How do you keep yourself from burning out?

[jakesworthy]

When I draw for more than 2 or 3 hours, pictures start getting sloppy and shitty. My ability to draw turns into a down hill slide of frustration.

So my question is, are there any drawing exercises to level yourself back out? And I do take breaks regularly enough.

[yinteck]

Keep pushing and dont let yourself burn out at the first place. Stop and come back for you drawing again.

[George Abraham]

Develop good working strategy.

Speedpainting kinda stops when you get exhausted and impaired but other stuff you can break down into stages of refinement etc.

[Hyskoa]

Take a proper break every hour, go for a walk,take a nap, anything that will rest your eyes for 15 minutes.

[Mock]

I actually use studies to help me during those times. Recently I've been working on a lot of portfolio and commission work, and I find that after a few hours my brain starts getting fried. So I either 1) take a break and do something completely non-art related (watching a really good movie that has the same genre/mood as what I'm working on helps a lot) or 2) put aside what I'm working on and do some figure drawing from photos, work on a master copy, etc.

Doing art to keep from burning out on art might seem a bit counterproductive, but it works pretty well for me, and helps me progress as well.

There are times, however, when you just need to put art away for a day or so. Clear the art books off your desk, put your pencils in a drawer, close photoshop, and just chill for a couple of days. Pushing yourself is essential at times, but I'm sure you know that you tend to draw a hell of a lot better when you actually want to draw. Staying away from it for a couple of days tends to get me really motivated to draw when I get back to it. I have a schedule for drawing that I stick to pretty religiously all week, so when Saturday rolls around I pack everything up and have a day to refresh my determination. Browse the forums to talk to other artists, catch up on my subscribed sketchbooks, things that will get me revved up to start drawing the next day. Think of it as refueling your tank of motivation.

One great thing to do on that off day is buy some of the CA downloads and watch those when you feel burnt out. Not only does it give you a kick in the ass to see some of the best artists at work, but you're actually learning. I have about 10 that I rotate through whenever I feel burnt out. After watching it enough times, the things they mention will come to mind as you're painting.