Artistic Talent: Is It Nature Or Nurture?

You’ve probably heard it a thousand times: “So-and-so was just born with artistic talent” or the contradiction, “it’s not about talent, it’s about practice!” Even in professional situations, there could be one art teacher who’s convinced that natural-born artistic talent is a myth, while another is confident that a particular student has always had a natural talent.

What’s the truth then? Are we all doomed to a reality where only the naturally talented can achieve artistic success, or could your best friend who’s only ever drawn stick figures practice enough to be on par with Picasso?

Well, in reality, a person’s relative artistic skill and success are much more complicated than a simple “nature vs. nurture” argument. Anything from age, personal knowledge, socio-economic background, type of art, and practice, could affect someone’s ability to create art.

And, given that everyone has unique individual experiences and brain development, it’s unsurprising that there are this many factors and more that can play into someone’s overall artistic success and skill.

Does that mean talent isn’t important? Not necessarily.

Given that, this article will examine the complexities of artistic skill, success, and talent, as well as explain the important differences between various types of artistic talent.

Is Talent a Myth?

To understand the nature of talent, we need only address the aspects of ourselves we can’t control. For example, a pianist who’s born with exceptionally long fingers will always have an advantage playing diverse scales, just as someone who’s naturally six feet tall will have an advantage shooting hoops in basketball.

Does this mean these people will be expert pianists or basketball players? Of course not. However, they could easily be described as having a natural talent for these hobbies.

Here are a few indicators of natural talent:

• General intelligence (IQ and other brain function)

• Physical attributes (think of the tall basketball player)

• Skill with the absence of experience

In the context of art, talent is often a bit more difficult to define, partially because art can be a rather abstract concept. After all, who’s to say whether a professional impressionist painter is more talented than a professional photorealistic painter?

In general, though, there are a few ways to notice and describe artistic talent. For example, when a young child is adept at analyzing shadows, or understanding perspective, these natural skills can aid in thoughtful, accurate paintings.

Additionally, many famous artists, such as Mozart or Salvador Dalí, showed exceptional interest and knowledge of their art as early as four years old. Typically, age can be a huge indicator of talent, as without the explanation of natural ability, how do you justify Mozart’s creation of Minuet and Trio in G major at age five?

Defining Talent: Artistic Ability vs. Creative Ability

Given that “art” is a massive concept covering a wide variety of fields, it’s worth noting that there are different types of artistic talent. After all, you can’t accurately compare the talent of a concept artist to that of the person who came up with the lore for their designs.

These two different talents outline two fundamental types of artistic talent. Those being:

• Artistic ability. Skills are defined by physical talent. For example, artistic ability can be seen in painters, sculptors, and composers. All of these people can create physical pieces of art.

• Creative ability. More abstract than the former, these are skills defined by someone’s ability to use their imagination to create and solve. For instance, the person who conceptualizes the lore for a videogame is using their imagination to create something fantastical.

Truth be told, everyone can be creative all the time, especially when solving problems. Think of a time you were cooking a recipe and replaced an ingredient you didn’t have with a substitute you did have. Whether or not the meal turned out delicious, you used your creative ability to solve the problem.

On a larger scale, from artists to mathematicians, professionals have to utilize their creative ability every day. Creative ability is not limited to artists, and neither more nor less important than innate artistic ability.

Think of it this way; let’s say you hired a painter to paint the inside of your house. You said you wanted the house to be light green, but the painter accidentally bought a hue that was too dark for your tastes. Instead of simply wasting the darker paint, the painter uses a can of white paint he already had to achieve the color you desired. Now he has even more paint to utilize.

In this scenario, the painter’s creative skill as a problem solver proved to be just as important as his artistic ability as a painter.

Factors of Success: The Limits of Talent

If someone has gone through their entire life being complimented on their drawing skill, you may assume that they could become a successful artist. While this might be true in some cases, the many factors that play into success mean that simply having a talent for something does not equate to success in that field.

For instance, someone with innate skill playing the flute will never become a professional flute player if they don’t practice, don’t like playing, or never actually pick up the instrument.

In many ways, talent only leads to success when complemented by determination and hard work. Only relying on talent without seeking out knowledge and consistently practicing can cause many to fall short of their goals. Ingrained bad habits can become the norm, and even the most talented can begin to stagnate.

Keep in mind that in some cases, lack of success is not always the fault of an individual’s work ethic. For example, a talented painter born into a higher socio-economic background might have an easier time pursuing their hobby or field than a talented painter who won’t initially have access to as many resources.

While this prospect may seem discouraging, it’s important to remember that becoming a successful artist is never impossible. More obstacles may mean harder work, but in the end, you’ll become even more skilled.

When in doubt, a talented artist should never feel discouraged from pursuing their art, especially because in the modern world, taking odd jobs and freelancing online has become easier than ever.

Can Practice Make Perfect?

All of this talk about natural talent is great and all, but what if you wanted to become a painter, but don’t feel like you have a natural-born artistic ability? Is it possible to become a professional through practice alone?

In many cases, yes.

While it may take longer for you to achieve your goals compared to someone with innate talent, when you work hard by consistently practicing and studying, you can develop the noticeable skill.

For instance, even if you didn’t start drawing until you were in high school, you still can pursue a career in art if you practice all the techniques you need to succeed, and have a creative vision for your pieces.

Overall, whether you were born with talent or not, practicing your craft is an extremely important part of what will allow you to become successful in the long run. After all, as talented Salvador Dalí was, he wouldn’t have been nearly as talented if he wasn’t encouraged to paint at a young age and pursue his art.

Final Thoughts

In general, debating the importance of artistic talent in the context of achieving a successful art career is fundamentally missing the point. Achieving a successful art career requires patience, resources, practice, and determination. Often, even these skills can be something you learn along the way.

Regardless of your inherent talent level, you should never feel discouraged from pursuing a hobby or career that interests you. Take the metaphorical bull by its horns, and keep building your skill set and your strengths, even when you get turned down or pushed away.

Inevitably, you can never fail if you refuse to give up.

Author

Jack Flynn

Jack Flynn is a writer for Zippia. In his professional career he’s written over 100 research papers, articles and blog posts. Some of his most popular published works include his writing about economic terms and research into job classifications. Jack received his BS from Hampshire College.