The shocking truth behind this statement is, in fact, you can.

Many artists all share similar stories of friends, family, or even strangers telling them that they’re so talented, and that not everyone could draw like that. To many artists, calling their knowledge “talent” could be insensitive, and groups artists as something else than a regular person. Instead, take a moment to remember that artists have to work for many, many years, practicing and teaching themselves skill after skill in order to bundle it all together into one nice package that anyone can look at and enjoy, even if only momentarily.

It’s this system of self-learning that makes an artist, not a natural born talent. This fact means that if someone genuinely wanted to be as good as another at art, they could start learning. It’s not too late to begin teaching yourself the fundamentals, no matter what your age or career path is. Visual arts should be seen as both a fun hobby and a serious career, not one or the other. You don’t have to be incredible at your hobbies, so long as you enjoy them. This means you can start learning to draw more than that infamous stick-person you ramble on about to artists. There are many resources online to help you get started, many of which are pretty cheap or even free.

In terms of an artist’s “talent”, though, you should consider taking a different approach to compliments. A simple “that looks really cool!” or “I love your work!” would go much farther than downplaying your own abilities. In addition, all artists everywhere would appreciate if you avoid comparisons between their works and common media, as it puts down their work as less unique and more “this thing I like”.

It’s very easy to respect an artist, and it’s very hard to become one. This doesn’t mean it’s impossible, though. It just means that they’ve put as much work into it as many majors in other fields have into their degrees, possibly more or less depending on the efficiency of their studying. Remember this next time you wish to compliment an artist, both online and in person.