Why are we still Painting?

[byroncallas]

I opine we live in a transitional period. In another generation, assuming we don't blow ourselves up, there won't be many people doing what we refer to as "traditional painting". And what we do now as "digital art" will have morphed and progressed to a place where what we do now will seem as antiquated as painting in caves. Before 2050, no doubt things will have progressed to where we can "think" a painting and watch it materialize in front of us as a holograph.

Living in a transitional period, we are inclined to have feet in two worlds, with both emotional and intellectual tugs in both directions. The generation or two coming behind us won't have tugs for our old and antiquated ways, just as most of us don't have tugs to go on barefoot hunts in the jungle to catch and kill a warthog, skin and gut it, and roast in in a pit in order to eat it with our bare hands over a hot, sweltering fire, while we watch our backs to ensure a tiger doesn't jump out of the bushes and eat us for dinner. Times change and sweep us along without consideration for our personal inclinations.

Meanwhile, it seems perfectly wonderful to absorb ourselves in those present practices that we find fulfilling, whether, with creating art for example, we are fulfilled using traditional tools or find inspiration and fulfillment embracing the new medias. Different strokes for different folks...

...so I opine. :-)

PS for Gary: There do seem to be terms, which was your original question: "Digital Art", "Digital Painting", "Computer Generated Art" etc. Here is an interesting Wiki which condenses a lot of similar conversations explored in this forum about this topic. It illustrates the commonality of concerns and experience for those of us living through this transition. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_painting