Artist Spotlight - Jon Foster

So I thought it was time for another artist spotlight, and this time I chose someone who's making a splash now.

Jon Foster.

It's surprisingly hard to find personal information on a guy whose still kicking (just kidding, it's not surprising at all, and I'm sure I could've found more if I actually dug around).  So here's just some basics:

He graduated from Rhode Island School of Design in 1989 with a BFA.

He still lives in Rhode Island.

He is mainly an oil painter and he does a lot of different commission work:  book covers, comics, concept art, ect.

He has won multiple awards and is very awesome and famous.

Why do I look up to his art?  Well, I mean, just look at it!  Even if you aren't a fantastical or sensationalist artist you are still looking at his craft in awe (I know you are, so don't deny it).

I might hate oils with a fiery passion, but I sure appreciate them like nobody's business.  I love his style and color palette (which is really just an aspect of his style).  His figures are so perfect anatomically and they don't feel fake (well, they're a bit stylized, not exactly Donato level).  His compositions are amazing, perfectly planned out and always adding a little something more to the paintings.

Alphonse Mucha is more of a fine art influence on me and Jon Foster is my illustration dream.

"We were kids without fathers . . . so we found our fathers on wax and on the streets and in history.  We got to pick and choose the ancestors who would inspire the world we were going to make for ourselves." (Austin Kleon quoting Jay-Z)

Check out Jon's website here:  http://www.jonfoster.com/

Fin

If there is any topic you wish me to discuss, or any questions that you would like answers to please respond in the comments and I will blog about them!

Is it Worth it?

Surprisingly in the six years that I've been seriously pursuing art this question has not come up that often for me.

I was trudging back to my car late one night after my last class for the day had ended.  I was thinking of a meal that I was finally gonna eat, bills that had to be paid, and the low income that I receive.  Many of my friends back when I was in High School had already finished their degree and were working their careers and getting way more pay than I have ever gotten.

Learning art has taken a long time and I don't believe I will be at a truly professional level for a couple more years to come.  The majority of my attention has to be learning and mastering art or else I simply won't be able to compete.  Earning money, social get-togethers, and outings are put on the back burner in order for that mastery to come to fruition.

I thought of all that, walking the mile it takes me to get to my car.

Is the art worth the sacrifice?

I could get some easy training and be working right away and earning more money than I ever have at this point.

It didn't take me long to answer my own question:  Of course it's worth it.

There is a lot of sacrifice involved in a career in the arts.  I don't think a lot of beginning artists realize that and it's good to question yourself and the path you've decided on.  If you do not have the passion for what you're doing you're going to be absolutely miserable.

I've heard a lot of my teachers talk on the subject and the one thing I've concluded from it all is that a lot of it is going to suck and most of the time you'll never be satisfied with your level of work, but you keep doing it and keep getting back up because it is your passion.

So is it worth it?

That's entirely up to you.

For me, I've kept on trudging through these years focused solely on my goal to graduate.  I pushed aside any doubt that a career in the arts wouldn't work out and stubbornly kept at it.  I have found that the longer I keep at it, the more passionate I become for it.

So yes, it is worth it.

Found this on the wall outside my classrooms. Appropriate.

Fin

If there is any topic you wish me to discuss, or any questions that you would like answers to please respond in the comments and I will blog about them!