artist

be an [artist/patriot/professional/etc.] to your fingertips

if you say that someone is an artist, patriot, professional etc. to their fingertips, you mean that they behave in a way which is completely typical of such a person, and it is the most important part of their character. Mark, a professional to his fingertips, insisted that we should make proper joints, not simply nail the pieces of wood together.

See also: fingertip, patriot

a piss-artist

1. someone who tries to make people believe they have knowledge about a subject, but who really does not know much about it. Those so-called multi-media consultants were just a bunch of piss-artists.

2. someone who is often drunk. He's a nice enough bloke but he's a real piss-artist.