in a rut

[Sadclown]

Well it's offcial. I'm definitely in a rut with my drawing. It's like I've hit this plateau with my skills that I can't progress beyond.

If I try to replicate a picture or something I can see it comes out looking decent I suppose (not great by any means, but decent), but if I try to draw anything from my imagination it come out....how shall I put this...elementary? Just plain bad might be better.

The last few days I've spent more time looking at art thatn actually producing it. Between looking for a job and keeping up with a wife and household stuff half the time I'm too tired to even think of anything to draw, much less actually render it. And my trial copy of painter expired yesterday. bummer. :( Maybe I'll try painting with photoshop. I need a wacom.

ehhh...anyway, that's my rant for the night. Sorry, I just needed to vent. If anyone actually managed to read through all that, how do you guys get out of a rut?

:)

[Tedsuo]

It all comes down to basics. Whenever I have a problem, going over the basics really seems to help. Glen Vilppu has a drawing manual that you can buy. Going through it from start to finish really seems to help, I feel like I take a step forward every time I do it. Also try drawing from life/photos, but don't copy what you see. Deconstruct it and build it up the way you would something out of your head. You can find the weak spots in your technique that way. Then practice those weak spots until your hand cramps and your fingers blister :)

[Blackhawk]

I get out of a rut by drawing. DRAW DRAW DRAW. That's what I tell myself. I usually sit down with my dogs and do studies off of them or I'll set up a still-life and draw it. That's what I found helps me the most. I find if I don't draw it takes a lot longer to get out of the rut than if I were to just push past it and keep going full steam.

[Jason Manley]

if your in a rut...draw from life...draw anything...look...see...study...

inspiration has its ups and downs....looking at art will help you get thru the hard times....

the key is to keep taking steps...you will be out of it before you know it.

if you dont keep drawing...looking...thinking about art...then you wont progress.

it takes years...but I too have had very dry spells....swore i would never paint again...then a week or two later and Im painting my butt off....plateaus can last for months...if you keep drawing and making art then you will find breakthroughs.


try new medias...try something different...if you arent excited about the pencil...try making woodcuts...or using photo collage or anything...just keep doing.

j

[Beer Baron]

I was in the same situation as yourself not too long ago. Overly critical, nothing looked good, etc. Then I just happened to pick up The Natural Way to Draw and flip through it when I came across something EXTREMELY important. In the opening chapters the author says, "...not to be worried about the quality of the drawings. The main importance is that you do them." That kind of set off a switch in my head. Not every drawing will be a masterpiece so it's o.k. to miss the mark every once and a while. Reading that, or hearing that come from another person, was very liberating. It just seemed to refill me with energy and the slump passed. Suddenly things weren’t so bad.

So don’t worry if the quality of your current work isn’t up to museum standards. Just draw and don’t judge what you accomplish. Try 25 gesture drawings in 15 minutes. At that pace you will not have time to find faults in your drawings. Or try a blind contour drawing for a half-hour (or 2 for 15 min.) Anything to quiet the mind and get the pencil moving.

[davi]

drugs

[Lono]

Laxatives.



-Lono

[Blind]

Hookers.

[keyth]

horror

[amphex]

weiner?

[Tedsuo]

and a paaaarrtriiiidge in a pear treeeeee.....

[Sadclown]

:ahha: Well if nothing else you guys definitely made me laugh, which is something I need to do more often. Seriously tho, many thanks to all who provided suggestions. It's nice to finally find a forum where every thread doesn't turn into a flame war. i suppose I'm just going to have to produce some bad art until something good comes out.

It could happen.

[keyth]

tedsuo: LOL!!!

seriously though, sadclown, for me it's like that with any interest. i think people that push hard and choose to improve on a constant basis are prey to the burn out king.
i play the drums and the same thing happens with that. just don't stop.

[Sadclown]

Yeah, I definitely think that's true keyth. Not stopping is the solution, but also the hardest option sometimes.