Response to Jenna Haley's question

Plato believes that an artist doesn't know what he is painting or making because it is an imitation of an imitation. When saying this what he means is that when a craftsmen makes an object he is simple trying to recreate the perfect image of what he believes to be the perfect object. Now when an artist makes a painting he is creating the image of a copy. so he doesn't understand what the copy is actually supposed to look like and can not improve on the object at hand. Now my question for you is if you were to take painting and use it to try and improve on the object then wouldn't this put art at the same level as the copy?