At The Going Down of The Sun

[John Plater]

Hello Derek,
If you make the pieces that you do, what does it matter that your "only problem is that I don't have an artistic bone in my body"  The bones don't matter anyway, it has more to do with the gut, heart, brain and eye. Judging by the comments on this piece, you have created a number of reactions which transcend the aesthetic and functional elements of the piece. In my opinion that makes it art.
ATB John

[Derek]

Thank you John.

I think a lot of it is down to the individual on how they see art, maybe I am looking at art in a totally different way to others. I could have never drawn an outline of a person to save my life but I can come up with ideas when it comes to some of my wood turning.
Maybe I should start to look at it differently. I keep trying to come up with an original piece but subconsciously parts creep in from other peoples work which I am sure happens to many others as well. The problem being that so much has already been done from past and present turners that it becomes very difficult to have a truly 100% original piece.
We as turners also borrow ideas from other formats of art pottery being one and there are many more including the biggest of all nature.   

[bodrighywood]

We went to the gallery of modern art in St Ives recently and to be honest came away with the impression that a lot of art is emperors new clothes. Art should evoke emotion well it invoked disgust, disdain and a lot of incredulity so I suppose it is art after all. Having said that art is not just 'fine art' e.g. drawing painting etc. Oxford dictionary definition is
'the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.'
Think that covers your work Derek. That means you re officially an artist whether you like it or not.

Pete

[Bryan Milham]

I've seen and commented on this elsewhere, so just to say that this piece really calls to me as an ex-soldier.

Thank you for making and sharing with us.

[John Plater]

Hello Derek,
Maybe the distinction which you might draw is the difference between that which is accepted as art and that which is fine art. Just a thought but maybe the latter has more to do with drawing, painting and sculpture, whether abstracted or representational. Art without the fine is a much more broad concept ?
You say in your post, "The problem being that so much has already been done from past and present turners that it becomes very difficult to have a truly 100% original piece.
We as turners also borrow ideas from other formats of art pottery being one and there are many more including the biggest of all nature."
I could not agree more. I have seen it quoted as less than 1% is truly original but if you are taking bits of lots of other things, whether consciously or subconsciously, the end product is original to you at the very least and maybe truly original in a wider sense. Dyson reportedly invented his vacuum cleaner after looking at the extraction system at a sawmill. Yes it is product design and maybe not art but the really clever thing he did though was to perceive the existence of a real problem and then make the connections. So, your piece of woodturning is a product of all of your influences after you set yourself a precise brief based on the original theme. 
ATB John

[Derek]

Hello Derek,
Maybe the distinction which you might draw is the difference between that which is accepted as art and that which is fine art. Just a thought but maybe the latter has more to do with drawing, painting and sculpture, whether abstracted or representational. Art without the fine is a much more broad concept ?
You say in your post, "The problem being that so much has already been done from past and present turners that it becomes very difficult to have a truly 100% original piece.
We as turners also borrow ideas from other formats of art pottery being one and there are many more including the biggest of all nature."
I could not agree more. I have seen it quoted as less than 1% is truly original but if you are taking bits of lots of other things, whether consciously or subconsciously, the end product is original to you at the very least and maybe truly original in a wider sense. Dyson reportedly invented his vacuum cleaner after looking at the extraction system at a sawmill. Yes it is product design and maybe not art but the really clever thing he did though was to perceive the existence of a real problem and then make the connections. So, your piece of woodturning is a product of all of your influences after you set yourself a precise brief based on the original theme. 
ATB John

Looks like I will have to view art in a different way now