I thought I would post these pie charts my friend Bruce Erikson sent me.

To be honest, as much as this chart is meant to be a cute joke, it is pretty much dead on. There are many folks calling themselves artists who could not draw their way out of a paper bag- many even teach college courses.
Interestingly, most painters that can draw and paint know that all good painting begins in the abstract. I good start on a painting should have accurate, color, value, and approximate placement. What I mean by approximate placement is that the basic composition, shapes of light and dark, should be down. Any strong reading edges are indicated, but much else is very loosely stated. The early stages of a painting are abstract. Let's get professorishy and state the dictionary definition of the work abstract: expressing a quality or characteristic apart from any specific object. So, it has the qualities of, but not the specifics. 
Now the fine art definition: of or pertaining to the formal aspect of art, emphasizing lines, colors, generalized or geometrical forms, etc., especially with reference to their relationship to one another.  Also a good description. It is about the shapes of value and color that make up a picture that will make up a likeness. Shapes and masses that do not add up to a likeness are not something I am interested in, to me it the equivalent to gibberish in writing. Just my humble opinion, which if you read this blog, you know is always right. 


Here is another funny pie chart. 

 If you have told anyone you are an artist, you have likely heard at least a few of these. Of course I would add the phrase "Too bad you ain't going to make no money till you be dead."