If a batter doesn’t hit a home run, is he a failure? Have you ever heard a baseball player say, “I had four hits today, but unfortunately, none of them were home runs”? Of course not. It does, however, have everything to do with being yourself. This has nothing to do with being superficially “different” relative to other artists. So, how do you tap into the intangibles? Answer the tough questions of who you want to be and what you want to say as an artist. The indefinable something that sets them apart. The best baseball players are described as having “the intangibles.” Derek Jeter (much to my Yankee-hating chagrin) is famously in this group. Since the intangible speaks to our artistic identity, we must ultimately come to that conclusion ourselves. Sure, our friends, colleagues, and teachers can help us answer who we are as artists, but only to a point. Much like baseball-fundamentals can be taught. Oddly, the artists themselves are interesting and inspiring, but none of that comes through in their work. At conferences and schools around the country, I saw the same uninspired decisions being made as if children’s book illustration is a formula-with artistry being an optional ingredient. On the other hand, a lack of personality is often the problem. The result is a body of work that comes across as amateurish and primitive. Their problems are made worse by the fact that they also have a tenuous grasp of their chosen medium. Many suffer from a lack of prowess-the basic principles of drawing and painting needed to professionally execute personality. Most aspiring illustrators have room for growth in at least one of these areas. Or in baseball terms: intangibles and fundamentals. Your work should show potential art buyers what you want to say and how well you can say it. “What do art directors look for in an illustrator’s portfolio?” How many times have you thought about the answer to this question? For me, the answer is simple: personality and prowess.

So pull up your socks and chew on some gum-we’re talking baseball and illustration! INTANGIBLES AND FUNDAMENTALS With outfield assists from fellow baseball fans Sarah Bunting, Tad Carpenter, John Hendrix, Kenard Pak, and Matt Tavares, we discuss the lessons artists can learn from our national pastime. How deep? I still loved them after what happened in the spring of 1988 (look it up).Īs a fan of baseball, I can’t help but notice the parallels and lessons that directly apply to something else I love: illustration.

I’ll skip the blurry anecdotes and poetic waxing of what the O’s have meant to me.

Tad carpenter with his parents