I’d be surprised if David Hockney’s iPad paintings don’t inspire a whole new school of art. Apparently he emails his morning’s work to chums – which must create a bit of a problem for his dealer. Are these originals? Since the difference between an original and a reproduction is the whole basis for the fine art trade I imagine some head-scratching must be going on.
iPad painting is not as easy as a real artist makes it look: witness my early effort, my tree of the month, alongside. This was done with my index finger; next step is to acquire a stylus, the sort of pen that works on a screen. I see that there are already a dozen kinds: which to choose is the next question.
I’ve tried two different painting apps, Brushes (apparently Hockney’s medium) and My Brush – which seems to me rather simpler to use. They offer what appears to be an almost infinite range of colours, lines and washes. Also the facility not available to a student before of erasing any stroke at will, and even playing back the whole
It is bewildering territory. I’m tempted to try my hand at a completely new skill – or at least hobby – simply because it’s there, between my emails, my newspaper and the weather forecast. A flash in the pan, maybe, but at least a great new challenge.
