Want to enjoy drawing again.

[Elfwing]

Hello!

I'm relatively new to the forum - I mostly lurk.

I've been drawing on and off for almost five years. I originally started to draw because I loved seeing how other people can copy their mind directly onto paper - and I wanted to learn to do that, I still do.

The problem is, I don't draw enough, so I can hardly improve the way I want to. I occasionally go through phases - lasting from a few days to a couple of weeks - where I do nothing /but/ draw, but these are incredibly rare. When I'm in those phases, it seems that I just have to draw. The last one I got into was when I was working on my World of Warcraft addiction. While I'm not good, I'm not bad either and I really think I have the potential to get a lot better.

The problem is developing the discipline.

I can really feel this "calling" to draw. This feeling that I have to draw, that I can't just quit and walk away. But sometimes when I draw, I hate every moment of it. The only part I enjoy is making vague, sketchy lines. I enjoy the drawing itself, the act of moving the pen/pencil, yet I can't help but hate it at the same time. In my "phases", I don't get that feeling, I just go into a complete trance while drawing with no drawbacks whatsoever. When I'm not in them, however, my palms sweat to the point where it's distracting, and I can't help but hate -everything- I put onto the page/screen, and then frustration comes and the room suddenly feels incredibly hot, and the feeling doesn't fade for ages. I still feel hot right now, and the heat's been off for hours.

I really don't want to have to stop - because when I enjoy it, I do enjoy it. I also love seeing the end result, seeing what I've created whether I'm in that phase or not, and as a writer I want to be able to draw concepts and really -see- them. I want to improve and not wait on the whim of... whatever this is.

Any advice?

[ar81]

1.Expose yourself to an inspiring environment.
2.Expose yourself to groups and people who draw.
3.Expose yourself to the joy of imagination.

If you talk about discipline to finish your picture, try to make drawings that do not take long.
Then make drawings that take a bit longer and longer...
Try to compete with yourself. next drawing must be a hit.

[FrancesL]

Sounds like you might be sort of a perfectionist. And you get stressed when you're drawing if you think your drawing isn't good enough. Maybe you could try shifting your focus away from achieving a perfect finished drawing, and more towards getting really immersed in the whole process of generating new ideas and new pages of draft work?

For example, if you enjoy making rough sketches, try just letting yourself do that for a fixed period of time - a week or two, say. Tell yourself, 'I'm going to do a rough sketch every day for the next two weeks.'

Then every time you do a rough sketch (without being all stressed out!) you can feel good because you achieved exactly what you intended to achieve. This will take some of the pressure off.

And it's how artists work, too, of course. They do tons of rough work before they get down to the final product.

So after two weeks you will have a pile of sketches, from all different angles, some better than others; and you can go through and find the ones you like, and use them as starting points for your next stage - not a finished drawing, not yet, but more studies towards something a bit more polished.

Hopefully by this point you will be feeling a lot more relaxed about the act of drawing itself, and you will also be developing strong forms to work on, and getting rid of all the duds and false ends that can be so frustrating and derailing when you set out with the intention to be perfect straight away.

This is what I do with writing, anyway. I give myself permission to be bad. Better to be bad but have pages covered in words at the end the day, than to have the desire to be perfect but nothing at all to show for it! (So I tell myself...)

Good luck!

[ar81]

Want something to inspire you?
Top Favorite Fantasy Artists, The Best!

[Elfwing]

Hey -

Thanks for the responses. Ar81 - I like what you say about quicker pictures, and yes! Those pictures are -fantastic- in the link you gave, thank you for sharing it!

Frances - thank you. *Hugs* I'll try doing rough sketches for a while and let myself stop being a perfectionist. I noticed that when I was less fussy about how good my writing was, productivity increased there as well. Thank you.

[child]

I am gonna repeat the 'quicker, rough sketches' advice. I am a prof. artist myself for 15 years (and an ex-wow addict) and yes it is still somewhat hard to begin.

We usually tend to believe that there is a right way to do things and a wrong way. That is the opposite of creativity. Frustration (or emptiness) you feel is probably about that. You don't feel connected, you don't 'create', then you have to deal with the critic in your mind which oscillates between 'you are great' and 'you are nothing'.

While drawing, just feel that you are a complete master (not a sketch of the ideal 'you'), but at the same time give yourself the joy of being a beginner. It seems contradictory but it is the only way. Dont try to produce 'good' drawings, you are a good artist producing 'something'. If you have some ambiguous criteria in your mind you wont enjoy drawing.

I was a very successful top artist but then stuck at some point and got really depressed. Then I read Julia Cameron's book Artist's Way and it really helped me. Actually the book is for everyone, not just for artists.

And a practical advice, I dont know your style but if you learn the fundamentals and do a lot of real life sketches, that will speed things. Drawing what you see is actually a creative process and more fun than fantasy drawings.

[Zwynd]

Originally Posted by child

I am gonna repeat the 'quicker, rough sketches' advice. I am a prof. artist myself for 15 years (and an ex-wow addict) and yes it is still somewhat hard to begin.

How does WoW have anything to do with drawing? Unless you mean it zapped your time.

The advice in this thread is great. I'll give my own small bit of advice as a self-taught illustrator:

Draw what you love and don't get caught up on details at the start. My portfolios in the past could have been much larger and more refined if I had actually finished my work! I was so stuck up in small things that I'd look at a blank piece of paper (real or digital) and feel so intimidated and then make excuses to not draw.

Set 15 minutes aside every day to do a speed sketch. Pick the same time every day; do it first thing when you wake up or before bed. It can be anything you like but make sure to have one day of speed drawing in the week for something you've never drawn before.

Use a stopwatch for this and just draw. Don't erase, don't press too hard. Just enjoy the feeling of drawing something.

If your vision changes to something else mid-drawing then incorporate it into the image. It could turn out to be a very interesting collage.

Also, get your work out there. Elfwood is good, but DeviantArt (imo) seems much more open for new artists. Having others look at your art can help give you motivation to improve as well as an opportunity for others to critique and share tips!

Good luck.

[C33]

Hi Elfwing,

Just a thought: sit with a bunch of kids and draw with them. Let their excitement, ignorance of proper technique, non-judgement become contagious...Reconnect with the primal joy of making art just because it's a great mode of expression and it's fun.

[Rose of Cairo]

Hi Elfwing,

Just a thought: have you read The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron? This book might be of some value to you!

Have fun drawing

[ar81]

I have drawings of mine to show to people, and I have drawings that I keep for myself.

The better you are as an artist the tougher the criticism. If it is commercial art it is obvious that you will suffer criticism. But they criticize yor arts, not you.

But there are still some drawings that have an emotional connection, even if they are not even good, that you do not want to show, for they are not meant for criticism. They are meant to be part of my smal personal universe.

[Basilica]

Draw with permanent markers or indian ink pens. This way you can't erase, you can't lose time. Just draw and finish that drawing.

Another tip : draw while you're on the phone (boring calls of course )

You can also look at your past drawings to get you motivated

Hope this helps,

Basilica