Almighty painter

Chapter 356 Mission Completion
The 35-year-old newcomer award sounds a bit strange in any industry other than arts and sciences.

In 1985, the age range of youth recognized by the United Nations was those between 15 and 24 years old.

At the age of 35, he is close to retiring in the sports field. In the field of e-sports, the old people are like prehistoric apes, and they are all grandfather-level figures.

But only in the art market, which takes time to refine, are those truly serious young people?

I have just been able to get rid of the title of "child".

Even calling him a Mesozoic painter is a bit reluctant.

For an uncle like Kazunari Sakai, who is in his forties, it won't be a big problem unless he shamelessly says that he is a young painter.

Young painters are often the poorest group of painters.

At this age, they are still young and can still endure loneliness. They can still drink cold water and eat steamed buns. They are staggering on this road relying solely on their devotion to their artistic dreams or their lust for the future of prosperous and beautiful women. Go down.

The older I am, the more I can't make a name for myself, or at least find a job in a community gallery.

Even if they want to remain young and still have tears in their eyes, the beatings from society will force them to change careers early.

It's easy to make a living as a painter, but at worst he'll end up being a homeless person and sleeping in a church on the dole.

If you pick a random homeless person out of the slums on the streets of the United States, you will always find one or two who claim to be artists.

But artistic dreams need real money to support them.

Music and art are really expensive industries.

The salary of young musicians in many well-known classical music orchestras is only [-] US dollars. A privately customized Italian or French violin starts at [-] US dollars. Customized pianos by Stradivari, Guarneri, and Steinway cost hundreds of dollars. There is no cap on the $[-] limit.

Just a top-notch bow.

One is an Audi Q5. Do they want to use it?Of course I do.

But why can it be used?

For art, you can say that you don’t do large sculptures, plastic arts, taxidermy, gemstones and precious metals. You don’t even have to go out to collect paintings. You stay away from all money-burning projects and just use the most unpretentious painting method. It doesn’t seem to sound like much. Too high cost.

However, even though he saved enough to paint under the bridge every day using the cheapest cotton cloth and acrylics, he was lucky enough to be shortlisted for a major art exhibition.

You always have to pay for the air ticket, right?

No joke.

Don't think this is a small expense.

In the early years, many international art exhibitions did not reimburse air tickets for student groups and amateur groups.

Many painters from third world countries are really faced with this. Even if they are successfully shortlisted for exhibition projects in some art festivals in New York and London, they find that they cannot afford the air tickets and can only give up this opportunity to become famous that many people only seek.

This is even a common problem.

Even Michael Armitage, one of the most awesome painters in Africa and winner of the Venice Biennale Grand Prize, madly complained to the Royal Society of Arts that when he was young, the cost of going to Europe to participate in exhibitions was too high and he couldn't do it at all. rise.

Young artists are poor because they cannot become famous, and they cannot become famous because of poverty.

This creates a vicious cycle.

From ancient times to the present, the easiest way for poor artists to break the cycle is to wait for the "angel" they hope to appear.

This angel is definitely not the kind that jumps down from the clouds with a halo of bulings on his head and has white wings.

Rather, it refers to angel investors and angel sponsors.

Let him pay for himself and cover his living and creative expenses.

Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Titian, Beethoven, Mozart... Behind the artistic careers of these Western masters, there are glittering wealthy patrons such as the Medici family, the Austrian royal family, and the Roman Vatican. Coins were scattered behind him.

When Mozart was a teenager, he went to various European countries to visit various acupuncture points to attract sponsorship.

His list of patrons included a long list of various bishops, kings, princesses, queens, and even the then Pope Innocent XII himself.

There are these awesome sponsors.

Regardless of whether an artist wants to be awesome or worth a lot, his sponsors will not agree.

In modern society, European feudal lords and the church have stepped back from their role as sponsors.

In their place are financial consortiums, industrial trusts, luxury brands and Middle Eastern oil tycoons.

They will provide sponsorship contracts as naming prizes at art exhibitions of various sizes, youth creative incubation projects, and art competitions.

When Queen Marie of Austria sponsored Mozart, she wanted to reflect the elegance, luxury and wealth of her royal family.

Today's luxury brands fight at the Venice Biennale every year. They rush up with banknotes, cry and shout, and rush to sponsor great artists with coins, in order to show their elegance, luxury and wealth.

It’s ever-changing, but the underlying business logic remains unchanged.

As long as the concept of art is still tied to elegance and wealth in the minds of the wealthy.

Whether it is the fifteenth century, the eighteenth century or the twenty-first century, this scenario will happen again and again. It will be the same 21 years ago and 200 years from now.

When an artist shows enough potential, angel sponsors will come to you and offer to spend money on your art.

Sponsorships offered by the music industry to young artists typically include three to five years of free use of certain multi-million dollar instruments.

Leica, Fujifilm, and Sony will mail their latest full-frame mirrorless cameras to the photography award winners every year.

Sponsorship in the art industry is the simplest and crudest.

Usually a check is made directly to cash.

After Katsuko Sakai won the championship gold medal in the Japan Young Artist Competition at the age of 12, she traveled around the world in business class, and the money she spent on air tickets alone was enough to buy a luxury car.

Her family doesn't care about this expense, but they spend almost no money, and all the bills are reimbursed by the Tokyo Gallery's sponsorship contract.

Among the sponsorship contracts available to art students.

Luxury goods sponsorships such as Hermès, Burberry, and Swarovski sound great, but the main advantage is that they are high-end, have countless luxury goods, and have red carpets to walk on.

It's enough for the little girl to be excited, and the money isn't much.

It is also more troublesome and has many constraints.

Basically, you can only pick up one at the same time, especially you can’t wear competing products.

In fact, it is the financial consortium and the oil royal family that are the most generous.

These two are really for the sake of publicity and not for money.

Some Western painters may feel that taking sponsorship from a Middle Eastern prince carries cultural and political risks.

So what I like most is sponsorship from various banks.

The UBS Newcomer Award is everyone's favorite award. The sponsorship contract attached to the award is much more valuable than the S$5000 prize money from the art exhibition.

It is not enough for a young artist to achieve financial freedom.

But it is enough for the winning painter to live a life close to "wealth freedom" in the next five years.

Big banks like UBS have very few sponsorship restrictions. They just scatter money and reimburse.

Pay the creative allowance to your account. As for whether he spent the money on creation or drinking and enjoying himself.

He doesn't care about financial audits at all. As long as his final painting is not sexist, big mines like racial discrimination will not be pursued.

This also directly led to the UBS Newcomer Award, which is nominally an opportunity for young artists to show their talents.In fact, it is the most fiercely competitive award for military strategists every year. It is the most valuable award besides gold and silver awards and is the benchmark for Asian art in the future.

It is the highest honor for young artists.

There are no ordinary people who can be shortlisted for the master group of art exhibitions under the age of 35.

It is so difficult to win among these people that every winner can be called a supernova of Asian art and a genius among geniuses.

Becoming sought after by top galleries.

The transaction price of UBS Newcomer Award-winning works in the art market is generally higher than the Bronze Award works in the main award area, and the potential for appreciation is greater.

Such an awesome award.

When Kazunari Sakai was in college, he could only drool while looking at it, longing for it but not getting it.

Uncle’s most beautiful idea for this year’s Lion City Biennale.

It was Gu Weijing's submission, using the creativity of fusion painting and some bad luck, to win a Best Creative Award.

The rest of the UBS Newcomer Award?
No need to ask, of course it belongs to Katsuko.

Mrs. Sakai told Katsuko ruthlessly that she could only rely on her own efforts to participate in the exhibition this year, and her parents would not and could not help her in any way.

That was what told Katsuko to devote herself to studying hard.

In private, Mrs. Cruz turned her head and held her husband's ears, telling him to think of ways to launch a lobbying campaign at the Tokyo Gallery, hire reporters to write soft articles, and make dinner appointments with the judges and curators. Blow the wind.

Now stop pretending to be a great artist.

Even if there is no way, we must create a way.

Their precious daughter's artistic career debut battle, if her parents don't care, who will care for her?
If you can help me, please help me.

The painting that now appeared in the camera was suddenly discovered by Sakai Kazunari, maybe...

In front of such a picture, winning a prize no longer requires gambling on luck.

The work that Shengzi posted on Instagram is excellent in creativity, but the painting technique itself only scored 40 points.

Now that Gu Weijing is looking at the painting on the easel in front of him, even his proficiency in painting techniques can be rated seventy or eighty by Sakai Kazunari.

Blocking the figure of the young man working at the easel.

Just looking at the painting, Professor Sakai couldn't tell at all that this was a work created by an 18-year-old child, nor could he tell that he had only been involved in this painting method for two months.

Uncle Sakai also believed this when he said that this was the work created by an experienced old painter who had been working on it for more than ten years.

The degree of completion of the entire painting is astounding.

……

"Fifty percent?"

Gu Weijing gently repeated Uncle Sakai's point of view.

"That is to say...half and half." He sighed.

"Kid, you have a half chance of winning an award at an international art exhibition. Aren't you happy yet? Do you know that you are only a high school student!"

Sakai Kazunari was amused by Gu Weijing's ungrateful appearance.

"Do you have to wake up tomorrow morning and get the Venice Lifetime Achievement Award before you feel satisfied? The road has to be walked step by step, and the meal has to be eaten one bite at a time. You are still young, and you cannot become fat with one bite."

Uncle Sakai touched the soft flesh of his body and gave very convincing words and deeds on the other end of the phone.

"It's pretty good."

Gu Weijing nodded.

He did not feel complacent about this conclusion.

There is a half chance of winning the prize. In other words, there is a high half chance that he will miss the award at the Biennale.

Personal exhibition at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, Disciples of Mr. Cao Xuan - there are too many things placed on this art exhibition, and the expectations are too high.

Gu Weijing is not worrying about gains and losses.

But when doing good deeds, don't ask about the future. You will be calm about gains and calm about losses.

The premise is that all preparations and efforts have been made.

Gu Weijing didn't want to hold only half of his fate in his hands during this opportunity that might only come once in his life.

"Time is tight, I hope...by the time the manuscript is actually delivered, I can draw a better work, right?"

Gu Weijing secretly encouraged himself.

"Hmph, young people are so ambitious."

Kazunari Sakai sipped the celery juice, snorted and rolled his eyes twice.

He didn't specify.

With a [-]% chance of winning, Professor Sakai is only talking about the probability of winning the "Best Creative Award".

When it comes to creativity, as long as you are still drawing on paper, five percent is the limit.

And this degree of completion.

Not only the Best Creative Award, but also considering the UBS Newcomer Award and even the main award area, Kazunari Sakai felt that there was no chance to try it.

All calculated, there is a [-]-[-]% chance.

For the final award at an art exhibition, which is based on the judges' subjective preferences, could it be that Gu Weijing hasn't submitted his work yet and Uncle Sakai is going to tell him that he will definitely win the award?

Unless the shady organization has already decided on a candidate, or a painter of Kazunari Sakai's status participates in the competition in person under his real name.

Otherwise no one would dare to say that.

Gu Weijing didn't know the little Jiujiu in Professor Sakai's heart.

He continued to immerse himself in handling all the color transitions on the easel with his fingers, trying his best to follow Professor Sakai's instructions to make his fingers more flexible, and the texture he painted was soft and romantic.

"By the way, I wonder if I can contact Anya and ask if this lady has any more experience in the techniques of finger shaping?"

Gu Weijing suddenly thought of it.

When he submitted his manuscript to Jane Arnold, both Professor Boggs and Ms. Anya added him as social friends.

During this period, Boggs wanted to talk to him every now and then about his experience in knife and painting.

After Anya said hello, neither party said much.

The gallery owner was a real connoisseur of finger painting.

I don't know if people are willing to take the time to give him some advice.

Gu Weijing thought this way, and as he used his fingers to smear the last transition of paint between the branches and leaves of the forest, he heard the notification sound from the system that the task was completed.

[Serial mission: Fusion Painting - The sea embraces all rivers ([-]/[-]), the current mission has been completed! 】

[Congratulations on winning the award: Basic Watercolor Painting Techniques]

(End of this chapter)