CRITICAL STUDIES - amateur vs professionalism

 Defining what makes an artwork professional over amateur is a difficult question because it is not necessarily made to fulfil a set of customer expectations like a commercial product or service is. I think a good way to start identifying an amateurish piece is by looking at the artists intentions - did they want the piece to look this way as a creative choice or is it down to lack of skill? The first artist I want to look at is Daniel Johnston who's work is considered to be somewhere between outsider and pop.

Walk in the Truth, Daniel Johnston

I like this drawing because it feels very honest, like a visualisation of Johnston's thoughts with imaginary characters that those voices are assigned to. The suicidal implications of the words are reduced to something insignificant by the silliness of the cartoon creatures and I think it's a jarring contrast of ideas. The slightly humanoid cartoon animals allude to psychedelia which was a popular theme in music during his youth, and he is said to have sourced inspiration from 'I am the Walrus' by the Beatles and the cover of this songs album also features uncanny animal costumes. Amateurism might be associated with Johnston's works because of the style and use of materials. Brightly coloured felt tip pens barely staying in the lines recall reckless classroom artworks while the characters have a strong sense of childlike imagination that is goofy and crude. But I think what distinguishes this from an actual kids drawing is that there is some real thought and emotion embedded in it with symbolism like the all-seeing bats and the inner monologue represented by the animals and their speech bubbles, it is like a visual documentary of Johnston's struggles with mental illness and there is a clever juxtaposition of friendliness and something sinister.

Terracotta figure by Shinichi Sewada

Shinichi Sewada is considered an outsider artist due to not having any formal art education, resulting in some really authentic and intuitive 3D artworks. This frog-like figure has a very primal feel with the earthy colour of the materials and loose approximation of the animal shape, which historically is how people had to draw since they could not capture a photo and would work from memory after catching a mere glimpse of the creature. I really like the spiky surface of it because it creates a hostility despite being quite an endearing thing, it makes the piece more of a sensory experience to look at as we imagine how all the points and grooves feel to the touch. I think this is an interesting piece to think about in terms of amateurism and professionalism because you could say the artist is technically not trained and therefore an amateur, but the work says otherwise and is on display in a gallery setting looking like a beautiful ancient artefact. I think the art feels very pure because he has not been informed by an art institution or other peoples work as much as a trained artist might and I'd really like to work in this kind of honest way without limitations based on what we are told is right or wrong by the art world.