothers, I draw you as the men you are. You earned it.
Hi, I'm Tim Lai! I'm a cartoonist living in Ontario, Canada. I like drawing cute and colourful things. This blog is a hub where you can find all of my Tumblr, DeviantArt, Flickr, Blogspot, and other posts in one place.
About My Work
I write and draw Lemon Inc., a comic about a seven-year-old who wants to be a business tycoon when he grows up. Until then, he runs a lemonade stand. You can read it at www.lemon-inc.com.
I have done some professional web and graphic design work, including designing the website for the webcomic, Just Joel. I'm also a member of the webcomic collective, Ink Bomb Comics.
October 31, 2015 20:40
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