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Talent?

A friend stopped by while I was working on the mural. He said, “There is definitely some talent going into this project.” Not having the grace to accept a compliment, I immediately responded with, “Not really. It is mostly hard work, desire and determination.” We had other business to conduct, so it didn’t develop into a discussion. However, I pondered this for awhile, wondering if I am talented, or if I am just determined. (Dad used to call me “bull-headed”. Not sure if he was praising, warning or reprimanding. . .)                               It has been observed that an innately gifted athlete who does not train very hard can be beat by a less gifted athlete who works very hard at his skills. Seems the same can be said for almost any area of  accomplishment. There were people I knew in high school who were very gifted in the area of art – their portraits were recognizable, their perspectives were always accurate, their lines just seemed to flow and they never seemed to have a shortage of ideas. How many of them are artists? I can only think of one, Kenny Cardoza. He was the best on-site sketcher I ever witnessed as a teenager. Despite his inherent gift as an artist, he works as a respiratory therapist in addition to painting murals. Here is a link to see the one he painted for Exeter:  http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM34QJ                                                When I teach people how to draw, I always preface their first lesson with “Drawing is a skill, not a talent”. Think about it like typing or “keyboarding, if you are under age 25. Everybody can learn to type. Those who hit 90 wpm are the talented ones. Those who only hit 30 wpm are still typing, aren’t they? Drawing and painting are similar. And if a 30 wpm typist practices constantly, he might one day outdo the 90 wpm guy. I was one of those, but I got fired from a job for too many mistakes. (It was a  stupid temporary job, nothing important. No, it did not scar me.) The point is, I knew I could fly over the keyboard and not need to focus, so I didn’t bother to focus. Besides, it was boring. . . yawn.                                                In art, I always knew I loved it, but I was never the best. My work got criticized, sometimes harshly (no, that did not scar me either!), sometimes in a helpful manner. I could see when things were wrong but didn’t know how to fix them. Mostly, I wanted to get better! The point is, I have worked very hard, seen much improvement and am now earning my living this way. There might be some talent involved, but I believe more of my success is due to determination, hard work, a willingness to learn and a refusal to give up.

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Favorite Parking Place, colored pencil, framed 14 x 18, $299 

3 Comments

  1. I love the lighting in this picture!

  2. Amen!, Diana! It made me smile that you used Mark Spitz as your example instead of the current guy, whose name I cannot recall at the moment. 😎

  3. This is right on, Jana. Talent is usually not enough. There has to be the hard work to develop and practice it. That’s the skill part. Skills can be learned by many folks.

    Most of us have learned to swim. However, few of us could come anywhere near Mark Spitz’ record times even if we worked as hard as he did. Like many world class athletes, he had not only the determination and daily devotion to practice, but he had God-given physical gifts.

    To be faithful with what God has given each of us, whether it is art talent or taking care of our families is a life well-lived.

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