Who is the real artist?

Although those who interpret works of art may be considered artists themselves, I believe the true artists are those that create those works, those that make something out of nothing. Let us use the example of musicians first. Sure, a musician delivers a piece of art and makes it available for others to admire or criticize, but all they essentially do is read off a page. Composers, on the other hand, must create sound patterns out of nothing but silence. They have no reference point, nor indications or directions telling them what to do. I myself serve as a good example of this. I love singing and covering songs that have already been written and composed by other artists, yet I find it extremely difficult to compose a song myself. It takes much more work to actually create a work of art than it does to interpret it or copy it. The same goes for painters, writers, photographers, and those that interpret their work. While interpreters are creating a story or situation in their heads to try to explain the original artists’ thought processes based on their work, actual artists must find meaning in something, with no outside support or guidance. They aren’t being shown what to interpret, or what to depict.