Art is Quite Useless - | - Art Thoughts

These are reflections I’ve been having recently amidst the current situation. Made me question the meaning of art… What’s the point of art ? What is it all worth, compared to the work of a doctor, a nurse, or even a cashier, a farmer or a bus driver ? These people are essential cogs in our society, they save lives and run the economy. But what good is an artist and what’s the point of art ? How is it helping anyone ? Is it useful in any way or completely useless. It reminded me of what Oscar Wilde wrote in The Picture of Dorian Gray: We can forgive a man for making a useful thing as long as he does not admire it. The only excuse for making a useless thing is that one admires it intensely. All art is quite useless.” (Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray) This quote have been really stuck in my head for a long time, and I’ve always felt there was something true in it… but I never really had time to develop and understand it better. This video is my attempt at doing just that. Like and subscribe ! *** ➡ Thank you for supporting me on Patreon!   / florentfarges   ➡ LEARN OIL PAINTING : https://www.florentfarges.com/education Social media : Facebook :   / florentfargesarts   Instagram :   / florentfarges.arts   Support me on PATREON and access real-time tutorials with commentary (and more) :   / florentfarges   If you want to connect with me, the best option is to use the contact form on my website. Website : https://www.florentfarges.com Write me : https://www.florentfarges.com/contact *** About me (bio) : I am an artist living and working in France. I learned the techniques of the Atelier of the Nineteenth century and now I try to share some of my knowledge with the rest of the world, because I think that beauty still has an important role to play in artistic creation. I do mostly drawing and oil painting, and my goal is always to provide techniques and explanations that can be useful to anyone, from beginners to more advanced artists. The material I use most of the time (not necessarily in this video) : Drawing Equipement ✓ Kneaded eraser ✓ Plumb line ✓ Small mirror ✓ An old synthetic brush ✓ Masking tape ✓ Cutter ✓ Sandpaper or sanding block ✓ Mahlstick or Hand rest (DIY) ✓ Level ruler Graphite ✓ Pencils 2H, HB and 2B Charcoal ✓ If available: Nitram charcoals (H, HB and B) !!! Or, if not:: ✓ Square Venetian charcoals Lefranc and Bourgeois ✓ Natural charcoal box (check that the heart of the stick is not spongy and hollow) Black and white chalk ✓ Sketch pencil Conté white ✓ Square Conté noir : HB and 2B ✓ Chalk or pencil holder ✓ Pencil sketch Conté Pierre noire : H and HB Sanguine ✓ Sketch pencil Conté : Blood and blood Medici ✓ Crayon Polychromos Faber-Castel : sanguine ✓ Sketch pencil Conté white Oil painting Palette (Extra-fine paint, recommended brands according to availability: Lefranc Bourgeois, Winsor and Newton, Royal Talens Rembrandt, Sennelier) ✓ Titanium white PW6 ✓ Yellow ochre PY42 ✓ Burnt Sienna PR101 or PBr7 ✓ Venetian red or English red PR101 ✓ Permanent Alizarin crimson (Attention: do not use the traditional pigment, which is not very light-fast) PV19 or PR177 ✓ Cobalt teal blue PG50 ✓ French ultramarine blue PB29 ✓ Raw umber PBr7 ✓ Burnt umber PBr7 ✓ Ivory Black PBk9 Brushes ✓ About ten filbert hog bristle brushes sizes n° 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 ✓ Some flat brushes ✓ Round sable brush or round Kolinsky sable n°10 (from the size of the nail (about one inch) or synthetic imitation Medium ✓ Linseed stand oil ✓ Odourless mineral spirits ✓ Safflower oil Surface ✓ Linen canvas, fine grain universal coating ✓ Canson oil-acrylic oil paper Figueras Others ✓ Palette ✓ Foam and spalter brushes ✓ Palette knife in the shape of a water drop ✓ A few small pots, containers, jars... ✓ Paper towels *** Thanks for watching !