Left-Handed Artists: A Little Mess, a Lot of Creativity

Being a left-handed artist can sometimes feel like working in a world designed for the other hand. From scissors and pencil sharpeners to desks and certain art tools, plenty of everyday objects have traditionally been made with right-handed users in mind. Fortunately, when it comes to making art, being a lefty is usually more of an interesting quirk than a serious obstacle.

One of the biggest challenges for left-handed artists is smudging. When drawing or writing from left to right, the hand can pass directly over fresh graphite, charcoal, pastel, or ink. Left-handed artists often learn to work in a different direction, rotate their paper or canvas, or simply keep a scrap sheet beneath their hand. Even the placement of a palette, reference image, or light source may need to be flipped to make a workspace more comfortable.

There can be advantages, too. Left-handed artists often become good at adapting their tools and working methods because they’ve been doing it their entire lives. And while being left-handed doesn’t automatically make someone more artistic or creative, it certainly hasn’t stopped some of history’s greatest artists....
In fact, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has highlighted a pretty impressive list of famous left-handed artists, including Michelangelo, Paul Klee, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Peter Paul Rubens, Hans Holbein the Younger, Vincent van Gogh, and Leonardo da Vinci. Leonardo is an especially interesting case: he was famous for writing in reverse, or “mirror writing,” and modern research suggests he may actually have been capable of writing with both hands.

Whether you paint with your left hand, your right hand, or somehow manage to use both, there’s no “correct” hand for making art. At Pinot’s Palette, everyone can settle in, grab a brush, and create in whatever way feels most natural. And if you’re a lefty, just choose your seat wisely... as you may want a little extra elbow room on your left!

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