Silly argument about paintings
 

I am at work today and I was talking to my co-worker about "The Scream", which sold at an auction for nearly 120 million dollars. Anyway, I referred to it as a painting, and he quickly corrected me "IT'S NOT A PAINTING, IT'S A PASTEL!". Which is correct, it is a pastel. But isn't a pastel still a painting? I looked up "painting" and it says Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a surface (support base).

I also found a billion videos of artists using pastel crayons (or whatever they're called) and referring to their work as "paintings" like this one for example
<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/DLBPUD7BLCI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

So no, it isn't a painting in the literal sense that it was painted with paint and a brush, but is it still wrong to refer to it as a painting?

It's a pastel painting. Get your co-worker fired. You don't need to put up w/ that shit.

I can't wait to see the CP Intelligentsia's take on this highbrow subject!

I presented all my evidence to him and it still wasn't good enough. So he then told me I'm a moron that knows nothing about anything except Doritos and video games. I guess because he's 52 and I'm 28? I don't know. He thinks because he went to art school 30 years ago he's the expert on art.

Challenge your bitch ass coworker to a bat fight...

I'm not sure. If an artist uses colored pencil, has he/she created a drawing or a painting?

One thing I get sick of as a music scholar is the way people use the word "song". If you like the intense part of the Inception soundtrack, then no, you don't like that song. It's not a ****ing song.

Songs are sung. If this were a century ago, it would refer to the chanson tradition in France shortly after the fall of the Roman Empire, in which a solo singer would sing a poem according to form fixes, or a certain combination of verse/refrain with repeating melodic stanzas. Accompaniment was optional. That's a tradition that was followed up all the way through the 19th century in everything- even common folk songs.

The definition changed and evolved throughout the 20th century to embody all types of sung musical works. But that's the qualifier: singing.

If you want to talk about the Hans Zimmer soundtrack, it's an awesome PIECE you're listening to. It's not a ****ing song.

Knowing very little about this style of art, having just read a little bit, I'd probably have to agree with your coworker. That definition you gave in the OP is overly broad and could apply to someone using charcoal or crayon, and I'd be hard pressed to call that a painting. Art, sure. Painting, not in my book.

Just my 2 cents.

:shrug:

Here is why.

I do pastels, but when you tell someone that, their first thought is 'homo' so I just say I paint, which is true as I do watercolors also.
I think pastel painting is fine, but to me paintings have to use a brush.

But many do refer to pastels as paintings, especially if they are good size works.

He sounds like an old angry prick though.

So how much are baristas making to stand around these days?

He's just jealous of your mad gaming skillz.

FYP

So why do so many artists who use pastel sticks refer to their work as paintings? Why?

Stab him.

Does it involve a brush?

Problem solved.

Does finger painting involve a brush?