The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1897-10-23
TO ART BEGINNERS.
HOW TO BECOME SUCCESSFUL. H.
Illustrators.

q Large Cities-How to Begin-The In
dispensable Talent = sketching Frou
Nature aud Copying.
When speak of becoming an artist
] use the word as referring 10 work witt
the pencil and brush, especially with
view of newspaper and book illustra
ton. This is quite remunerative wheI
well and artistically done Twenty-fiv,
dollars a week is low figure, Will,
five times that amount is often earned
by competent artists. a $50 or $40
drawing can be readily made in ths
course of one or two days, and com
petent artist finds little trouble in earn
ing $50 or $50 a week.
There are instances in which an artist
receives $40, 600 year for his exclusive
services. 1t is becoming quite common
for the daily papers TO employ artists 70
illustrate the articles in their issues.
These of necessity are drawn hurriedly,
sometimes in the evening, after which
they are ''processed' in time TO be used
In the next mornings paper Some of
these artists are paid according TO the
amount of work they do, corresponding
TO what are known as space writers"
ON the papers They earn all the way
from $l5 10 $50 a week. An artist
whose political cartoon attracted the
favorable notice of leading New York
paper receives $50 week for his work
without regard to the specific number of
drawings furnished.
When an artist has established a rep
utation for excellence in a particular
branch, such as landscape, figure, ma
rlne or humorous work, he finds little
idle time on his hands. A certain pub
Usher some time ago decided to have
four first class drawings made for a
work which be was preparing to bring
out He wished each done by the re-
spective artist most noted for his excel
lence in that line. He made application
TO is different ones, Offering to nav
their own prices. He was able to secure
only one of the artists, because their
time was mortgaged for months in adj
vance. When it is stated that the draw.
ing which he required would have been
paid for at the rate of 500 apiece and
could have been finished each in cou-
pie of days, it will be understood that
these artists had made no mistake in
choosing their profession.
Let it be remembered too. that in
this profession woman stands on pre-
cisely the same ground as man. Pub
fishers pay for what they want and get,
with no regard TO the sex of the one
furnishing it. But would be artists
must be warned against two fatal errors.
Unless you possess natural artistic talent
you will never be more than a plodder |
in the profession. The cities are full of !
mediocre craftsmen, who solicit orders |
and will turn out tolerably fair work, |
Tor which they earn about the same |
wages as the clerks in grocery stores. |
They have not the time to study and |
advance in their profession, even if they /
had the ability, for it is question of !
bread and butter with them. They plod !
and toll and grind year after year, end
ing where they began-at the foot of
the ladder
The first mistake, therefore, lies in
taking up the profession of an artist
without possessing aptitude in that di-
rection.
Nearly every boy and girl is fond of
pictures but not many possess the gen.
uine artistic ability. 1t is no proof that
you are gifted in chat line if you can
copy picture from a book. You have
seen many father and mother display
the work Of one of their children with
pride and the confident belief that the
boy or girl is intended by nature to be-
come one of the great artists of the
country. The specimen is probably the
penciled copying of some paper or book
1t looks quite well when
it possesses no real merit at ALL Any
boy or girl can, by taking sufficient
pains, make presentable copy of some
other artists work and yet be totally
lacking in artistic talent.
That boy or girl who possesses the
making of an artist will copy nature
and not the productions of others. One of
the most successful of living artists told
me that his earliest recollection was
that of sitting on the ground with a
big pencil and piece of paper trying to
make a picture of a COW. He didn't
seek to take it from a book or paper,
but it was the animal which his mother
was milking.
Wherever he saw a creature and
could gain the chance he tried to make
q picture of it. Horses, COWS, chickens,
dogs, cats, sheep, his brothers, sisters,
parents and playmates, all came under
his eager pencil. The pictures were
laughably crude, and some of them bore
little resemblance to the originals, but
he began at the right point, nature. and
when he was IL years old was earning
\ good salary on New York paper.
So if you feel like drawing pictures
sketch nature. Make the best represen-
tation you can of the home in which
you live, Of some of the simplest arti-
lies Of furniture, of the animals around
you. Try to put the features of your ia
her or mother on paper. When you
nave done the best you can, examine
your work carefully and try to see its
lofacte fha yrofla ~ x-o,,r 1ayaI |