Exploring Artistic Style And Voice
I posted a poll on Twitter asking,”ever felt unsure about your artistic style?” An account with such low engagement these days received 9 votes. The topic must have been provocative. I remembered that I had also written a quick thread on sticking to one artistic style. I never posted it.
One has to make clear distinctions between artistic voice and artistic styles.
Metaphysically speaking, artists stand between the unknown and the known. They listen to the unknown and communicate that in a way that is, known. The artist uses their medium, and their message to provoke thought, evoke emotions, and action. The artist becomes a vessel through which the unknown is transformed into known, digestible, messages.
Artistic style is the way in which the artist passes on these messages. It is the medium, instrument, and genre of art they choose to use.
- Should this be a song, a piece of art, photography, or performance art?
- Should I use digital or analog music instruments to produce the song?
- Should I paint this, photograph it, or use AI?
Artistic style answers the question,”How do I want to communicate?”
Metaphysically standing between the known and unknown, the artist receives a multitude of messages around a multitude of topics. Artistic voice is a distillation of what the artist chooses to speak about.
Artistic voice answers the question “What do I want to talk about?”
This choice of style and voice does not always happen overnight. Nor should it imply narrowing down to one style and one voice. The artist’s horizons expand, their growth is inevitable. Their choice of style or voice can change.
Even as it changes, there is a relationship their recent work has with their previous work. Even with a different style, or a different voice, one can tell the work under discussion belongs to the artist.
This relationship exhibits mastery. Mastery is when the artist’s work becomes an extension of themselves, transcending style or voice.
The first day of an art practice is vastly different from day 300. Through time, the artist’s practice rewards them with a well-articulated voice and a style no one can replicate.
The specificity, while largely considered a gift, can be limiting. Finding a specific style and voice can pigeon-hole the artist, caging them away from (re)discovering new forms of art. Sticking to one artistic style or voice depends on what the artist prioritizes and on the maturity of their practice.
It is up to the artist to find new forms of expression, or new messages to express. As audiences, consumers and collectors of art, we are here to write about them.