Inherited Gifts

[poliphilo]

Judy and I like to argue about whether artistic talent can be inherited. She says it can and I say it can't.

Yesterday I stumbled upon a family tree that supports her position.

John Doyle- Irish cartoonist- begat Richard and Charles Doyle- both of them distinuguished graphic artists- and Charles Doyle begat Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes.

What I'd say to her, if she ever found out about the Doyles, is that instances of artistic gifts manifesting in three generations of the same family are vanishingly rare. Can you think of another? I can't.

Comments

[jfs.livejournal.com]

The Redgraves and the Foxs in acting?

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Well perhaps.

For the Redgraves and the Foxs acting is the family business. These acting dynasties are a bit like banking dynasties or firms that pass from father to son. The question is whether talent is being passed down or merely a learned skill or trade. Do great actors produce children who are also great actors? I can think of odd examples. Michael Redgrave was a great actor and so is his daughter Vanessa. I'm not sure any other members of the family show extraordinary talent. Another two great actors who were members of the same family were Ellen Terry and John Gielgud

[heleninwales.livejournal.com]

It's difficult to say whether it's nature or nurture though. If a child grows up in a creative environment, they take creative activities for granted and are more likely to have a go themselves than if they were born into a non-creative family.

[haikujaguar.livejournal.com]

I agree with this. My ability to draw came from absolutely nowhere as far as my family's concerned--no one else in our family can draw. My daughter, though, has become a more-than-passable draftswoman because she sits with me at the table and draws with me, and I idly tell her how I do things, or she copies me. I don't think she has the passion that drives artists to become artists, but it's clear to me that environment and opportunity do influence whether people persist in overcoming their initial clumsiness at artistic pursuits.

In short, I don't think you can breed for artistic ability. But you can train it, and encourage it, and reward it, and that can be profoundly affecting. :)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That's true. Craft can be learned. There are families in which artwork of some kind is the family business. The Brueghels for example: one loses count of how many of them were painters. Still I think my point holds because- skilful as they all were- only one of them was a genius.

[qatsi.livejournal.com]

The https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bach_family runs to three or more generations of significant musicians (J S being in the middle). You might count the Prokofievs also, though in a variety of genres. I can think of a few father-and-son (Mozart, Shostakovich, Tortelier) combos but no others that stretch that far.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Yes, I'll concede the Bachs. I believe that in their day some of the junior Bachs were rated above the old man.

[w. lotus (from livejournal.com)]

It's more likely it's nurtured, not inherited. An artistic person who has kids or nieces/nephews with an interest in the arts is likely to nurture that by passing their connections and knowledge on to that family member. As a result the kid will know the arts are a viable option for them and will know how to get the training/exposure they need to make it in the arts.

[w. lotus (from livejournal.com)]

Also, the rest of the world is more likely to take that kids' aspirations seriously due to their family member's reputation in the arts. That is true whether the kid has any true talent or not.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

That's true.

An artist's children gets a head start in the arts- and may well follow in the parent's footsteps- but real talent can't be taught- only competence.

[w. lotus (from livejournal.com)]

I believe much of the mediocrity in today's "entertainment" is because of people having more connections than talent.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I hadn't considered that, but I suspect you have a point.

When I was a kid- back in the 60s- there was a huge influx of working class talent into the entertainment industry. I'm talking about the UK here, but I think it was much the same in the USA. I don't see anything similar happening today.