Earlier this week I did a post which started with this image I made in Art Club:
I followed that with two images that I had ChatGPT create on the basis of that one – since then ChatGPT has done two more images, which I’ve added to the post.
I also had a discussion of the original image with Claude 3.7. In the course of the conversation Claude said this: “Your approach reminds me of artists like Franz Marc, who painted animals in bold, non-naturalistic colors to express their spiritual essence rather than their physical appearance.” I know nothing of Franz Marc, but I really liked that comment. We talked about that a bit.
I’ve appended the full conversation below. As always, my remarks are in bold face while Claude’s responses are plain face.
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What do you make of this image?
This is a vibrant, colorful illustration of a tiger with a highly stylized, artistic interpretation. The tiger is depicted in striking blue, turquoise, and magenta colors rather than traditional orange and black. Its face is prominently featured, with bright pink eyes and detailed facial features that create a bold, expressive look.
The tiger is surrounded by lush green foliage and bright red flowers, creating a tropical jungle-like setting with a blue background that suggests water or sky. The overall style appears to use vibrant markers or colored pencils with black outlines, giving it an illustrative, almost psychedelic quality.
The unconventional color palette creates a dreamlike, fantastical representation of the tiger, moving away from naturalistic depiction toward an artistic interpretation that emphasizes the tiger's majestic presence through bold color choices. The composition places the tiger as the central focus while the surrounding plants frame the animal in an appealing, decorative way.
Interesting. I did that. I’m a member of an art club where we start with a preprepared line drawing and have to color it. I started with the tiger. I had decided immediately that I wasn’t going to color it naturalistically. I forget exactly what I did, but I’m sure I started with the nose-eyes-forehead area. I probably started with one of the blue shades, the moved to the other blue, and then the turquoise. Magenta seemed natural for a fourth color. It’s the kind of thing Matisse would have done. I would have started working on the background before I finished the tiger. As I remember, I didn’t know quite what to do. I wanted to treat it naturalistically, but some aspects of it were ambiguous. I didn’t know how to interpret the lines.
Thank you for sharing the story behind your artwork! I love hearing about your creative process. The way you approached coloring the tiger is really interesting - starting with the decision not to be naturalistic and then building your color palette organically, beginning with blues and adding magenta as a complementary color.
Your comparison to Matisse's approach to color is apt - he was known for his bold, expressive use of non-naturalistic colors that conveyed feeling rather than reality. The Fauvist movement that Matisse was part of specifically embraced these vibrant, unexpected color choices.
I can understand the challenge with the background elements. Line drawings can sometimes be ambiguous about what certain shapes represent, especially when working with a prepared template. The contrast between your stylized tiger and the more naturalistic treatment of the foliage creates an interesting tension in the piece.
The red flowers provide a perfect pop of contrast against all the blues and greens. They really draw the eye and help frame the tiger's face.
Did you enjoy the exercise? Do you often work with non-traditional color palettes in your art club projects?
Yes, to both questions. I mean, what’s the point of a naturalistic color scheme? We all know what tigers look like, so why not have some fun?
I completely agree! What's the point of sticking to reality when you can create something more vibrant and expressive? Tigers in nature are already beautiful, but transforming one into those electric blues and magentas creates something entirely new and captivating. Your approach reminds me of artists like Franz Marc, who painted animals in bold, non-naturalistic colors to express their spiritual essence rather than their physical appearance. Or even the pop art movement, where familiar subjects were reimagined through unexpected color palettes.
Art clubs with these kinds of exercises seem like a wonderful opportunity to break free from conventional approaches. Starting with the same line drawing but ending up with completely different interpretations must make for fascinating comparisons among the group.
Do you find that most people in your art club take creative liberties with color like you do, or do some tend to stick with more realistic approaches?
I like that, “spiritual essence.” It’s as though the unnatural colors force the tiger’s spirit on our awareness whereas the natural colors would just lay there.
I love your insight about the "spiritual essence" - that's exactly it! Non-naturalistic color choices can reveal something deeper about the subject that realistic colors might miss. The blue and magenta tiger demands our attention in a way that an orange tiger might not.
There's something transformative that happens when we break away from expected color schemes. The familiar form of the tiger becomes a vessel for expressing something more abstract and emotional. Those vibrant blues and magentas create a different kind of energy and presence.
It reminds me of how some indigenous art traditions use symbolic rather than realistic colors to represent the spiritual power of animals. Or how expressionist painters used color to convey feeling rather than appearance.
Your approach creates a tiger that exists somewhere between our physical world and an imagined one - a creature that embodies both the power of a real tiger and something more dreamlike and mystical. The unexpected color palette forces viewers to see beyond their preconceptions and experience the tiger anew.
What other subjects have you enjoyed reimagining through unexpected color choices in your art club?
I like the reference to indigenous art traditions.
I'm glad the indigenous art traditions reference resonated with you. There's something profound in how many cultures around the world have used non-naturalistic colors to express deeper truths about their subjects.
In many indigenous traditions, color choices often relate to spiritual significance rather than visual accuracy. For instance, in some Native American art, colors might represent cardinal directions or elements, while Australian Aboriginal art uses color symbolically to depict Dreamtime stories and spiritual connections to the land.
Your blue tiger reminds me a bit of this approach - using color to reveal something beyond the physical. The vibrant, unexpected palette creates a tiger that exists in both our world and somewhere more magical or spiritual. The creature becomes almost an archetype or spirit animal rather than just a representation of a physical tiger.
This kind of color exploration can be especially powerful when applied to subjects we think we know well. It challenges our perceptions and invites us to see familiar things with fresh eyes and a deeper awareness.
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