Some Thoughts on Artistic Talent

There may be different opinions on this subject so, with an open mind, I welcome your feedback.

With the possible exception of physical attributes, such as height in a basketball player, for example, I believe that talent and creativity are not innate. Achieving excellence in art requires desire, exposure, opportunity, access, time, motivation and inspiration. There is no magical art gene. My assertion is… talent is a learned attribute and that anyone has potential to become “talented”. Great works of art are achieved after many years of learning and from those individuals who forge ahead in spite of of multiple failures.

If we are born with an intact neurological system, we are at tabula rasa or clean slate. On the contrary, the notion that artistic talent and superiority can be inbred has proven false. Genetic selection à la “boys from Brazil” or Crosby and Etheridge etc. has shown the presence of multiple variables that render any genetic component, if any, inconsequential. There are no Da Vinci juniors producing masterpieces. Conversely, the idea of aptitude determination and prenatal career planning based on parental achievement is futile and reprehensible (Gattaca). The term “talented” is a label applied one who has achieved masterful skills only after they have been achieved; not before. It is not used for infants and toddlers who make chocolate smudges on walls. Child prodigies amaze audiences who rarely see the hours of forced daily practice from a very young age.

That being said, any nurture versus nature argument is complex. Behavior for example may be familial and certain behaviors may lend themselves to developing artistic propensity. We know depression and schizophrenia have a biochemical basis and therefore genetically influenced DNA/RNA sequencing. The question of genetic determinants of personality is a difficult one to answer. Perhaps these could be reconciled to fit my exclusion of physical traits, similar to that of height and a basketball player. But unlike height, the biochemistry of behavior and personality as a physical properties, have yet to be determined and measured. In any case, behavioral genetic influence related to artistic ability would be minimal relative to environmental determinants mentioned above.

The statement “I’m not artistically talented” may be used in the same way as “I’m too short to play basketball”. But it could mean “I don’t have the desire or motivation to dedicate hard work and time to achieving artistic skills. It’s just not my thing ”. And there is nothing wrong with that. But it should never mean “I wasn’t born with artistic talent, so I wont try”

In the next blog article, I will attempt to answer the following questions. Is creativity a function of an artist’s work or is it a function of the viewers experience ? Does anyone really have an original thought?