The Versatile Master Artist

”Dwarf?”

The middle-aged man’s eyes lit up. Reporters loved such aggressive vocabulary.

”In my view, art is solemn and soulful. Forcing Detective Cat, a virtual painter, into the category of an illustrator is, in my opinion, a desecration.”

”Isn’t she considered an illustrator?”

Van Doorn sneered, ”Illustrator, really? As far as I know, besides some amateur anime images online, she hasn’t even created one serious, proper illustration. For someone like that to discuss serious art with Curator Tangkis is like a monkey discussing relativity with Einstein. I’m ready to laugh out loud.”

The poster announcement of the podcast ”Mr. Tree Sloth’s Art Critique” had some enthusiastic fans tagging Van Doorn on Twitter as soon as it was released.

Van Doorn was aware of this but didn’t pay any attention.

If it weren’t for the middle-aged journalist mentioning it at this moment, he would almost have forgotten it.

After all,

Given Van Doorn’s current status, he never needed to consider a virtual illustrator as any kind of opponent.

Ignoring them is the highest form of disdain.

If we were to visualize the number of an illustrator’s followers and global influence as a bar chart, the bar representing Van Doorn would tower like Mount Everest.

And Detective Cat’s follower count would be merely a thin layer of snow on Everest.

Even calling the dwarf in front of the giant seems to flatter the other side.

Once the video hype fades away, most of this insignificant layer of snow will gradually be melted away by time.

”Oh, but Detective Cat could certainly tell Curator Tangkis how she paints bikini-clad anime heroines. That’s what virtual painters are good at, isn’t it? As for me, out of respect and moral appreciation for women, I would never allow myself to create such low-brow works.”

Van Doorn said scornfully.

He was referring to a recently prominent issue of political correctness in the European and American art circles.

American comics usually feature female protagonists with a lot of sexually suggestive elements.

For instance, Catwoman uniforms, bikini armor...

Wonder Woman is even more direct. The comic artist Oliver drew inspiration from his favorite personal pastime—threesomes and SM themed costumes—to design Wonder Woman’s battle attire, a classic example of obviousness.

Western cartoonists have been heavily criticized by political correctness over the past few years.

Van Doorn acknowledged that Detective Cat’s only proficient area might be anime sketches, and she does have some unique insights in that field.

At such a time,

Attacking her understanding of the art of sketching wouldn’t be very effective.

Van Doorn cleverly chose to stand on the moral high ground, exploiting the social negative stereotype label of ”virtual painter.”

He hoped to convey to the public opinion that—even though Detective Cat might understand sketching, she is merely a vulgar, lower-class ”virtual painter.”

The root of it all,

Is that in the art appreciation hierarchy, colored pencil drawing is seen as very low-tier.

Compared to oil painting, gouache, and watercolor.

It is not as professional, nor as serious.

Because of its simplicity and low barrier to entry, it lacks ”artisticness.”

If Detective Cat were an oil painter or watercolorist, even using the same subjects,

As long as there was enough artistic depth, no such risk would arise.

For instance, Van Doorn’s paintings of nude women, or Tang Bohu’s erotic paintings.

Masterpieces created for the elite by great painters, and anime figures made for commoners by poor artists—are they one and the same?

The former embodies the aesthetic beauty of art’s sensuality, the latter mere vulgarity and obscenity.

Double standards in society are everywhere.

”I do understand, actually...”

Van Doorn sighed dramatically, then grinned maliciously.

”After all, after Sir Brown, president of ’Oil Painting’, swiftly corrected the publishing mistake and kicked Detective Cat out, she probably can only paint such pictures for the rest of her life. If she’s lucky, she might still earn tens of thousands of dollars a year from it, though I think these paintings are worthless. But not everyone has the sophistication to grasp serious fine art.”

He shrugged.

The serious art circle places a heavy emphasis on connections.

It fears upsetting the Grand Gallery as well as offending great painters.

”A monkey that only knows how to play basic scales.”

This figurative brand is what Van Doorn etched upon Detective Cat.

Sometimes, if someone in power wants to ruin you,

All it takes is a single offhand remark.

If we turn back a few hundred years, in Florence, in Paris, in London... no matter how well you paint, if you offend seniors of the Venice School or celebrities in the Academic School, or the Pope’s court portraitists,

All it took was for them to say they disliked you, and you would become a pariah.

A painter dismissed by a great artist would immediately be rejected by art supply merchants, art dealers, and the entire city’s residents.

No nobleman would sponsor you, and no one would want to buy your painting.

Why is founding one’s own art school a painter’s highest achievement?

Because before modern times, the birth of a new art school often symbolized a revolution and uprising against the previously dominating art schools in the art market.

It was a declaration of war by a painter or a group of painters against the art bigwigs.

An unrelenting struggle.

The Romantic School challenges the Academic School, only to be opposed by the Realist School. The rebellion by one of the greatest painters in Russian history, Repin, against the St. Petersburg Royal Academy of Arts... all were similar cases.