Today though, I'm in Target and while enjoying all their new Halloween items, I see this...
Okay, it's not that it's a zombie skeleton dog that bothers me, but it's the ears, they're just like my drawing. I'm sure they're there for the same reason I added ones on mine, they help sell the visual that it's a dog. So now I will brood wondering if it was for sale last season and I saw it and it got stuck in my head? I'll still make mine I think. No ideas are truly original. Heck, my dog house tombstone doodle is inspired by Zero's in Nightmare Before Christmas anyway.
I have had this same thing happen to me and in speaking with other artists, the same questions always seem to linger....was this truly a completely unique idea I had that was also had by someone else, or did I somehow see this and tuck it away into my subconscious mind for later. I personally agree with your thought that basically not many ideas are truly 100% original, although that doesn't make them any less unique. I believe that art and creation by its very nature is a continuous process of building, changing, and improving on what has come before, in order to make new and better creations. So keep up the good work. And for the record...I like your version is great!
ReplyDeleteThat skelly dog prop has been around since at least 2008, maybe as early as 2007.
ReplyDeleteStill like your skeledog sketch better. ;)
Wendy hit the nail on the head. ALL art is borrowed from something that's been seen before. Without a library of references, our imaginations couldn't work. We wouldn't be able to dream at night. It'd be like trying to draw a circle if you had never seen one (assuming no one had ever drawn one before, and that circles, spheres, and all curved surfaces did not exist in nature). It's how we combine all of that information that makes things new and unique. Sometimes the references are vague and cannot be seen. Other times, you see something that makes you feel like you've unintentionally ripped off another's work.
ReplyDeleteIt does happen to all artists, and it's a sucky feeling. I know.
To be honest, adding bones and organs where none should exist isn't new. I've seen them before, most notably in cartoons. I think Runaway Brain briefly shows that Mickey's ears are full of brain matter. Don't take it too hard.
I saw the very same thing today while at Target! I gotta say, I wanted to buy one... Of course, I have five dogs, and they all bark and growl at my props, so I was just thinking what evil fun I could have with them.
ReplyDeleteI hate to tell you they did have the dog last year. But your conceptual drawing is much better looking!
ReplyDeleteThanks all.
ReplyDeleteWhen I wrote this post, my tongue was firmly in cheek making fun of myself and that feeling I'm sure all get when you're excited by an idea but then you see it's already been done in some form and it takes the wind out of your sails for a moment.
But the comments have raised some interesting thoughts on subconscious or conscious inspiration for ideas to ponder.