You are not a Real Artist, you're just an Illustrator... 

You can grab the painting at alpayefe.com/store 🫶🙌

Beautiful work. And love the sentiment of artists/illustrators. We’re all artists. ❤️

I met a gallery owner who looked at my work and said “Oh, you’re an illustrator…” in the least complimentary and most pompous way imaginable. For some reason it made me feel awful at the time and still irritates me. Thanks for making this video and defending the craft. There is plenty of room at the table for all. Thanks again.

Artists are weird. Always trying to depreciate the value of other’s Art just to appreciate the value their own

As my Grandpa used to say…. “ Call me anything you want, just don’t call me late to supper” You are an artist to me. Fun to watch be it movie art, traditional portraits, Trompe-l’oeil, small or large and easy to listen to and understand. You keep making, I’ll keep enjoying. TFS

My art teacher always told me to not create "such illustrative works" just because he liked the non figurative compositions. And most of the time I had the same feeling with the character designers as you did with the illustrators, that I really admire. Being an illustrator shouldn't mean you cannot count as an artist, and being an artist mustn't mean you can't considerate different creative approaches. Thank you so much for this video❤❤❤, the painting is just perfect.

"if i do pull it off" meanwhile always pulling it off lol

You, my friend, are 100% an artist. Artists create. It doesn't matter in what medium they use. Fashion, sculpture, painting, drawing, clay, graphic designers, architects, physical, digital and so on. Illustrators are artists. Illustration is a pivotal skill in creating art. So rude and short-sighted of people to put you down to build themselves up.

If you do what you love, whether you paint or use other mediums, whether illustrative or abstract, you are an artist. Those who try to say you're not are just projecting their own insecurities to feel superior to you. They feel small and so they want to use you to feel bigger about themselves.

I wish humans would resist the necessity to categorize EVERYTHING and just enjoy art for what it is... art. You, sir, are an amazing painter regardless of the subject matter!

All illustrators are artists, not all artists can illustrate! Love your small movie paintings, what was that spray you put over the acrylic wash? Also are they real oils or quick drying oils?

Another epic piece 👏👏👏 I know the feeling of being stuck in "realism". I'd love to do more cartoony or anime style stuff, but really struggle to get past the realism in my brain 😅😅 it's so bizarre

I think the distinction between artist and illustrator is the same as squares and rectangles. All illustrators are artists, but not all artists are illustrators. Artists can use any medium to make their art, whether that is paint, ink, clay, granite, wood or steel. Illustrators are artists that specialize in pictures. They are more broad than, say, an oil painter, but more specialized than the broad term artist.

One comparison to make is your art work against classical academic drawing. A clear and obvious diffrence. At art school we only worked in charcoal and always drew from life. Never from imagination. Never from photography.

Beetlejuice Beetljuice Beetlejuice! Loved that film. And love the painting of course. They are making a Beetlejuice 2 as well.

anybody can be an artist. you have to be skilled to be an illustrator.

This is a stunning painting. Norman Rockwell is regarded as a renowned painter, and he was quite definitely an illustrator.

I'm not an artist and I'm not an illustrator but I know the feeling of pure joy when I see your work. I don't give a hoot what you're feeling while you paint...I LOVE the results and for me, that's all that matters. Great piece, sir.

As a fellow artist I’m just admiring your brush strokes and Palette. Also fan art is extremely popular with the algorithm. All artists hope somebody will pay money for their work.

In an attempt to defend illustrators as artist this guy just has to crap talk artist, it's as simple as yes illustrators are artist because illustration is a type of art just like surreal, or abstract, or whatever.

Lol these same galleries call goofy splashes of paint or putting toilets in these places art 😂😂😂😂

I absolutely love this!!1 Beetlejuice is one of my favourite films and with this piece I think you have done Tim Burton (and Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder) proud!

I don't think we should even talk about wether an illustrator is an artist or not. He definitely is. The only people calling themselves artists and are not, are "AI Artists" lol

Tell me NC Wyeth, Norman Rockwell or Frank Frazetta isn’t a fine artist. They BLOW AWAY most “ fine artists “

I love that you painted a scene of Beetle Juice. I loved that movie. And your painting. My personal experience with the artist/illustrator debate: In the past if people ask me what my job is, I said 'I am an artist'. They always reacted weird and didn't know what to say. Most people have still the 'Artist is not a job! They don't make money and starve!' stance to the whole thing. Someone actually ask: "Oh yes? When did you have your last art exhibition?". (My personal stance to that is, you don't even have to make money on art to count as an artist.) Now I tell people, 'I am an illustrator'. People react very differently to it. I get questions sometimes like 'For Kids Books?', or 'For advertising?'. That's something they understand more. Also: Every illustrator is an artist, not every artist is an illustrator. ;)

I love you so much for this one! This movie holds a special place in my heart and you’re so amazing at what you do. ❤

It took me years to appreciate small paintings, but the amount of progress I made through the quicker turn-around time won me over. Now I paint more small paintings than large.

Haha, as a kid, ironically I thought the opposite. I believed that the illustrators are the ones who bring new ideas, concepts and new worlds to life. In my view then, the illustrators had so many styles from cartoons to realistic and their illustrations always told a story. On the other hand, I honestly thought that artists only drew portraits, landscapes and still life which I found rather boring as a kid. lol. ... But yes, art can be expressed in many different styles and ways and that is the beauty of it.

Not a real artist?? That’s just non sense. I enjoy watching and appreciating nearly all creative expressions…it’s ALL ARTISTRY. Watching you create and paint is mesmerizing and magical. When you create art you are an artist. Thank you for sharing your vision, experience, talent, skill and craft.❤

Much like "Muscicians/Entertainers " in today's pop culture calling themselves "artists", but not (instrument players,singers,rappers). Illustrations are the highest level so few people can achieve, so out of frustration many stupid contemporary galleries embraces chicken scratch art 2 year old do.

Dude, I paint like Pollock and there are several of my paintings that I think are really good. What you do is something I could never touch in any lifetime. Keep it up.

You are a great artist sir

I think people don't really understand what art is, they don't know the parameters and limits of each profession. People think that if you paint something beautiful you are already an artist, and that's not how it works. There are even people who call themselves artists. To become an artist you have to study a lot, you have to master painting techniques, create something unique, and maybe one day you will be an artist.

This is so weird because it just does not matter. Illustration does not mean that a painting or drawing is better or worse than somethingelse. Also Art is not something divine. It does not make people a better person. And in the end it all depends on language definition but there is no difference in worth what ever you come up with in the end. Just do what ever you feel comfortable with. Drawing for other people, drawing your own stuff or just doodling around

I think the whole discussion you touched on is a lot more about creativity than ego, you do create something new whenever you illustrate, but you are usually just giving things a new coat of paint, I dont think thats bad, its just the way you chose to express your creativity. Now, trying to put some forms of art in a bad light out of spite for being called out is such a childish thing to do, some forms of expressions are about ego but they are called self reflection and it is extremely important to any human, breeding war against each other is such a childish thing.

I absolutely love your work and your channel thank you so much. You are so inspiring and so talented again thank you

Real artists accept that there is a lot of different techniques, styles, tools, equipment, people and ideas. I absolutely hate gate keepers that believe they are the only ones that are correct and everybody else is wrong. Self entitled really

This is an amazing painting. Thank you for sharing. I think the smaller the painting the harder it is to paint the more talent it takes to make it good. In my opinion it makes it more valuable. Not the size that matters but how good it looks.

Fantastic work, are u able to recommend any good books that teach u how to see proportion and shapes that help u to create the human faces ? Thks.

This work is absolutely beautiful🌹✨️

I feel free when I consider myself an illustrator rather than using the aimlessly broad term artist. Thank you.

You are wrong Alpay. Just take a bucket and and pour it on the canvas and that's art. Express yourself. If no paint is available just smash neighbour's head with a frying pan to express yourself. Express yourself. Mastery of composition, anatomy, shading, chroma, perspective that you have accumulated through years, is nothing. Just express yourself and you will be an artist!

Wow you nailed the details Beetlejuice Beetlejuice Beetlejuice 💚💚💚💚🎆🙌!!!!!!!!!!

In my opinion, an artist is someone who inspires others with their work, and as someone who doesn’t create any art at all you have definitely inspired me to try and start learning how to paint with your channel! To me your work is impressive and inspiring, so to me you’re an artist!

oh, yeah, it's a classic, like Goonies or David Bowie... NO way anyone is gonna recognize it... 😂 Also, (Stranger Things) Wynona Ryder and (Batman/ Vulture...) Michael Keaton.. Perfect timing also, almost Halloween in the States. I don't think that you have to worry. Love your paintings, thanks for bringing us on the journey.

This is so cool and looked like a ton of fun!

Alpay, seeing you talk about tiny brushes and tiny faces makes me remember about your idea of painting a miniature for a video! As a miniature painter myself, I wonder from time to time, if you'll give it a try eventually! I'd love to see your take on a tiny plastic soldier :D BTW, I love Beetlejuice, and I loved the painting.

First off, this is amazing and I am so sorry that someone made you feel like you weren’t an “artist” anyone who creates no matter what it is, is an artist. Second, I have to say that I disagree that traditional artists are seen as egotistical if they make work that is more emotional. For some, the process is as important as the final image and that’s okay! Also, you mention Rembrandt and Van Gogh saying for them the final image was the whole purpose which is not true. Rembrandt conveyed emotions and stories through his work and Van Gogh worked through mental health and also sought to bring attention to the country side with some of his pieces. Sometimes artists want to make pictures and other times they want to convey bigger ideas and both are okay. Please don’t further divide by saying one is better than the other :(

Beetlejuice is a fun movie ☺️

who doesn't know the Ghost with the most?

You are not a real artist, you are THE real artist 😅 congrats again for creating such a vibrant and modern painting from an older source!

thank you

Art vs illustration is the subject of my thesis. I recommend The Unchanging Arts by Alan Gowans. A bit outdated but an EXCELLENT defense of illustration.

Linseed oil over acrylic? Mind blown. I didn't know that was a thing. I wouldn't think the acrylic would stick to oil.

Beautiful work Alpay!

Thank you so much for helping me to clarify my understanding of real art.

​Just how many variations of splashes of blue in a canvas that we need. The countless pointilism in the market or taped up banana. Screensilked graffitis. Yes, the works of modern artists like Picasso or Jackson Pollack are bold, evokes emotion and creating new imaginative graphical images. During their time. Now, it's the same repetitive, redundant and unimaginative. Lacking humanity. Most made in less than half a day with minimal effort. Are they Art. Yes. Maybe or Debatable. Doesn't matter. The big question is, do they really deserve the hundreds of thousand price tag in art galleries and the prestige above other painters or illustrators. The answer is NO.

Amazing as always! If you need another 80's movie character idea, i'd love to see your rendering of david bowie from the labryith. "you remind me of the babe".

The main difference between the illustrator, and the Fine artist is, that the illustrator will craft a well executed image of something familiar, that we have ALL seen before. Whereas the fine artist is seeking to be vulnerable and unpredictable, by creating something that has NEVER been seen before, even if they fail at it.

There is a distinction between artist and illustrator. Artists express themselves through many mediums. Illustrators, musicians, photographers and writers are all different catagories of artist is all.

I hate how people seem to put illustrator and cartoonist in the same basket and seem to make it feel "cheaper"... We all draw...

Great film study ! I am also making filmstudies but with gouache and ink. My own thoughts on Art vs Illustration would be; Illustration is about communication. An idea, a concept or a story. But I do not believe all illustration is art. Art, is about human expression. Conveying the human experience through colors, rhythm, sound, vibration, composition, movement etc. You CAN bring this element of art, into an illustration, but most people dont. It is safer to not reveal your own humanity in your work. I fall pray to this myself, It is safer and easier to make a pretty image, that is not revealing myself, or tapping into the collective humanity. But the few times I have managed to do so, it resonates with SO many more people. This definition of art became very clear to me when I started to learn how to write fiction. Truly great stories reveal truths about oneself. again, not all stories tap into this.

I do some illustrations and some paintings... nothing to your skill level but I would also add to the descriptors "craftsman". I teel my friends that I am a craftsman. I love your vids, Sir.

Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice! Great subject matter... As an artist myself, I believe you are your own hardest critic. Don't be so hard on yourself. I love watching and learned some great things from your videos. Great job my friend

Dead right on the philosophy. The split for me always seemed "wrong" as a lot of paintings that hung in national galleries are "illustrations". Eventually I stopped showing at galleries years ago because of the response "Oh you are an illustrator". Yet as the years went by I noticed how many abstract artists were the very definition to me of illustration: They were making a product for someone else, in this case a gallery. The gallery that sold the Painter's work, would channel them into paintings or objects that would sell. Often the Artist knew that they had become a "factory of their style". So now I call myself an illustrator, period. Artist is too vague a term to be bothered with, other than to say "I love what I do, and I am good at it".

Nah man you're the real deal. Artist through and through!

My definition of an artist is someone who practices a skill that is technologically obsolete, and would do so for their own reasons, whether or not other people were of aware of their skills or were not willing to pay them for it. It has to fit all of those criteria to qualify as an art from my perspective. So, the painting you're doing is technologically obsolete, because a computer could render the same image, and in fact, do so more accurately than you, a million times in seconds. But if you would not paint images like this one if you knew that nobody would ever see them, and that you couldn't earn money doing so, then you aren't practicing an art. You're practicing a trade. This is why a martial art is an art. In a world where I can defeat a well-trained attacker by aiming a factory-produced device at him, and activating it, hand-to-hand fighting styles are technologically obsolete, and are primarily practiced for the psychological and physical benefits they yield for the practitioner. It also means that pretty much any skill that becomes replaced by technology, from long division to driving a car is potentially an art form among those who choose to practice them without the aid of those technologies.

I don’t know about technical critique but I do know what my eye’s like and this picture is fantastic. All those beautiful colours creating a mood and feel. I absolutely love it well done 👌👌

"He's just an illustrator..." Does it matter???!! He's having fun and making money while putting something beautiful and impressive out into the world. Need I say more.

Draftsmen is allegedly the fancy word for artists that draw. And that helps me deal with this ridiculousness.

It's carney art. And it's very popular. Jack Daniels is more popular than Macallan. It is what it is. People like different things.

You've answered a quandery I had. Not if illustrators are artists - of course they are! But if it is worthwhile pursing my study series of film stills. I did pen & ink stills study for composition. I may well now explore them as a subject and art in it's own right. Thanks Artists who call people "just illustrators" are simply insecure about their own not-as-good-as-it-could-be 'art'. To make theirs look good, they have to demean yours.

Yes, that has been said before, After Robert Bateman, Naturalist and Wildlife Painter was rejected from showing at the Hirschhorn National Museum of Art, (in 1986) when they said, "We don't show illustrators", but then was picked up by the Museum Of Natural History across the street... before he left DC that day. Bateman was quoted to have said that "In the company of artist like Michelangelo, Da Vinci, and Norman Rockwell, Magritte, and J. C. Leyendecker, N.C. Wyeth...who all painted for hire, I'd be honored to be called an illustrator.

I love the movie, and you gave the characters such a unique twist in their looks.

We love beetle juice and they are making a sequel so perfect timing. I love this painting. If i wasnt utterly broke id want to biy it. You are an amazing artist.. i am in awe of your skills

I love to see you working and the thoughts behind what you do, along with the musing about art and artist endeavour. I got put off art as a career a long time ago because of the snobbery of those that occupy the artistic environment. I have heard people using big words and laughed inwardly at the unnecessary way they speak to validate the image. Then there's the whole silly debate around conceptual art versus commercial art. Yet I don't see any of these conceptual puritans dying for their art, as none of them would be able to bask in the glory and wealth they seek. Silly elitist nonsense which I'm so happy to hear a practicing artist stick in pin in their overly egocentric opinioned balloon.

Meanwhile…..”fine art paintings” that look like kindergarten drawings sell for millions of dollars. Also that one piece where the artist just taped a banana to an empty canvas. Illustration is art…so I don’t know what they are on about. 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🙃🙃🙃🙃

if someone asks what's the difference between illustrator or artist , I would reply, " You obviously never heard of Alphonse Mucha". No difference.

Thank you for sharing your perspective bout illustrators/artists! ...I still don't understand, were the difference is or should be. Same with photographers... I guess I see it as you do - illustrators, photographers, sculpters, painters, drawers, potters, florists, architects, gardeners,... they are all artists of there own kind. I find. Thanks for the tip with the knife!! That's awesome!

I AM A PAINTER(portrait mostly(bah! Besides point!))). I do not care what any “artist” calls me. Because I don’t even call myself an artist. (Actually…I don’t even like when people call me an artist lol) To me “art” has become has become a banana duct taped to a wall or some stupid skit or a canvas that has paint thrown at it (which I have mixed feeling on all of this because of comedic effect) . Anyway my point. I don’t care what pretentious gatekeeper elitist tell me and you shouldn’t either because the vast majority are ignorant of their hypocrisy.

Very nice video! And quite interesting to see a bit more about your process! I enjoyed it very much 👍

I have come to a point where I don't really care anymore if people consider my work art or illustration. "Art" has gained the connotation of being not just a human activity but a status a piece gets when it's considered "worthy" enough - and honesty, sometimes on entirely arbitrary parameters. When someone says "that's not art" they usually mean it as an insult. And when they call you "an artist" they usually mean you are good at your craft - in their eyes. In their arbitrary parameters of what makes something "worthy" of being called art. While I do think illustration *is* art, I don't care much if others do. If they call me "just" an illustrator, that's still cool for me. Art is just one of many human activities. If you're something entirely different, like a scientist, you aren't inferior to an artist, just different - and I think the same about more closely related fields to art, such as illustration and design. Being categorized as Art won't make my work more fulfilling. Why would it be bad if my work falls into another category (such as "illustration"), as long as I enjoy it, it makes others happy, and it's an honest work that gives me purpose and pays my bills? GREAT video, I rarely come across this discussion and I was very interested to hear your perspective on it. I agree you can be both an artist and an illustrator. Your painting turned out great too, it brings back memories of when I was a kid and rented Beetlejuice for months in a row until my parents realized it was cheaper to just buy the VHS.

Illustrator and Artist are both jobs. Different jobs. Artists make personal work that explains their vision of the world. Illustrators create work that visually explains a concept (mainly) external to the illustrators personal vision, for a magazine or a book, say. Calling someone an Artist, because you think they are talented, means you are using the word Artist as an adjective (a descriptive word), you are not redefining their job, just complimenting them. Someone once told me that Ayrton Senna was an true Artist. But he was a driver. It’s no different to saying someone is a Master - that has a real professional meaning in many countries, but can simply be used to express adoration in the form of a simile, “She is a master of her craft”. A compliment, not the award of a professional qualification. This is just semantics, no need to get emotional about the way the English language describes things. What we should do instead is respect the word creative, whatever role the talented person carries out. Fine Art is close to a dead medium culturally, I mean, how many people have a Fine Artist as a cultural hero today? Probably time to pick a different word to big up talented people, one that people can generally make sense of.

Actually part two is supposedly being filmed, to be released September 6, 2024

Nice artwork. *But* the question is: Is it _original_ ? Or Is the artwork Just a _copy_ (work made from someone else's image)?

I don’t get the mindset of people who think that way. There is the same skill base and technique involved in illustration as in larger format work. If anything, illustration takes MORE skill, and illustration work is imminently more easy to collect and appreciate. It’s more tactile, which is an important human element. Many times, illustrative art is more beloved than current fine art work.

“No body is going to recognize this”….. dude! It’s freaking Beetlejuice! There’s a new one coming out too! I think it will be recognized!

Real paint is so expensive. I just stick with my pixels, but they're never quite as accurate as a real brush. However, I do have an undo button. Such a conundrum.

May I ask what kind of spray to fix your drawing? I have a drawing i want to gouache over but didn't know I could paint over the fixative.

I'm perfectly happy to say I make Illustrations/Drawings and leave it to the others to decide if they can call them Art. Since Art isn't a thing someone can describe or touch. It's a statement of perceived Value in the field of Beauty, so it's up to them to decide and judge. Also, Illustrator is simply a lot less confusing and feels less narcissistic as a self description.

I think there is something very wrong with negative commentary and a touch of bitter jealousy, projection of their selves as not good enough. After all its not about you when people comment that way but them in everyway. Love your work. Ps..I'm am old enough to remember this movie

There are maybe 1000 artists in the whole world. Everyone else are only drawers, or painters, or sculpters, or illustrators, or musicians, or writers...etc ..etc Being an artist is not what you do, or how well you do it. Its in how you see the world. Such hubris today.

Don't let those people get you down, man. They show their own ignorance with comments like that. You don't say a heart surgeon isn't a doctor just because he doesn't specialize in ear, nose, and throat. Different doctors specialize in different things, different artists specialize in different things.

I don't really have a problem being called a draftsman or an illustrator. Artist is an overrated honorific in many cases because it becomes a kind of catch-all. Art in my view is dependent on honest self expression. For a piece to be called "art" it has to be an honest bit of self expression, a reflection of environment or attitude or reformation. Artists are sometimes not very good draftsmen or illustrators, however their work is universally understood and interpreted by the wider audience. How do you put sadness into a painting of a woman's face? Especially a model you don't really know. You can put the puzzle pieces together and illustrate sadness - but in order to make an image that sticks with people their whole lives, there's where the art comes in to play.

I watched the film ... Love the scene you choose as well . ☺ btw if you get the 4k edition of these old films is not too hard to get a decent quality image .. i don't know if beetle-juice got restored or not . they still have the master of the film so they can make higher quality edition after a good restoration / retouch process . Modern film original quality is stupidly high ... we watch always a compressed lower quality version .

This would be considered narrative art which I believe illustrators are modern narrative artists. Narrative art is art that tells a story and is the art style of Michelangelo, davinci, Van Gogh etc. So anyone saying illustrative or narrative based artwork isn’t “real art” simply doesn’t know their art history.

There is this the same issue in tattooing as well. Forget the fact that classical artists might find tattooing derivative and low brow, but within tattooing there is a level of beat down between us as well. Some tattooers who may only specialize in traditional or neo traditional will run down those artists that work in realisim. Saying it's nothing more than being a photo copier. I wish artists as a whole would let go of grudges or jealousy and just celebrate another artist or move along. Whatever they choose to call you, you're doing something that no one else can do. Sure it's realisim but your mark making is spicific to you. And I'm a fan!

What ? Everyone knows Beetlejuice 🤔🤨

Maestro is this guash painting? In interested in ilustration,posters like Frank Fazeta do you have classes of guash ?

If what you have described as "illustrator" and "artist" are accurate modern definitions, then Da Vinci was an illustrator by his own words. I just finished reading his notes on art, life, and the sciences, and he very clearly illuminates his opinions on what painters were meant to do. He emphasized several times just how absurd it was for artists to copy artists, and encouraged the painter to chase after nature and the images that could truly further their craft, imagination, and impact on the viewer. It wasn't about the painter, it was always about the image. Here's a prayer for all the illustrators out there, may we illuminate the good, the true, and the beautiful for everyone who needs it.