Life Is

Fine Artist or Graphic Designer

I was having a conversation the other day with a dear friend of mine on the topic of art. This came up because i have been having a debate with my Communications Design professor on whether or not Graphic Designing can be considered as Fine Art. Her argument is that they are two different worlds. Where Fine Art evokes emotions and asks questions, Graphic Design answers the questions, a problem solver. Of course i beg to differ. Is it because its the rebellious Aquarius in me? Maybe so, but, I think that she neglected to view the Graphic Designer as an Artist. Sure, when in a situation where there is a Graphic Designer Client relationship, problem solving is a factor in which the designer either redesigns or creates a brand/image for the client. But doesn't the artist(so called Fine Artist) do the same thing? Sure most of the time there isn't a Client Artist relationship but there is an Artist/Viewer relationship in which the artist is creating an image or re-visiting art work for their viewers. I tend to think the thought process in regards to being an artist is basically the same thing. Lets go back to prehistoric cave drawings for instance. I would think that the people of that time created this form of art to portray their everyday lives, their culture and hunting and from that sparked a progression of art, in which they became more aware of the idea of representation through colors and form. So began art that represented humanity towards a more realistic as well as abstracted form. From cave drawings, to sculptures, to fresco's, architectures, to paintings, to photography...to graphic designing. With each stage, there arose the question "how do i use color and form in a different light to represent culture or humanity in a different perspective?". There was a question and answer dialogue in that thought. which is why there is a progression in Art. It didn't stay with wall drawings because every artist answered the question of creating a different form of representation. So does the Graphic Designer. How do i represent this company or my client in a different light? .... ahh let me try this visual, or this typeface, or this vector, or these pantone colors, or add a photo visual..." What happens when you remove the client designer relationship. Doesn't that leave the designer at his craft in his purest form...an Artist. An artist that looks at space, color, form, and lines in a different perspective than others. A graphic designer in my eyes can walk hand in hand with a so called "Fine Artist". They just use different mediums. And as far as a client artist relationship, i think in todays market where the true Artist no longer exist, where art has become a commodity for Museums and Curators and viewers to enjoy, i think the Artist themselves are problem solvers. Finding a different form of representation so they then can be recognized.

My Friend said he is done with Art... he doesn't find it to be pleasing anymore. And he is a brilliant artist. Reason being is that art for art sake does not exist anymore. What we have left to deal with in this post modern era are the powers that be to tell us what art is. This Elite bullshit is what makes an artist an intellectual Thinker for humanity and a Graphic Designer just a problem solver. When you categorize a visual artist, you lessen his essence as an Artist. Fine Artists are designers of Human representation. Designers are Artists of the world we live in. Is there really a difference at the core of it all????