No one is competing with you. I also didn't say you were full of yourself. I said you are misguided. Big difference. Being misguided is expected at this stage. Ignorance isn't the person's fault. Willfully remaining ignorant is though.
That's another problem with the whole concept of raw talent. You don't seek to improve yourself. Sure, you can "practice", but it's wasted effort. What's the point of practicing when you have no idea what to practice and how to practice those things effectively? It's purely ignorance that makes someone think raw talent is a compliment and when someone with skill tells you that, it's either A) telling you that you have potential, but you don't apply yourself or B) placating you. Someone who thinks you have potential enough to tell you tends to take a little time to try and help you bring it out at least a bit. Even if its just by teaching you some terminology.
The layman definition of technique is not Technique in art. Different fields use the same words, but they mean something different that you have to learn in order to understand anything. I used to be a dancer. in Dance, Technique has a completely different definition. Technique is your level of stretch, strength, balance, and muscle control. In Dance, Technique is a lot like Form in Martial Arts.
In visual art, Technique is thoughtful manipulation of design elements in regards to Line, Value, Color, Saturation, Tone, Direction, Texture, Framing, Shape, Opposition, Repetition, Variety, Visual Balance, Perspective, Scale, Spatial relationships, Staging, Style, and Contrast to visually communicate an idea or sequence of ideas. Effective technique requires training. Without it, you won't even know what the terms mean. Self teaching is a form of training, but really, it's not effective unless you already have some level of training to begin with.
I don't need to know you personally. We're talking about art and attitude. That puts you in a class of self proclaimed artists who formed opinions based on lack of knowledge and inexperience. One of many. This topic is repeated at least a few times a year that I see and you guys say the exact same thing. If I could copy/paste my responses from all the other threads on this topic, you wouldn't even know the difference.
"You don't know me". Pfft. We ALL know you.
Instead of getting defensive, you could have at least tried to understand why we're saying what we're saying. Ask questions if you don't get it. Here's something you could have found on your own:
Quote:
raw
adjective
1.
uncooked, as articles of food: a raw carrot.
2.
not having undergone processes of preparing, dressing, finishing, refining, or manufacture: raw cotton.
3.
unnaturally or painfully exposed, as flesh, by removal of the skin or natural integument.
4.
painfully open, as a sore or wound.
5.
crude in quality or character; not tempered or refined by art or taste: raw humor.
Synonyms
2. unprepared, rough,
makeshift. Raw, crude, rude refer to something not in a finished or highly refined state. Raw applies particularly to material not yet changed by a process, by manufacture, or by preparation for consumption: raw cotton; raw leather. Crude
refers to that which still needs refining: crude petroleum. Rude refers to what is still in a condition of rough simplicity or in a makeshift or roughly made form: rude agricultural implements; the rude bridge that arched the flood.
6. undisciplined, green, unskilled, unpracticed. 9. cold, wet. 10. straight, neat.
6 is EXACTLY what "raw talent" is. Anyone that considers that a compliment needs to open their eyes and pick up a book.
Edit: While I've got the site open...
Quote:
ignorant
adjective
1.
lacking in knowledge or training; unlearned: an ignorant man.
2.
lacking knowledge or information as to a particular subject or fact: ignorant of quantum physics.
3.
uninformed; unaware.
4.
due to or showing lack of knowledge or training: an ignorant statement.
Synonyms
1. uninstructed, untutored, untaught. Ignorant, illiterate, unlettered, uneducated mean lacking in knowledge or in training. Ignorant may mean knowing little or nothing, or it may mean uninformed about a particular subject: An ignorant person can be dangerous. I confess I'm ignorant of mathematics. Illiterate originally meant lacking a knowledge of literature or similar learning, but is most often applied now to one unable to read or write: necessary training for illiterate soldiers. Unlettered emphasizes the idea of being without knowledge of literature: unlettered though highly trained in science. Uneducated refers especially to lack of schooling or to lack of access to a body of knowledge equivalent to that learned in schools: uneducated but highly intelligent. 2. unenlightened.
Antonyms
1. literate. 2. learned.
Know what a word means before you use it to describe someone. It's kind of funny actually, calling me (edit: ANYONE, actually) ignorant when you proclaim yourself a "raw" talent when the words are interchangeable. Haha.