RE: Ask Your Elders: How Can I Be Better At Art?
03-04-2016, 03:41 AM
(This post was last modified: 03-04-2016, 04:01 AM by seedy.)
seconding what plaid said...a lot of artists who haven't gone to art school don't know about the benefits of doing a study or a sketch based off another artist's piece, because it feels too much like stealing or tracing. but it can be really helpful for understanding stylization methods, as well as improving your ability to reference things. (it can be hard to sketch real life objects, and sketching objects in photos and drawings can sort of be the shallow end of the pool. also it's easier to find cool things to sketch online than irl)
drawing from life or even photos is a tricky thing though...definitely look up tutorials on start methods (or take a class) rather than just throw yourself at it.
also it's good to use reference in general. it will improve your art HUGELY to compile reference for the feel you want to achieve with it, the techniques you want to use, and the things you want to draw. reference isn't just for when you're totally stuck with a pose, it can help in so many ways. I grab a bunch of it whenever I wanna emulate a specific style I'm not familiar with! I still don't use it enough of course
(edit: I have to kind of disagree with slorange...I don't think it's good to push yourself to "realism" and life drawing until you've built up the basic skills to actually be successful with that. and if you're struggling with diversifying your skills, more life drawing isn't necessarily the cure. it's SO helpful, but because of that massive helpfulness it's been pushed as THE answer, when really it can stunt or harm an artist's growth when misapplied. (although in agent's case I'm pretty sure they have a solid base of skills to approach life drawing and realism with.))
drawing from life or even photos is a tricky thing though...definitely look up tutorials on start methods (or take a class) rather than just throw yourself at it.
also it's good to use reference in general. it will improve your art HUGELY to compile reference for the feel you want to achieve with it, the techniques you want to use, and the things you want to draw. reference isn't just for when you're totally stuck with a pose, it can help in so many ways. I grab a bunch of it whenever I wanna emulate a specific style I'm not familiar with! I still don't use it enough of course
(edit: I have to kind of disagree with slorange...I don't think it's good to push yourself to "realism" and life drawing until you've built up the basic skills to actually be successful with that. and if you're struggling with diversifying your skills, more life drawing isn't necessarily the cure. it's SO helpful, but because of that massive helpfulness it's been pushed as THE answer, when really it can stunt or harm an artist's growth when misapplied. (although in agent's case I'm pretty sure they have a solid base of skills to approach life drawing and realism with.))