The Versatile Master Artist-Chapter 68 - 60: Buried Genius

"Why are there two identical paintings?"

By the coffee table, the translator lady’s tone revealed astonishment: "How can this be? Did the program make a mistake?"

In her eyes, the frames held by the judge lady in both hands were almost completely the same, with no noticeable differences.

Could one of them be a reproduction, or did the same painter create two identical paintings?

"No, these are two different works."

Koizumi Katsuko blinked. After the initial brief shock, she realized what had happened.

"Two painters used the same technique and perspective to paint, and both are exceptionally talented, so the results appear similar."

Collision painting!

Apart from Rei Louise, among the seven paintings, another painter also used the exact same technique.

They both chose colored pencils and the realistic style.

Both used a photo provided by Mr. Hibernian as a reference template, so the final effect was almost identical.

Miss Sakai observed the two mirrored illustrations Anna held, trying to discern the most subtle differences.

In realism, ordinary painters produce a motley of strange and bizarre works.

But true masters can achieve something infinitely close to reality.

The fact that the translator lady couldn’t even distinguish the difference between the two illustrations itself highlighted their excellence.

"Jean Arnou’s style leans towards cartoon, he’s not a realist painter, so these two paintings are not his works."

Koshiba Tarou is merely arrogant but not incompetent.

As the heir of Koizumi Hakurou, he is quite familiar with the art styles of the masters.

He almost effortlessly judged that the painting wasn’t by Jean Arnou.

So then...

Is it that mysterious network artist?

But this seems painted too well.

"It shouldn’t be. Such a painter... would he still be selling illustrations online part-time? Does he not have a professional signed gallery and art agent?"

Koshiba Tarou quickly estimated about the status and income of an excellent painter who could create works nearly like photographs in Xiaosong Gallery.

In art trading, illustrations are not highly regarded, sitting low on the disdain chain, considered as children’s art.

If you tell an oil painter his work has an illustration style, they’d think you’re insulting them.

Japan and Germany quite like illustrations, but old art powerhouses like Britain and France prefer oil paintings, so illustrations don’t fetch high prices.

But there is one exception.

That’s the United States.

Americans even treasure comics as art pieces; Old Europe has always seen this as a pig incapable of appreciating finer grain.

With the artistic level of either of these exquisite illustrations, combined with suitable promotional channels.

"Throw it into New York, polish it for a few years, and earning thirty thousand USD annually would be easy, even in the New York Bay Area they’d be considered wealthy. Why do part-time cheap illustrations online? Is he out of his mind?"

Koshiba Tarou’s voice was full of confusion.

He felt as if he saw a thoroughbred horse capable of making a name at JRA (Osaka Central Racecourse, Japan’s largest commercial sports event), running carriages in a place like Yamagata Prefecture instead.

Is he out of his mind?

"Mr. Xiaosong, perhaps President Xiaosong protected you too well, making you unaware of the world’s harshness."

Yakai Ichiro turned his head, letting out a nasal hum.

He came from a poor background, not impoverished, but in the relatively well-off circle of art students, Professor Yakai’s family conditions were modest.

In college, Yakai Ichiro drove his third-hand rickety Honda around Tokyo City’s streets giving private art lessons to wealthy kids to earn the tuition fees for studying in Spain, and he even sold sketches while avoiding supervisors at tourist spots.

Even his favorite beef yakitori could only be enjoyed once a week, his body fat once dropped to just 16%, making him quite slender from hunger.

Hearing Koshiba Tarou, he was displeased: "Inserting your own ideas into ordinary people’s world is both irrational and arrogant."

"Not everyone has the opportunity to access a good artistic environment and stage to showcase their talents."

"I was once invited to study in Central Asia, visiting Kyrgyzstan. Before the 1990s, many famous artists emerged from there. Outstanding art students from remote member countries could be sent to the empire’s center through the Soviet internal education system, and then spread worldwide from Moscow, the amplifier. But in the past two or three decades, art there was severed, not because there was no new excellent blood, but because they lost the ability to connect with the world’s vanguard trends, people just saw it as an isolated art desert."

"Many talented painters go their whole lives without a chance to showcase themselves."

Mrs. Sakai looked at Yakai Ichiro’s tone as somewhat too harsh and wanted to say something.

"Sigh... Xiaosong isn’t wrong to say that selling paintings online for a living is a bit too unconventional for an artist."

This time, Professor Yajima didn’t just nod along with his wife’s opinion.

He shrugged and retorted, "If every painter could achieve a status matching their abilities, then Van Gogh wouldn’t have lived a life of obscurity, right?"

When the example of this most unfortunate legendary painter in art history came up, the café fell into a brief silence, and no one spoke.

"The world is indeed vast."

Koizumi Katsuko exhaled slowly.

She had always thought she had been exposed to the best art circles in the world since childhood and had seen various talented young people.

Unexpectedly, during this visit to Yangon, she not only encountered Gu Weijing, a peer who was not much inferior to herself.

Now, in Mr. Hibernian’s new video, a random online painter, appearing from nowhere, showcased painting skills similar to those of a famous professor from the British Academy of Fine Arts.

Koizumi Katsuko’s eyes revealed a hint of excitement, along with a trace of disappointment.

If Gu Weijing, her peer, brought her only a sense of competitive spirit.

This obscure online painter brought her, hailed by the Japanese media as a once-in-a-century genius girl, only a sense of defeat.

Outsiders watch the fun, insiders watch the ways.

She knew,

The level displayed by these two illustrations was already a completely different level of competition.

Koshiba Tarou, who had been reprimanded by Professor Yajima, remained silent now.

Koshiba Tarou suddenly realized something, lowered his head, and was busy pressing on his phone.

"Damn, this might be a wild genius painter."

Koshiba Tarou was no longer concerned about why this mysterious illustrator was selling illustrations online to make a living.

He thought more about it.

He originally wanted to connect with Professor Rei Louise because he judged that as long as Professor Louis’s work was impressive enough, leveraging the popularity and discussions around Mr. Hibernian’s new video.

The value of the professor from the British Academy of Fine Arts should see a considerable increase.

Yet now, compared to the professors at the British Academy of Fine Arts, the illustrator currently selling art online was evidently a better choice.

Translating a ready gold bar into gold jewelry for sale, or discovering an unmined high-purity gold vein, whichever is more lucrative is easy to see.

Compared to already famous painters, any gallery or oil painting agent leans more towards unearthing some unknown treasures.

The international standard contract that prevails, the sharing contract between galleries and artist agents, is roughly 3:7.

This means if a painting can sell for 1,000 bucks, 300 bucks go to the gallery, and the remaining 700 bucks go back to the artist themselves.

But this prevailing ratio doesn’t actually carry much significance.

On the scales of the contract between the painter and the gallery, whoever has more importance also has more options.

The first contract offered by Xiaosong Gallery to newcomers with no reputation in the market usually has a cut of over sixty-five percent, and don’t despise it for being dark, it’s pretty much the same internationally.

No one thinks there’s anything wrong with this ratio, just the fact that a newcomer can catch the eye of Xiaosong Gallery, rich in art resources, is an immense honor itself.

But when it comes to well-known painters, this ratio would continually decrease.

When it reaches Uncle Sakai’s level, the choices return to the artist themselves.

The long-term contracts they typically hold, trying to poach such artists, start with signing fees in the several million US dollars range, and that’s just the starting point for negotiations; you might even need to consider offering them certain stock shares.

Xiaosong Gallery is only first in Osaka, not in the world, without offering astronomical sums, why would they allow you to represent them?

"No, wait, these two paintings don’t seem similar."

Uncle Sakai suddenly leaned his head forward, squinting his eyes, straining to look closer, as if trying to get closer to the painting frame in Anna’s hand on the screen.

He was so dedicated that even Professor Yajima’s long-absent neck reemerged.

"Ichiro?" Mrs. Sakai asked curiously.

"Something’s not right, really not right."

Uncle Sakai tightly stared at the screen, suddenly coughing: "Although I can’t see too clearly in the current video, nor can I confirm who painted each of the two paintings, the second painting is clearly better."

"And I feel it’s even unbelievably good."