A gallery of illustrations by the artist J.Bodeen.

Of course artist is just an ugly word these days. So much so that I would rather be considered among the ranks of illustrators. It seems the more I see and hear, that the only requisite for a modern artist is the arcane ability to make a genuine ass of themselves. With a little more thought, it also does not hurt to have the backing of some corporate promoter as well.

So I’ll stick with the definition of illustrators. In my opinion, hiring a bunch of hipsters to construct enormous balloon animal sculptures in a factory takes considerably less creativity and discipline than what seems to be adherent in the work of illustrators. Moreover, it would seem the only real talent required to be an artist these days is the ability to spout creative bullshit of the sort that the artsy fartsy experts will believe and more importantly buy.

I have a sincere love for illustrations, as most illustrators do. My head swims at the very thought of clean lines, composition, contrast and the relationship between positive and negative space. That compassion is a characteristic of an artist, which leads me to wonder if illustrators are not the real artists of our times. This would also stand to reason that the most relevant form of modern art is actually illustration. Perhaps that is why one of the most substantial movements in the “art scene” is the return to realism and the beautiful work created by low brow and graffiti artists.

I know it sounds crazy, but what if all the experts and artsy fartsy types are on the verge of having to accept that the kid in the T-shirt standing in the corner of their gallery is no longer to be dismissed as “sophmoric” or lacking in vision. Can you imagine if talent and creativity were actually a requirement to be a successful artist? I can hear the ballon animals popping already. I would like to think maybe their is hope for modern art after all.

- J.Bodeen