5 September 2014

On Primitive Art

Here's an interesting notion on Primitive art by the celebrated painter Barbara von Enger: There is no such thing as "Primitive art" - as primitive implies a lack of skill, talent, and formal training according to European standards. Going further, primitive is quite a negative word in my school books.

We were all taught to walk - by our mothers - and we all walk naturally with ease and grace without even thinking of our first formal training. In truth, we do not recall our first/formal lesson in learning to walk or learning to chew as babies.

The same method applies in Art. We cannot/paint or draw without some form of formal training, even the so called "Primitives" were formally trained by their ancestors. So why should one exclude this form of training?

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