Passion, Patience, Inspiration, and Uniqueness: What makes an Artist

To be an artist is to think about the world uniquely. Artists spend more time thinking and
feeling about the subject they encounter or even imagine. Visuals, music, people, and emotions
inspire us, and we want to project our thoughts back out into the world in a tangible form, in a
way that gives a clear image to our thoughts so that others can experience the world the way
we do. The ability to convey what you are thinking to someone else is a part of art.

There are many uncertainties in life that not all our decisions will be successful, yet we
need to advance further. Being an artist also requires bravery, as it allows the public to peek
inside our thoughts, whereas most people want to keep that part of themselves hidden. The
situation of Margaret in the film is that she was used and persuaded to twist the truth. "Telling
the truth is more significant than impressing them with what you are not." Margaret was a strong
woman. She cared deeply for her daughter's future, which led to those circumstances (Pond,
2014). It can be related to the things present in our world today. War is still relevant today, where
society uses oppression to create unjust decisions. Like the things happening in Russia and
Ukraine, even civilians' lives are harmed (United Nations, 2022).

Passion is an essential characteristic of being an artist that motivates them to create a

craft that symbolizes their legacy. We believe that being passionate makes an artist because it
serves as the fuel that drives them to pursue doing what they love. Margaret Keane is the main
character in the film "Big Eyes," wherein it shows that she has a lot of passion for making
artwork. A particular scene in the movie that confirmed Margaret's passion makes her an artist
is when she responded to Walter, "Well, I'm just glad they liked it," about letting the client avail
the artwork at a low price. This characteristic made her an artist since she cared about the
essence of art in bringing joy to people. In connection to real life, Vincent van Gogh is an artist
that has an extraordinary passion for painting. In the article of Daly (2017), Vincent van Gogh
produced 2,100 artworks that include 900 paintings despite his difficult circumstances in life.
Vincent van Gogh's passion made him a great artist, and his legacy remains up until now. Thus,
passion plays a vital role in becoming an artist since it will enable them to strive for greatness by
making art part of their lives.

Patience is one of the characteristics of being an artist because it shows how dedicated
you are to your art piece. Patience can also be defined as a type of activity. It's an action that
teaches us how to be more disciplined in our job to progress in the right direction. It's all about
focus and mental toughness. Patience is the virtue that prevents us from giving up. Patience
allows us to move as artists by enabling us to evolve, grow, and mature as individuals. All of this
would be impossible without patience. In a particular scene, they argue about eating at the
restaurant where they had their first date. Margaret told Walter Keane that an artist doesn't
simply announce their masterpiece. Keane rebutted the situation of Michelangelo during his
creation of the Sistine Chapel, where he spent four years painting the said church while
everyone knew about it. In real life, Leonardo da Vinci took 16 years to paint the Mona Lisa
(Brittney, 2022); the lips of the Mona Lisa took 12 years to complete because da Vinci wanted
her lips to be mysterious. (Writer, 2015).

In the film Big Eyes, Margaret Keane is one of the film's main characters. Her artwork
became very famous because of the exaggerated eye drawn in the painting. It was also a
controversial painting because it was unusual for a person to have huge eyes. Her artwork "Big
Eyes" illustrates the children in the orphanage, and she also made the eyes of the person in the
painting big to showcase the emotion within the artwork. Through her artwork, she has shown
that having inspiration makes an artist because motivation helps make your artwork unique. In
connection with real life, Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting, the "Renaissance Man," is one of
the examples that an artist has the inspiration to paint. Brown (2019) stated that he drew that
painting because of the inspiration of the "Last Supper." Through his artwork, many people were
inspired by him to draw stunning illustrations that come from inspiration.

These characteristics that define an artist; passion, patience, and a unique outlook, are
the backbone of art, but the movie emphasizes the individuality of art. As the movie's entire plot
suggests, they are nothing if they're someone else's. Walter Keane chose to take credit for
Margaret's work when in reality, he had no part in it; he didn't know the emotions, the thought,
and the reasoning behind the painting because Keane was no artist, so he suffered the
consequences. Yes, art is an effective medium, and one's art style can inspire another. In the
Philippines, the Spoliarium is one of the most famous paintings. It signifies; the cruelty and
abuse of Spaniards during the colonial period of the Philippines. Such as the characteristics of
Juan Luna and the time (Jesus, 2016). The Spoliarium is an art piece that spawned from the
mind of Juan Luna and his alone.

An artist's inspiration, creation, or even the motif used is unique. People can share it, but
it cannot be reproduced or be claimed by others. For an artist, it is their lifeline; without these,
their art is as good as a blank canvas. Walter Keane asked Margaret to help him defend 'their'
art; what should he say when asked, "What made you do these paintings?" For Margaret, what
inspired her to do those children with eyes way out of proportion. When Walter later assumed
Margaret's art, he incorporated his inspiration in painting the streets of Paris to 'his' Big Eyed
children of war-torn Europe. A photo tells a thousand words. Charles C. Ebbets' "Lunch Atop a
Skyscraper" (1932) can be an excellent example of it. The picture was initially just a publicity
stunt, to put it simply - it was staged (Contrera, 2019), as the Rockefeller Center in New York is
about to finish construction. Still, people took the photo to symbolize hope for a struggling nation
(Ishak, 2020). It became more apparent since the United States at that time was still suffering
from The Great Depression. Every artist is unique. Even when given the same motif, theme,
style, or even something to imitate, they would always end in entirely different finished products
unique to the artist.
References:
Brittney (2022). What Year Did Leonardo Da Vinci Paint The Mona Lisa? Retrieved from

https://artradarjournal.com/2022/03/02/what-year-did-leonardo-da-vinci-paint-the-mona-li

sa/

Brown, F. (2019). 10 most paintings in the world. Retrieved from

https://edition.cnn.com/style/article/most-famous-paintings/index.html

Contrera, J. (2019). One of the most iconic photos of American workers is not what it seems.

Retrieved from

https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/09/01/one-most-iconic-photos-american-w

orkers-is-not-what-it-seems/

Daly, K. (2017). Vincent van Gogh - Passionate Paintings Drawn from Pain. McGaw Graphics.

Retrieved from

https://www.mcgawgraphics.com/blogs/news/vincent-van-gogh-passionate-paintings-dra

wn-from-pain

Ishak, N. (2020). The Story Behind ‘Lunch Atop A Skyscraper,’ The Photo That Inspired Great

Depression-Era America. Retrieved from

https://allthatsinteresting.com/lunch-atop-a-skyscraper

Jesus, J. (2016). Art and the essence of individuality: Nuha Foundation. NUHA Foundation |

Education NGO. Retrieved from

https://nuhafoundation.org/home/blog/bloggingentries/2016/adult/art_and_the_essence_

of_individuality_j_dawal/#.YjDDOOhBwdU

Pond, S. (2014). Amy Adams on the Lesson of ‘Big Eyes': You Don’t Have to Be Loud to be
Strong. Retrieved from
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d-to-be-strong/

United Nations (2022). Alarmed by Targeted Attacks on Civilians Fleeing Violence, Massive
Humanitarian Crisis in Ukraine, Speakers Briefing Security Council Reiterate Strong
Calls to End Conflict. Retrieved from https://www.un.org/press/en/2022/sc14823.doc.htm

Writer, S. (2015). How Long Did It Take to Paint the Lips on the “Mona Lisa”? Retrieved from

https://www.reference.com/world-view/long-did-paint-lips-mona-lisa-fbe51201498f5a3