Taste, along with talent, is what usually gets you into art in the first place. You probably have a knack for what looks good, what doesn’t, what sounds good, what flavors go together and so forth.
A hunch?
You have a knack for pairing things, really, based on hunches but sometimes theory understood intuitively. Other people may not come up with it on their own, but they are pleasantly surprised when you do it.
Then of course there is the problem of “bad” taste. Combinations that disappoint. And sometimes what looks bad now might look great tomorrow, dated next week, yet beautiful and timeless a hundred years from now.
The definition is slippery, but taste is a real thing for sure.
While I’m certain taste starts with liking things (or disliking them, even), it goes beyond that.
I think good taste can always quantify and explain itself given certain principles that have been proven time and again. What we have to be careful of is that we don’t confuse taste for personal preference.
In short, it’s a sort of pursuit of excellence.
Ira Glass and the Gap
Ira Glass (the guy who hosts This American Life on NPR) has talked about the gap between a beginner and his taste. In short, you have good taste, but your skills don’t always match up. And that’s frustrating.
Video: THE GAP by Ira Glass from Daniel (aka frohlocke) on Vimeo.
Also, don’t miss the Zen Pencils comic-strip version of Ira Glass’ talk.
What’s been your experience with taste and the struggle in getting your skills up to the same level as your taste? Or do you even worry about it at all?
Photo Credit: visualpanic via Compfight cc