James Baquet

    Becky is chatting with her classmate Lily in the common room of their dorm.

    Becky: Hi, Lily. What’s that?

    Lily: I’m studying some art history, and this is a list of different kinds of art and the artists that do them. Can you help me?

    Becky: Sure. Let me see. Well, of course, the two most common are people who paint and people who make sculptures. So they are?

    Lily: Well, painters are the ones who paint. That’s easy. But what’s a sculpture?

    Becky: It’s another word for statue.

    Lily: Oh, yeah. Those artists are called sculptors.

    Becky: That’s right!

    Lily: But there are different kinds of painting: oil painting, watercolors, tempera, and so on. How do we distinguish the different kinds of painters?

    Becky: You can say “watercolorist,” but it’s okay to say “watercolor painter.” The same with “oil painter” and “tempera painter.”

    Lily: That’s easy enough!

    Becky: In fact, for lots of different kinds of work, we have the occupational endings “-ist” and “-er,” but we often just put a word like “artist” behind the type of work.

    Lily: Can you give me examples?

    Becky: Sure! Do you know what a mural is?

    Lily: It’s a painting painted directly on a wall. Like Diego Rivera, the Mexican artist!

    Becky: Good example. Anyway, someone like Rivera can be called a “muralist.”

    Lily: I see, “-ist” on the end.

    Becky: Exactly. In other cases we add “-er” or “-or.”

    Lily: I think I have this one. A person who illustrates books is an “illustrator.”

    Becky: Very good! And someone who makes pots is a potter.

    Lily: But if they’re ceramic pieces we can say “ceramicist.”

    Becky: Yes, back to “-ist.”

    Lily: I’m starting to get it.

    Becky: In many cases though, we just put “artist” behind the type of work.

    Lily: For example?

    Becky: An artist like Marc Chagall, who worked in stained glass, could be called a “stained glass artist.”

    Lily: What about someone who draws?

    Becky: If it’s someone who draws quickly, we can say “sketch artist.” Otherwise, you can name the medium and add “artist” behind.

    Lily: Like “charcoal artist” or “pen and ink artist.” What about someone who makes prints?

    Becky: Some of them can take an “-er.” For example, a person who makes lithographs is called a “lithographer.” Others can be called “printmakers.”

    Lily: Can we call these people “graphic artists?”

    Becky: Sure, although sometimes the graphic arts are not considered fine arts, when the product is meant to be used.

    Lily: I think I’ve got it. Thanks, Becky!