Who are your favorite artists and what excites you about their work? Is there a general style or period you cherish or a do you enjoy a smorgasbord of eras?

I got into a discussion tonight about favorite artists with my partner and we ended up down a fascinating rabbit hole of what I found so appealing about them. Art can be such a unique, personal, and even intimate experience and I'd love to hear your own experiences.

Photography is a bit of an odd form of art, especially if you're not doing anything 'weird' with it. Occasionally I'll be thinking about photography as a hobby and a bit of dread sets in about how every photograph I could think of has already been taken and done better than I could. And so I think, what is the point? Why do I enjoy photography?

So, after a few highly coherent 3am thinking sessions, I have come to my conclusion. My "philosophy", if you can call it that, behind why I enjoy photography is that I use it as a way to appreciate what I see and the world around me. I don't consider myself an artist because I just use photography as a way to display something beautiful that already existed. (Not that I don't consider other photographers who do similar stuff to me artists, that's just how I view myself.)

If there are any other photographers on here, amateur or professional, I am interested in hearing your beliefs and what meaning you put towards your photography, whether its general or for specific photos.