Imitation Is Still The Sincerest Form Of Flattery

from the artists-who-get-it dept

Full-time portrait artist Gwenn Seemel recently posted a brief video about how she feels when someone copies her work. To her, being copied means you have created something important and meaningful, and she notes that the most copied works of all time are also the most seminal cultural icons we have:

I do feel there are a couple of points that she could have made better. Firstly, she doesn't fully acknowledge the value of transformative works, although from her slideshow of examples it is apparent that she understands that value. Secondly, when she talks about her true scarce value—being the only genuine source of her artwork, which is an important thing for artists to recognize—I wish she had also noted that, just like every other artist in history, her work also draws on what came before it. Despite these small quibbles, it is a succinct and sincere statement from a real artist about why being copied is good, and why freaking out about it means taking an incredibly pessimistic view of things.

Filed Under: art, copying, creativity, gwenn seemel