"There is no 'bad art.' Just 'art'."

“Everyone is an artist.”

Tell that to a musician, a ballet dancer, a woodworker, or a bricklayer, for that matter, and you’d have the last word in that conversation. They would simply shrug their shoulders with disgust and walk away.

There is no bad driving. There is just driving. I live in a state where this is so.

So “bad” is not a good word to use, contextually. So much bad in the world. Poverty, starvation, war. Evil bad. Not cool bad. There is no “bad” art in the context of world suffering, unless you think that the money one spends on art supplies could be better spent to buy a banquet for the needy family next door. But the artist also needs to make a living, somehow.

Art is an elevated endeavor on the part of the individual trying to make sense of his existence, or to at least give it some semblance of order. And to provide a sense of solidarity with others in the same existential boat.

Unless art is used to enhance group think propaganda serving an unsavory political agenda, or to promote racial and gender stereotypes. That’s “bad art.”

There is common art, and unique art. The unique art may never have been done before, but in the context of fine art, it may be considered bad art, until enough time has passed, when it is dug out of the landfill and christened good art, initiating a frenzy of collecting and auctioning and VIP-only museum openings and shows, and fawning reviews in the NYT.

There is unique art that poses, undercover, as common art, until one day its true identity is leaked, causing another cascade of discovery. And the money trickles upwards, compounding with interest, until a posh new home with an ocean view and well-heeled owners is found for the here-to-fore contemptible artwork.

Then, there is beginner and advanced art. The advanced art may also be regarded with disdain, until ample time has passed after the artist has been deceased to increase its value. But in THIS context, I would say, there is no bad BEGINNER art.

The person who is just beginning his journey into art by trying to join two graphite lines together is to be commended and encouraged. This is where people like me jump in and try to fan the flame of curiosity. Art is a private journey providing a generous reward of its own. This is where I cheer you on from the sidelines, waving pom pom erasers and charcoal sticks.

You’ll enjoy learning how to draw. It is a lifelong discipline, like music or woodcarving. Maybe one day, your art will be recognized. Maybe not. Would that make it good art, or bad art?