by Lucius Trae

Created on: May 17, 2010   Last Updated: May 18, 2010

I'm choosing a third opinion: artistic skill is both natural and learned. We've all heard about prodigies throughout history. However, our cultural focus is often on individuals outside the arts. Picasso, Mozart and Thomas Chatterton are all cited as examples of artistic prodigies. However, prodigies are only those who develop talents early. It's difficult to argue that many famous artists possessed an immense amount of natural talent.

That being said, the majority of people have artistic potential. This means that a person can continue to increase their abilities when it comes to writing, for instance. At some point, the rate at which they improve will slow. In theory, it may stop at a certain point, but that's never been scientifically verified as occurring in nature. It probably doesn't. This means we can always improve our artistic abilities, but the target for each of us will vary.

In youth, we learn languages and the basic foundations of writing. This likely appears as the most significant development of artistic talent with regards to writing, at least. However, there are probably children that write better than I. Regardless, most writers are above the norm in artistic talent - the really bad writers usually don't write at all. There is probably someone who could write their entire life and never surpass my abilities at this time. It's not arrogance. It's quite sad, in many ways. Similarly, there are probably many people who make my abilities look like the work of children, by comparison.

Some people learn things quickly. This is part one form of being a natural artist. The natural artist will see good writing and learn important concepts faster than their peers. Given the same education, they will rapidly surpass others. The still required to put in efforts to develop their skills, but sometimes they don't require much effort. There are people who write quality work at a fast pace. Many of them can write superb work if they take longer - some produce the same quality regardless of time spent. They aren't the most common of writers, however.

The point is that many brilliant artists did have things easier than the rest of us. However, they usually took advantage of their gifts. They knew they had a gift for the art of writing, painting, and/or music. They were even more motivated to improve themselves, many of them working days and nights with little sleep, reading libraries, and enduring poverty to improve their skills. Artists are often the most dedicated people you'll find in any profession.

The reality is that some people aren't going to get far with their writing. We can all make judgments about one another in that respect. However, I think it's best to assume you have no limitations as criticism is in unlimited supply throughout life. Come back to reality if you are starving and avoiding responsibilities, perhaps. That being said, there are brilliant success stories involving talented people sacrificing everything to finally succeed in their goal. It's up to the individual to gauge the odds, risks, and how they should proceed with their writing career.

So artistic talent is both natural and learned, but things begin with nature. The body gives us the ability to read, the ability to process, and the ability to improve over time. The rest involves self-discipline and the pursuit of our goals. Education has a profound impact on the quality of one's writing. Reviewing past writing can often provide verification in this regard. So although artistic skill is primarily natural, don't give up. Embrace your abilities and celebrate your day to day improvements.

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