How do I improve my drawing skills? Can one be like almost constantly inspired?

[RaistlinTheDark]

Ok, I used to post on my sketchbook but then i looked at it, and I said: This shit sucks, I won't post till I'm pro!(because I really hate arrogant artists, and I try not to be one) It's just that it seems to me that I make small headway/improvement or none at all. And, idk, when I first began to try to hone my skills, I was super depressed (so inspiration was no problem lol), but I was never afraid of just drawing for the sheer joy and love of it...and now? I am not depressed (which is good), but I became stuck in on: I can't draw shit, I freak out, and then I can't draw anything without being stressed out about it coming out good...like people still tell me that I'm good ( and so far i have been self-thought), but I believe otherwise or think that I could do better, so in the end I don't get shit done and I'm stuck in one place. How do i brake free of this, because now I don't even know what to begin with!

My dad said that my problem was that I worried to much, wanted to start at the top instead of at the bottom, dream too much about being a good artists in the span of a second, and that I'm lazy (which is another bad habit of mine)

So :
1)How can i beat this f@#$ing problem?
2)What's a good way to improve my skills and pencil like those amazing artists that like work for huge gaming companies (Blizzard's my goal :] ), or like those artists that start out at worse-than-shit-level and in 4,5 years they're at the top of their game?
3) Is there a way to be almost constantly inspired? (cause I feel like I've been really dull the past 2 years, as if my creative spark has vanished)
4) I can't believe it I just wrote a damn essay on here...oh and what are good software/digital programs for me to start looking into besides photoshop? And how do i improve the control I have over my drawing hand so I can draw steadier>

You guys would be a great help if you helped me out here, cause I just turned 16 like in March and I need to get back on track if I want to accomplish my goal and work for Blizzard!

Cheers

[JJacks]

I think whenever an artists over thinks things they become doubtful and it really hinders in their ability to draw.

I think that you know you can draw certain things and when you see your progress slowing down you kind of forget all of the other areas in art that you could be focusing on and improving on. At least that's how it was for me...this is such an abstract feeling it's hard to say I know how you feel or why you feel this way.

At the base of it you just have to practice, look at art, and practice some more. The more you work and observe and experiment the more you will develop of solid way of drawing that works for you. No one can be constantly inspired.

[Noah Bradley]

My dad said that my problem was that I worried to much

Your dad's a smart man.

Stop worrying so much and get drawing. If you convince yourself that you're "inspired" or "creative," then some day you really will be. It goes by my latest favorite motto: fake it till ya make it.

[Elwell]

My dad said that my problem was that I worried to much, wanted to start at the top instead of at the bottom, dream too much about being a good artists in the span of a second, and that I'm lazy (which is another bad habit of mine)
Listen to your father.
1)How can i beat this f@#$ing problem?
Just do it.
2)What's a good way to improve my skills and pencil like those amazing artists that like work for huge gaming companies (Blizzard's my goal :] ), or like those artists that start out at worse-than-shit-level and in 4,5 years they're at the top of their game?They drew all the time, because they enjoyed it. All of it. Even the parts where they sucked and knew they sucked. Because they knew the only way not to suck was to do it.
3) Is there a way to be almost constantly inspired?
No. So, you either do it anyway, or don't worry about it and do something else.

[Nrx]

a very common flaw of the human ego, i wrote a bit about my expierence with it on the first page of my sketchbook if you want to look, but here

your ego has built itself an identity out of being a artist, that gives you a sense of validation. You now have something to loose. sooo you dont want to jepordise this, and you loose inspiration.

how do you over-come it? learn to self validate yourself, you shouldnt be depressed ever man, EVER. im happy 99% of the time, the 1% were im not i go shit im not happy, and flip the happy switch.

then throw away all labels that you apply to yourself, to quote fight club (badly)

You are not your clothes, you are not your car, you are not your job

After you've done this youll realise you can do anything and it'll be fun, because then you take enjoyment from the act of 'doing' it rather than having your self worth tied up in the future success of this pursuit.

errr if this isnt being explained well add me on msn, im fucking up this forum post, well hope this helps :p

[Farvus]

You got great dad. Mine was never really interested in my efforts with drawing.

1) I think for now focus on the thing that you do purely for it's own sake. Drawing cool stuff is your reward. Blizzard could be additional bonus.

2) You have to get obsessed with drawing/painting and don't neglect any exercise that would push you to another level. If it means drawing cast studies, still life or gesture drawings for few months then so be it. Clench your teeth and do it. At first it might seem boring but the more you'll get into it the more you'll find pleasure in simpliest exercises.

3) No. But you can draw without that.

4) There are programs like openCanvas, PaintTool SAI, Corel Painter, ArtRage, GIMP. You can improve the control you have over your hand by drawing a lot.

[Max Challie]

I believe it is possible to be almost constantly inspired. If you love art so much that the very idea of practising in it excites you, you can find inspiration in the activity itself. If you practise all the time, it should be because drawing is what you love, and nothing else makes you happier (IMO, lol). The more you enjoy it, the more you will want to do it :)

[wheezy]

Dude, what you are asking has been asked so many times, and so many times has the answer has been nearly the exact same. Draw your ass off whenever you can. It really is that simple. In the end no matter how much people tell you or how much you read, the BIGGEST impact on improvement will come from what you DO.

Stop being emo about your art. Your attitude is what is causing your frustrations. YOU sound like YOU are the WALL to your own improvement. Stop bitching. Close this browser. Turn the damn video games and tv off.

Take your sketchbook with you everywhere. Don't give a shit what people think about that. If they don't like it, tell them to go fuck their selves. And if you can't draw in public, tell yourself to fuck yourself because drawing from life helps tons. Even if you dont get a chance to use it, take it with you.

[throtailer]

Dude, what you are asking has been asked so many times, and so many times has the answer has been nearly the exact same. Draw your ass off whenever you can. It really is that simple. In the end no matter how much people tell you or how much you read, the BIGGEST impact on improvement will come from what you DO.

Stop being emo about your art. Your attitude is what is causing your frustrations. YOU sound like YOU are the WALL to your own improvement. Stop bitching. Close this browser. Turn the damn video games and tv off.

Take your sketchbook with you everywhere. Don't give a shit what people think about that. If they don't like it, tell them to go fuck their selves. And if you can't draw in public, tell yourself to fuck yourself because drawing from life helps tons. Even if you dont get a chance to use it, take it with you.

Fuck yeah dude ure awesome. You all motherfuckers are awesome. Thanks many much. I was afraid to draw becouse i was certain im shit and my drawing is the shittiest as shit and i never thought i can not think like that. What makes me shit? I think nothing. So i better go enjoy drawing fuck yeah

[Leonor]

Don't wait to feel inspired. You cannot anticipate Christmas before ever having celebrated one.

A feeling is an automatic response to what you value and it takes a while to become automatic. What you need to do is to think consistently that drawing is of value without allowing contradicting thoughts. Think "hey, I did a good job today" even if it doesn't feel that way. You worked toward's your goal. Remember the path to your final goal (job at Blizzard) is a long staircase to the top and you start climbing from the botton. It's not an instant teleporter. Knowledge doesn't get instantly uploaded to your mind, a la matrix.

Notice when you improved, comparing to yourself, and give yourself credit. Feel proud. Notice when you didn't improve, spot all your mistakes, ask for feedback if needed, and commit to fix them. Feel proud too. Focus on what you can do now, not what you cannot do yet. Your work is good not comparing to the work of others, but comparing with the standards of the art. So learn the standards needed.

When you finally learn to enjoy working, it might happen that before you start drawing you'd be anticipating the pleasure. That's what inspiration is.

I filled my first sketchbook in ages. I don't automatically feel proud of it, because I'm always depressed. My mind automatically makes excuses to quit and it does it all the time. I decided to ignore this. Did I stop pushing the baby out because it hurt? No, I did my pushing and I got my baby. So I'll do my pushing now too.

I think it was in this forum that I've read once "you don't need to practice moaning." :)

[rebelionature]

Its seems this issue has already been addressed, but id like to throw my two cents into because I am just finding out how to do these things. I would often stop drawing because i thought that i could not force myself, even though i do love it. I would get frustrated and stop because i wasn't doing badass work like that i see here. And ive been told the same things you were just told, but it just seemed to make it worse. But ive been finding my own way of going about this.
this is what i keep in my mind.
1. I cant create good stuff until i make a thousand more things that i find shitty.
2. Drawing from memory is fun, but not very beneficial until you have been doing studies for a while, although the longer you do these the better your own creations will be.
3. If i give in to my dismal thoughts and feelings, i will never go anywhere in life. Sometimes it about learning how to work without initial enthusiasm and have faith that once you start it will get more comfortable and fluent.
4. I had to realize that i cant produce the quality of art i want in a week, a month, or maybe even years. Because regardless of how good we get most will still be subject to our own unfair criticism, But you must start somewhere.
5. It helps to start small, and over time it will become a habit(9 days ive heard tell for something to become habit). The other fine members here say to draw regardless of how you feel, and i agree. But i find that if i feel that i have to draw it ruins the enjoyment for me, even an hour a day is fine in my opinion if normally it was only 10 minutes before. It will grow from there because you will be improving.
6. Do study's, they only require enough focus to find a area you are weak in and do copy's in that regard. It helps for me to do this with a nice cup of coffee, music, and some smokes. If my head starts to get tense ill just get up and walk around and clear my head a bit, than return a few minutes later.
7. Most artist have this issue, the successful ones are the ones that can work with it.
oh ya and this 8. Don't worry about how good your stuff is, just worry about if you attempt it or not.
well thats my rant, sorry for the grammar(just woke up). All these things are things i'm still learning myself, so your definitely not alone in this. With that said it time for some posemanics.com!

[nicehighs]

Damn I miss this site kind of feel bad for being away for so long. I have recently started forcing myself to draw even though I don't feel like it. The best way to improve is just to do it, find other artist you admire and do a shitload of thumbnails studies, it's the only way. I'm gonna try to go 8 hours a day because that's what the pro's do. I mean would you rather get paid to draw or lift boxes? Life is not a fairy tale everything you do has it's ups and downs.

[justviewing13]

just what i needed... Better get a pencil somewhere and start pushing myself too...

[Twelve]

Just draw man, upload your sketches even if they are terrible as you say. People here will advise you and give you critique. It doesn't matter if your sketches don't turn out the way you want (mine never do.......yet...) Drop your worries, the more you draw the better you get. Simple. Like learning to play guitar or violin, you wont be instantly good. Dont treat your drawing as though they are precious, they are just a line of study. If you hate your drawings, look at it and ask why you hate it, make notes if need be. Then stick it in a folder and dont look at it anymore but do dwell on the points where you went wrong in order to get it better next time. Keep drawing, everyday, all year. After that year look at your work you've done. You will be surprised in how far you have come. Constant inspiration? Collect a bank load of art and artists you like, things that make you go 'I wanna do that!!!!'. CA also gives me good kick by browsing the sketchbooks for an hour each morning.

And.....finally.....Dont just study all the time, let yourself play around in your imagination and have fun drawing that every once in a while. The key is to have fun exploring. You can achieve that through both study and imagination.

As you grow as an artist you will feel more confident in your mistakes. Andrew Jones stated in Imagine FX magazine a few issues ago - "You will learn more when you learn how to fail with confidence" That just stuck with me.

[Dilated]

Look at it this way, push your self now as much as you can even if you think your work is utter shit. Think about how much of a bad ass your going to be down the track after constant practicing, think about those insane characters, enviroments, paintings, sculptures your going to be making, maybe even master lens glare (ignore that last bit). Think about the choice you made to become a amazing artist instead of wasting time not practicing sulking.

There is no doubt the better you become the enjoyment can only increase.

[So-naa]

I don't know if people will see my question within a question, but I'm curious. If you practice so much you are used to only drawing what's real.. How do you get into creating imaginary things? What if you gravitate toward drawing from life all the time and have a hard time stepping away from it?

[SigonWulf]

I don't know if people will see my question within a question, but I'm curious. If you practice so much you are used to only drawing what's real.. How do you get into creating imaginary things? What if you gravitate toward drawing from life all the time and have a hard time stepping away from it?

Then you continue to draw from life?

[StallionOfBeachhaven]

I'm 14 too, I've been drawing all my life you'll get better over time. Don't doubt yourself if you feel your drawing aint top notch just keep drawing I have a pad with me and I just draw in class sometimes you'll doodle something little and it inspires you to draw a bigger version of it. And that thing you said about 4 - 5 years and they're instantly good, you have it in you to do that if you focus on it.

[gogidolim]

Just draw from everyday stuff. I am a Korean so I can say still life is the fundamental requirement for a good artist. Just draw bottles, pencil sharpners, mices, pens, fire hoses, lamps and all that kind of stuff. It might be boring, but doing that for a solid year will greatly improve your drawing skill.

Then move on to human figure and spend another year drawing nothing but human figures. I might suck at painting but I can give good advices on drawing.

[Jovian M]

Just draw from everyday stuff. I am a Korean so I can say still life is the fundamental requirement for a good artist. Just draw bottles, pencil sharpners, mices, pens, fire hoses, lamps and all that kind of stuff. It might be boring, but doing that for a solid year will greatly improve your drawing skill.

Then move on to human figure and spend another year drawing nothing but human figures. I might suck at painting but I can give good advices on drawing.

What does being Korean have to do with that, at all?

Oh, and just draw, broseph. Lots of studies 'n all that.

[JParrilla]

I am a Korean so I can say still life is the fundamental requirement for a good artist.

??? WTF lol. I didnt realise that being Korean had such a profound effect on this

[gogidolim]

??? WTF lol. I didnt realise that being Korean had such a profound effect on this

Because doing still life, especially drawing all the plaster casts is a requirement for entering art schools in Korea.

When I was a 8th grader back there, I started taking some private art classes. I had to do a whole bunch of still life, just like any other art kids did. It really helped my observation and hand-eye coordination skills.

[So-naa]

Then you continue to draw from life?

LOL But what if you want to do fantasy? Even combining things that are real tend not to be exaggerated enough?

[So-naa]

What does being Korean have to do with that, at all?

Oh, and just draw, broseph. Lots of studies 'n all that.

Well he might be considering any cultural difference. My professor from Japan never had self portrait and was blown away when he came to the usa because it seemed constantly self portrait. He liked it, but I do think he has a different teaching style due to his life experiences? It might be a consideration for others?

[corel]

About the inspiration part:
What i do is i'm subscribing for some art blogs and sites - so whenever i feel a little "empty" i just launch my google reader and just browse through different postings and topics - i get inspired in no time!
some cool sites:
"Brain Pickings"
"Creative Nerds"
"Only Creative"
"PSDFan"
"Smashing Magazine"

DO check them out!

[gogidolim]

Well he might be considering any cultural difference. My professor from Japan never had self portrait and was blown away when he came to the usa because it seemed constantly self portrait. He liked it, but I do think he has a different teaching style due to his life experiences? It might be a consideration for others?

Right. And unfortunately figure drawing is not a huge thing in Korea. Heck, even figurative art itself is not hot because that's where the real skill shows and most senior artists in Korea are more in conceptual/abstract things. Most people who can do figure drawing and painting just leave the country or work for video game studios...

Actually, drawing and sketching everyday object is really helpful. If you have whole bunch of small toys, draw them everyday. Just don't stick with things like Legos because drawing them won't improve your skill that much.

[Gerulaitis]

Try the following:

1. make tons of bad drawings
2. learn not to care

[gogidolim]

Try the following:

1. make tons of bad drawings
2. learn not to care

Damn! That's a very good advice! Seriously, I was worrying about making bad drawings/paintings all the time!

[dcorc]

I don't know if people will see my question within a question, but I'm curious. If you practice so much you are used to only drawing what's real.. How do you get into creating imaginary things? What if you gravitate toward drawing from life all the time and have a hard time stepping away from it?


Convincing-looking imaginary things are convincing because they obey similar rules to the ones that determine the appearances of real-life objects - so therefore you start by learning how to draw real-world things.

[OmenSpirits]

Drawing.

1 part inspiration

2 parts perspiration.

Learning isn't always about fun. It's about training yourself both mentally and physically to work towards a goal: creation.

If you draw only when inspired, don't aspire to a professional level as a working artist, because that doesn't work...when it's work.

[donm]

you've got a great dad, mine has actually hindered my drawing growing up, without even knowing it...like for example when I was younger trying to draw a figure he would walk by and say something like 'hahaha look at him, hes making a weird face' and just walk out. I love my dad but, lets just say he can't even mutter the word 'art' without feeling uncomfortable...idk where that comes from. anyway I have had this problem very recently myself, getting stressed at my progress and constantly seeing people like andree wallin posting on da 3 or 4 great masterpieces in a week when I would post 1 sketch that no one comments on.

On to my advice: my advice is make sure you are at least content with your personal life apart from art or art studies, like friendships or health, and to find something that inspires you to draw. In my case, it's either perousing sideshow collectable galleries, listening to epic scores on pandora, or playing a videogame with a group of friends. the thing is you will fail and fail until you die, but along the way you will make happy mistakes and slowly realize you are getting better as well. NEVER QUIT AND BE PRODUCTIVE is my message, if you truly enjoy creating art.

[Helioth]

what elwell and nrx said pretty much.

Stop identifying yourself with what you just produced.
the more you produce, the less you will feel like you need to do this (identify i mean), because you'll realize it can just flow from you, like breathing.
Imagine if breathing were a rare occurence and, when we had to do it, we had to do it well, and we all competed with one another about how well we breathed, that'd be fucking annoying, wouldn't it?

Just go be fresh.

And.
I am almost constantly motivated, but, not always enough to draw things to a level i see them in my mind, in. So it just depends if you want it badly enough and if it comes naturally for that, or not.
Philosophy is great. And of course music.

Coro said to me in the workshop "you gotta do what interests you man".
Can't believe I didn't realize that before :/
Don't try to do recognized studies or procedural art, always mix it up, keep it enjoyable, even if you can bear the boring stuff some of the time, why not just enjoy it, and make it not boring if you can?

Just flip that happy switch ;o

[Ninjerk]

like for example when I was younger trying to draw a figure he would walk by and say something like 'hahaha look at him, hes making a weird face' and just walk out.

To this very day, my family members will laugh at my representational portraits and say something like, "haha it looks like she has a beard" (shadow between the chin and neck). That kind of attitude has bothered me since I was very young and my cousin would make off-the-wall comments about what I was drawing. Unless I'm doing fig./representational art I still can't let people see me doing sketches and such.

[Helioth]

To this very day, my family members will laugh at my representational portraits and say something like, "haha it looks like she has a beard" (shadow between the chin and neck). That kind of attitude has bothered me since I was very young and my cousin would make off-the-wall comments about what I was drawing. Unless I'm doing fig./representational art I still can't let people see me doing sketches and such.

If you can, try bearing it, sometimes, it's actually quite helpful.

At worst, if what you're drawing is good, you can say to them "by making that kind of remark all you're doing is declaring your own stupidity (or weak powers of observation)" - at best, they can actually help you to see flaws of it!
Try to find a balance, and overcome your maybe since childhood ingrained fear?

And maybe let them know it's a little hurtful, and that they're insensitive sometimes.
You don't gloat over their equations or papers and say "HAHA, WRONG, YOU SAID A DUCK WAS A BEAR OLOL!"

[RaistlinTheDark]

Hey guys thanks for the advice, I guess all i have to do is get over the shit that's going on in my life, be happy, start drawing, and do what i love doing.

Cheers