I found this article on Slashdot, about how computer design software has weakened drawing skills in the current crop of art students. It's kind of reassuring to know that I'm not alone in thinking that, and also that there are others with my same problem. When I started pursuing art in a serious manner my approach was from a musical and theatrical/technical background. These parlayed well into computer animation, given my inclination toward using a computer for creative pursuits. Traditional drawing has been frustrating to me for years. In undergrad it was a hurdle; an obstacle between me and what I saw as the land of pixels and honey. I wouldn't say that my work is "uninspired," but I do wonder how much better I could be if I would develop my fundamentals more. I've kept a couple of sketchbooks going for the past couple of years to keep my design skills up, and also because drawing frustrates me, hence I must be doing something right.

Since I arrived at Ball State, I've noticed a glaring lack of realism and figural work from the art department here. Many of the senior exhibitions feature work with human figures, but often the rendering and proportions are sophomoric at best. Not that I can do better, or even as well, but I know what craftsmanship looks like. I've seen great work from my friends in years past, and I am often disappointed with what I see here. Are computer programs to blame, then? Many traditional artists I've known have written digital media off as "cheating," as a quick and dirty way to achieve eye-candy. As ready as I am to argue for the virtue of digital art, I also recognize that most of it is cheap and forgettable. I cringe every time I see a lens flare effect in a professionally produced comic book, but I am enamored with Ben Templesmith's purely digital art in Fell.

So in defense of digital art, here are the artists that I think give legitimacy to the medium as an art form:

Alessandro Bavari: A fantastic Italian artist, and the nicest guy ever I met in Italy.

Dave Devries: He came to Ball State last year and gave a demo on digital painting. I'm still finding new uses for the techniques he imparted to us.

Ben Templesmith: The digital artist of the comic Fell. His drawings are surreal, but each panel pops in a way that few digital artists are capable of.

Tim Bradstreet: He mixes photography, digital, and traditional skill to create some of my favorite contemporary illustration work.

Conspicuously absent (to me at least) is the webcomic Penny Arcade. They're at the top of my list of great web cartoonists, but their art is more "form follows function," rather than producing individual independent works.