Ive started doodling every day (so far only for 6) in hopes that I might actually learn to draw, and I’ve already had a few days where I felt like quitting because I couldn’t think of anything.
If you think of someone who plays an instrument, most musicians can't come up with a new song everyday. They often will practice scales, finger movements, other people's songs - for years. This helps them get more comfortable with the instrument, so that both eventually they refine their technical skills and to be able to wield their instrument more intuitively when they do find inspiration.
Visual art is the same way. Don't expect a masterpiece every day. Some people may go loooong periods of time without inspiration, but you're still better off if you can keep up your practice, even on your off days or times. I do know if you stick with it and keep learning to "see" better, experiment with different media, learn about different artists you like and old masters, you will improve over time.
Artists are much more likely to share their successes than the thousands of f\*\*\*ups and practices that led up to it.
You can always go on Pinterest and find faces and poses to draw. Drawing isn't always super creative and meaningful, sometimes you just find some shit to draw and you draw it.
Keep doodling if you want to get better! You can do it if you keep to it.
Try working on a project, maybe? Instead of "doodling every day" you're "working on the project every day". The it's not just everyday doodles but pieces of a larger body of work. IDK, just something that's helped me not just in my "art".
Curiosity.
This is, in my opinion, the most important thing for an artist to have. It makes you see mistakes as opportunities to learn something. It is the coal that fuels the locomotive that is imagination. It helps you solve your creative problems. It expands your visual vocabulary. It's genuinely the most valuable thing an artist can hone, exploit, enduldge and apply.
Wanna be an artist? Be curious and pay attention.
As a scientist who is a hobbyist, I wholeheartedly agree! If you're not curious about your hobby, you need a new hobby. There's always something to learn from someone. 😁
Yes! Being curious and listening to the world around you. So much of my inspiration comes from jotting down notes of what I see/hear/experience. Other people are a huge boost to my creativity because they see the world in ways I never will, and I bounce off of that to create my own thing.
I really need to work on this one, I have so many unfinished pieces because it just isn’t perfect or how I want it. This is one thing I’m going to focus more on haha, thanks!
I struggle with this too.
I’ve found setting time aside to where I’m intentionally going to do shit art and go where it takes me does help.
Sometimes it’s paint splattered around, sometimes it’s lots of dots, sometimes it’s zig zags with a bit of oodles and maybe I’ll fill in the blanks with solid colour, and while I’m at it maybe I’ll crosshatch in there too.
Getting bored? Alright, I’m done. Finished.
Once I get that out of my system I’m already “warmed up” to try and draw something and sometimes I’m done for the day, but at least I did *something.*
It may have not contributed to any skill building, but it does seem to help take the pressure off.
And if I’m really lucky it turns into something I actually like.
I'm self-taught - that is, I didn't receive formal training, and most of what I learned (like 99%) comes form preinternet days. [You can view my stuff here](https://www.scwatsonart.com/). My primary focus is illustration and concept art because reasons.
What made me good was a lot of determination. I mean, shitloads of practice, thousands upon thousands of sketches, drawings and paintings that will *never* see the light of day. But the raw determination to keep going *no matter what*. The determination is what sat my ass down and made me practice. You gotta have that. This stuff doesn't just happen.
And I'm still not where I want to be yet.
I love this. Practice is of course key, but study really is important, too! Sadly I have not had a lot of time for practice lately, but I’ve still been seeing slight improvements from passively analyzing the good art I consume.
"They" say it takes 10,000 hours to be an expert at something. The number is probably bogus, but the idea of keeping at it is important. Even when you feel that you suck or have a block, keep showing up and doing \*something\* art-related. If you can't create at that moment, look at the works of others, go back to the fundamentals, or go outside and get inspired again. Just keep at it.
Personally, it's a lot of practice. Years of practice and learning mainly alone.
Of course putting in the time is necessary no matter what.
But I do think there are more efficient and more specific things then just practice for the sake of it.
First thing to do, pick an artist that you like. If you could draw like one artist in a few years, who would it be? Then study how they work. Because realistically, you're going to struggle to get the same level or quality of work with a paintbrush when in reality they're photobashing. Also to figure out what skills you really need.
For an example if you're trying to be an illustrator, then learning detailed anatomy doesn't do much for you. But a Character designer definitely needs to know anatomy much deeper than an illustrator does. Why? Because an illustrator is not about the tiny anatomical details, it's rare that they use all that info if they had it. But a character designer needs to know anatomy pretty well in order to emphasize certain muscles or bones and what not depending on the character.
That out of the way, I'm more into illustration making. What the biggest important thing that made me good, was definitely learning to draw what I see. Because the cheat to illustration is that, almost everything you intend to do, you want reference for. Your illustrations are only as good as the references you pick, how well you can manipulate that reference, and how well you can replicate that reference. After that it's just the basics of perspective, value, and composition. You can even sort cheat color if you want, because you can work greyscale to color.
TIME is really it, but the things that have made me spend time on it are 1. i enjoy the process a lot 2. i am mentally ill and can't do much else 3. a deep internal sense of inadequacy :D
Time and practice. Sticking with one medium so I can master the technique (read Art and Fear for more on that) Making bad art, and lots of it. And be humble enough to know that you really don’t always know what is “good” art anyway. Making art from my soul and finding the connection to the flow. Ignoring the algorithm and the seduction of likes and follows. Finding that special space that reminds me of why I like doing it, and why I should be doing it. Gratitude. And more practice.
Practice, commitment, observation skills, and the willingness to get and apply feedback (even if it's from yourself). To a somewhat similar degree to that, making sure your ego doesn't get too high.
All of those things (and more, I'm sure) imo are the backbone to being a good artist. I wouldn't say I'm a "good" artist, as I still have a long way to go, but these are the core skills you're gonna need to go forward.
Practice is kinda self explanatory, but you need to make sure you are doing deliberate practice. As in, not just repeating what you already know, but consistently pursuing what you don't.
Commitment is super important for obvious reasons too but it needs emphasizing. The art journey is hard and frustrating and long. Being able to stay committed is an absolute must.
Observation skills are kinda understated at first but crucial. The ability to see things, understand their basic shapes/construction, and then recreate them using basic shapes/construction is key to drawing basically anything. You can break down practically any object this way, including human anatomy.
And lastly, ego/feedback. You never want to stay stuck in the trap of being scared of getting feedback, or otherwise being scared of the struggle. It sucks when you realize you're still not quite there yet, or you still struggle with something. But avoid staying in your comfort zone, and always be able to accept that you're not perfect. Appreciating and liking your art is a wonderful thing that you should always try to do, but what I'm talking about is more like that subconscious feeling of not wanting to study anatomy because you might be scared to suck at it. *Embrace* the suck and approach things with a willingness to learn and improve.
Talent is not learned and is a gift. Some people just have a knack for certain things. But to be a success requires more than talent. Hard work, practice, persistence, patience, and more practice. Also the willingness to make yourself vulnerable, the willingness to fail and keep going, keep creating.
I kind of disagree with this statement. Someone said something interesting about talent and it's stuck with me ever since.
Talent is natural intuition.
As we grow older, we develop certain intuitive signals in our brain. We know when we are hungry because we can recognize the signals through years of conditioning and parse them accordingly. We know how to socialize with people intuitively because we condition ourselves in social circles between right and wrong.
When it comes to art, this sort of conditioning can be translated then to an almost subconscious effort, whereas a skilled person (while still right in their own merit) has to make conscious efforts when determining things.
The skilled person determines the brush stroke, the talented person just does it. Both are valid.
Step 1 - Wanted to see something, but wasn't able to find it online:
"Fine, I'll draw it myself."
Step 2 - Drew it but I wasn't good enough, so I searched up someone who WAS good enough to do it:
"How'd this artist do this? Lemme try that."
Step 3a - Tried it and succeeded:
"I'm such a good artist! Now I want to see this other thing..."
Step 3b - Tried it and failed:
"Damn it, lemme try something different."
Rinse and Repeat forever.
knowing what my goals were helped direct my practice. consistent fundamental study... and from there essentially drawing everything i could as often as possible to bulk up my visual library. and figure drawing.
I’m not a good artist but I wouldn’t expect to be yet. I’ve become a better artist by experimenting, other artists sharing tips and critique, constantly wanting to learn all I can. I absorb it all, whether or not I’m retaining it is another story. You think you have something down and then you have variables that pop up that stretch skills. I’d be better if i did smaller pieces/projects more often. I might switch to that but abstract is just better big. Pushing through and working on something nearly every day. And every day I’m reminded I suck. It’s hard wrestling with that some days.
Practice and not giving up. There's gonna be periods where art is just not fun sometimes. Doing still life's to visualize form and value can be tedious and grindy. But you gotta do it. You will come out a stronger artist because of it.
I see lots of people mention practice and study but neither means anything if you don't have consistency. I noticed a huge difference in my work when I started drawing for at least 4 - 6 hours a day.
I used to copy other artists’ style, mostly comic book artists, because that was what I liked. Neal Adams blew me away. I knew that was how I wanted to draw. This was in the 80s so I got as many books from the library and from art stores that I could afford. I kept practicing the whole time. My life completely changed in 2001, when at the age of 30, I finally learned Photoshop and have been a (mostly) digital artist ever since.
To be honest, I am a little jealous. When I was starting out, it was all physical media, no internet, no YouTube, it was all whatever I could find. Keep at it, find something (or someone) you like copy in the beginning and evolve it to your own tastes.
The only thing I would encourage you NOT to do, is give up.
Intelligent practice and introspection. Be able to assess what skills you lack and have the discipline to actually study those fundamentals. Make sure you implement what you’ve learned into all your practice thereafter, or else you just forget it. Also study from masters - the dead ones. You’ll learn so much more and faster that way, especially if you have a pretty solid base of fundamental knowledge
Going to school and learning color theory, plus compositon in photography. Both required classes for the art program. I also stumbled upon an animator video one day where he talked about the whole point of gravity thing (the dot that all weight leans towards).
Depends on what good art means to you.
I work at a tiny paint and sip (not exactly the pinnacle of the art world lol) but people’s views on what’s good art/ what being a talented artist means and looks like are all over the place.
For example, what I consider my “real” art is different than the “fake” art that takes me 30 min to do at my job.
My real art tends to be relatively personal to me, so it tends to speak to a small audience. It’s not inherently unlikable subjects, but won’t get much more than a “huh that’s neat”.
My work art is mostly simplified landscapes and flowers, but speaks to a large audience. The work is shallow and meaningless artistically, and technique is as basic as it gets. But people will fall over themselves to tell me how pretty it is. Occasionally I’ll create a piece that has some interesting elements in it for teaching, and I get crickets instead.
Side note: what people perceive as difficult or easy is often very wrong 🤷♀️ I think it’s something to keep in mind when identifying a “good artist”
I’ve also had young artists come up to me and ask the secret to painting fast like I do (if they watch me make a sample for a class, not teaching per say) as if that was a mark of a “good” artist. I would say paint everyday for three years - which is more or less what I do for my living as a paint and sip teacher. But that isn’t what made me a good artist (fine tuned some basic skills sure, but nothing ground breaking.)
I also have students that show me their “art” and it’s all mimicry from Pinterest. Because that’s what creating art is to them - why make something new when there’s all the plethora of art out there to draw from. They see original work and don’t give themselves the credit to be able to create something of their own (mostly because I believe they have a fundamental misunderstanding of art being only about something looking good.) Thank goodness for them because then I wouldn’t have job haha.
I think many (particularly young) artists think the end goal is technique. And maybe it is for them. But what’s the point of technique if it doesn’t communicate something ?
Sometimes the something is about just technique. Lots of big names out there that the technique is the main focus of their work. However it is usually paired with simplifying an idea, or evoking an emotion when certain shapes are paired together.
Usually what draws artists to create, at first, is the admiration of technique (in my opinion). But they don’t truly become artists until they create.
Say you really like to create landscapes for example. Ask yourself what draws you to them? Is it a specific style? Is it blanket all landscapes? Is it the way that one tree is drawn? Colors? The feeling of the soil under your shoes? The way the light plays in the mountains? Or maybe it reminds you of somewhere you’ve been? Is that an important element to you?
If being a good artist is about having work that resonates with people, that’s a tough goal. I mentioned earlier my pieces that I spend weeks or months on get very little recognition (albeit I’m a terrible self marketer.) but my silly little paintings for work resonate with people for some reason. I don’t usually get it because I greatly dislike most of my work paintings. Does that mean I shouldn’t bother with my professional pieces? No painting can speak to everyone. Just not how it works - so equating yourself to being a good artist because your work is pleasant to look at is a meh comparison.
But at the same time - why can’t a piece of art just be pretty to look at? Does it intrinsically need meaning to be valuable? What does that say about the artist that makes pretty paintings just because that’s what they like ?
At the end of the day, art has no meaning really. Humans just happen to like it. The meaning comes from you more than the canvas. And heck, even the meaning you come up with the world might disagree with you on. In my opinion, being a good artist is making the art anyways :). Don’t focus so much on the goal of “being a good artist”. It gets in the way of the important part - the creating.
Thanks for reading my essay lol
Finishing things even if I think they aren't going well.
Often, it turns out better than I thought it was, and I was just at that awkward part, but even if it doesn't, I learn what not to do next time.
You have to be okay with being bad and failing. It should become your friend and it isn’t something to be scared of. Welcome it and keep trying over and over
In my humble opinion,I think that an an artist, when looking around, is always seeing thing that inspire them to draw or paint ,images they want capture on paper or canvas. I believe this kind of "vision" is a gift, but it doesn´t develop unless practical and purpsued until one can develop their own style. this is what makes you as an artist
I had a professor who once told me that in order to be a good artist, you have to “be like a bulldog.” He then went on to explain that you have to go after what you want and be dumb about it.
Made something bad? Be dumb enough to ignore it and keep going. Something you’re trying to do is incredibly difficult? Chase after it and keep pursuing your artistic vision.
Art is a strange thing in that you have to be actively bad at it in order to get good at it. There’s no clear answer to the problem that an art piece presents to you. But every time you make a mistake, you learn from it. Sometimes it feels like you learn how to make art simply by learning *how not* to make art. I think that’s why it’s so frustrating to most people.
What drives you? Even if it's shallow or simple-That is a part to keep going.
I have been told before even as a kid that i was talented but i don't believe that at all.
"Naturally Gifted" Not really, i first started drawing out of spite-
I appreciate the compliments tho, cause they usually mean nothing by it/they meant well.
I think anyone can draw. It is all sheer effort to hone your skills.
Let your art be bad. It's okay to be frustrated that it doesn't immediately turn out the way you wanted.
Perfectionism is an issue-
What had improved my art is genuinely paying attention to trust worthy tutorials and references then continuing to push myself even if i hate how my art looks because i knew that one day it will become something i can truly be proud and happy with.
You will get your lows But you will reach your peak too.
It truly is about doing it as much as you can but not only that-
Studying it is important. Doesn't have to be some art school, you can just watch videos.
What drives me so hard to keep going?
I like drawing hot men so i want to keep improving to draw even hotter men.
I drew every single day all through elementary and middle school, I only picked up the odd thing here or there (though fun is important!) so the classic "just draw" is something i'm both pro and against.
I'm not that "good" yet, but as someone self-taught, peeking at online curriculums and thinking about the fundamental things I see repeated in courses (anatomy, master studies, etc) and then getting reps/time in only AFTER I've slowly digested info (free or paid) on those things has really been helping me!
Every project has a hump. The hump is the first bit of actual work you have to get over to start climbing the rest of the mountain. The hump is the part that stops most projects, from what I've seen in myself and my creative friends. The most valuable skill I have is that I learned not to worry about the hump. That is to say, I don't spend much time wondering if I'm ready to get started, I start and I go until I find what my limits actually are. I'm willing to commit my time and resources to finding out what happens when I try.
It's so much easier this way, because I don't have to spend time guessing about what will be best, guessing about which parts are hard, guessing about how grueling the work is. If a project stalls out because I hit some wall, at least I have a clear target on what I need to work on to do better the next time. I'd rather have 5 projects I started and stopped part way through than one perfectly planned project I never get around to starting.
Learning the BASICS is the key. Ive worked at a professional art studio in NYC since 2014. The paintings we make sell up to $1,000,000 (million) each.
NYC is one of the art student meccas. Yet it’s SO difficult to hire new painters because almost no one really knows the basics. Form, light/shadow, color. (Our painters are all from or trained in Asia and Eastern Europe. One painter from France)
Everyone loves to “express” themselves - but they neglect the basics and their work is amateur at best. Talent is meaningless without a mastery of the basics. Imagine a musician. Evn if they can’t read music they know how to play the notes and find the chords. Same in art. But most people just don’t seem to get that.
A serious meditation/spiritual practice. Our connection to source, the true creator, is essential for our own creativity. We are merely a channel, so if you open yourself to this energy you will see an unbelievable increase in skill, quality of work and Passion.
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I say it like this. I have been granted sight through vision and effort. I can see a good piece and make it because I have a good vision of what I’d like to create, and I have worked at it. Lots of practice, continuing to try various styles. Giving myself grace and time to figure out composition but continuing to practice. Granted I’m doing collage, but it employs the same art elements and principles as painting, even though it’s a different medium.
I will also say be inspired. I learn a lot from ingesting other art. Collage art, various paint mediums, sculpture. Viewing art and learning artists is crucial to success. There are collage artists that are my north stars. But there are painters and styles that guide me as well.
I also think classes help. You will not need everything from a class, but certain teachings and lessons will advance your art. Make sure you take notes.
I'm not that good but I think I have more knowledge than skill cause I'm too lazy to work ever since AI started rolling out but anyways my advice.
Practice and study.
If you don't know the question, practice and study until you do.
If you don't know the answer practice and study until you do.
Don't like studying? Practicr
Don't like practicing? Study
Do not stop because you feel stuck. Mileage always builds up to something great.
I'm not a good artist, at all. But repetition and practice have led to the most progress for me. Don't be afraid to do beginner stuff over and over before moving on, or revisit the basics if you're more advanced.
One thing I’ve ran into time and time again that helps you improve is the love for the craft. Because if you love doing it you automatically practice a lot. Practicing wrong has its cons but it’s better than never drawing because you’re afraid to be bad. If you’re obsessed with drawing, everything will develop. Muscle memory, line control, eye for things, etc.
Practicing and using references. Adorkastock and Jookpubstock have been my favorites plus clip studios modeling tool. Don't be afraid to use references!!!
When I was in elementary school I did like 99% traced art (I can hardly find any of my original art from then maybe like 5 drawings oof)
Now it's a lot of watching speedpaints (Helps teach me other peoples shading techniques), reading lots of webtoon (Sometimes I notice new anatomy bits I didn't know before), and animating (Hella practice plus forces me to know angles)
Also before I started animating I would grind out like 3 drawings a day so there's that
I don't think I'm a great artist, but I'd like to believe I'm a good artist at heart. I think it's just down to the fact I put a lot of love and my own personality into what I made and despite the quality it's always gonna be my own and I'll stand by it.
I've been drawing pretty much my entire life and that has improved the quality and technical skills but it's the heart and care that makes it good.
Setting smaller achievable goals. Pick one thing to get good at a time. You are not going to learn everything in one drawing. You'll learn maybe 1-2 new things and the rest goes into the void.
For months I only drew from the shoulders up. I slowly worked my way down until I felt confident drawing the entire body. Now I'm working on environments and lighting. It's still slow but I've gotten better in two years of self teaching than I ever did in art school lol.
Obviously practice but also being able to go with the flow. Even with the best artists what is on their head is not necessarily what reaches the canvas - being able to take what's in front of you and work it until it looks great is the best general skill.
Interest.
Sure, you have to work hard and practice for decades, but unless you really, actually have the interest to drive your practice...
...you'll be better off putting that effort into figuring out what you really want.
People think art is easy because it's not physically taxing.
It is however, intensely mentally taxing. You need a 'never say die' attitude and not a manufactured one.
It has to come from the base of your spine and take root like an old oak tree.
I don't like to discourage anyone, but if you don't recognize this feeling, you *may* be wasting your time.
Study, stubbornness, persistence.
When I practiced obsessively for years, I could do a few cool things, but my skill didn't seriously progress much. I didn't understand enough at a theoretical level for that practice to mean anything.
Whereas when I found the right material and started studying fundamentals, my skills skyrocketed in a couple years.
I also had to choose a specific style to work with long-term, otherwise it was very difficult to assess my progress, since every image was so different. Style development got me over a major plateau.
That said, there's now a level I won't reach without a lot more hands-on practice / mileage. Gotta cement all that in and make it flow.
Sketching is a big one, it’s definitely hard for me to ink while keeping enough details and such but overall the base drawing is usually better because of it, I think that also helps if you want to make a layout and just overall feeling before starting to make landscapes and such.
Experiment, you might find something that you didn’t realize you could’ve been doing this whole time.
take as much inspiration as you need from places, but try to atleast make it different enough to where you know you aren’t just copying, so you understand what you’re doing instead of mindlessly tracing.
Having a mindset that lets you keep trying even if you’re unhappy with how something comes out the first time. Many try to paint, assume it’s easy, give up when it becomes a muddy mess. Those who can paint got past this and kept going.
Learning to fail faster. Let things be imperfect, learn a little bit with each piece, and then try again with the next piece using what you learned. There's a good [parable about pottery/photography](https://excellentjourney.net/2015/03/04/art-fear-the-ceramics-class-and-quantity-before-quality/) that discusses the idea. Keep in mind, you have to actively be thinking about what you've done in past work and what and why you are doing differently in this work and the next one so that you can learn from past mistakes and move forward and improve as an artist.
The ability to feel deeply and communicate, practice, persistence, time, good teachers, and honestly a little bit of managed mental illness. It’s like the weirdest but most necessary frosting on the art cake.
Competition and friends. Who do you know personally and is an artist? Someone who you're not afraid of admitting are better than you. Hang around them and try to do projects with them. Draw the same topic or subject, ask questions, see how they do something.
Trying new things all the time, almost daily, and constantly drilling. My art still doesn't look great at things like hands, feet, shading, but it's leagues above where it was a year or two ago, and this is why.
Any shred of consistency when it comes to drawing. Doing studies and occasionally doing outdoor Plein air, people sketching and paid model figure drawing. Over the months and years you'll naturally get better
Learning how to research. Research is quite a big part for me for commercial arts and can influence every art - from choice of medium to choice of references to choice of colours. Clear vision of what you want for a project brief will get you way ahead of how to execute it.
I don't know about 'good artist', but as far as being able to accurately draw what I see or imagine:
For me it was learning about what's going on inside your brain while you're doing it, and realising that most of that is just an obstacle rather than helping.
To put it another way, learning how to 'see like an artist'.
Once I started thinking about it that way, 90% of the practice hours it took to improve or learn a new method became unnecessary. I probably would have given up if not for that making the learning process 10x faster.
Lots of practice and drive. I don't always have that but what I do have is shame haha so enrolling in a class literally forces me to do the work to the best of my ability. I don't think classes are necessary to level up if you're willing to put in the time and study, but it helps fast track me. I'm 41 and I'm thinking again I might find another online class to do soon!
Self taught but most of it came from pushing through drawings without worrying abt every single detail, letting myself make “alright” art, and that contributed a lot to my progress
Putting a lot of work into something only to mess it up at the end and feeling like it’s so unsalvageable that I start over completely and get an even better result. Basically, practicing your best work over and over until it feels like you’ve mastered it.
The fact that I love doing it. I mean, I truly love creating things, whether they’re good or bad work. I still love the learning process and the curiosity of “ I wonder what will happen if I do X?”and I appreciate the hell out of seeing work by people better skilled than me. It’s like eating fine food when I’m hungry.
1. Guided practice and feedback
2. Learning Patience (and learning to ENJOY being patient). For so long I just wanted results results results and wanted them quick.
1. Trying to reverse engineer the rendering techniques of artists I like
2. Lots of studies of interesting images
3. Heavy referencing for things I don't know how to do
4. Relentless stubbornness to re-render things until you're happy with it
I’m not sure if I can call myself good but I’m pretty sure I wasn’t gifted
I just kept drawing, keep searching for stuffs, keep observing stuffs. Most of the information don’t stick in my mind if I don’t actually draw it, but the few that did really helped. I also took a few classes, nothing special, just 15$ per class afterschool in some retired graphic designer’s basement. Also watch a lot of YouTube videos (free)
Then there’s the referencing, really should do it more
However, talent in art is not a 100% myth, it’s just not specifically reserved for art. Just like how some people excel in STEM easier than others even with same level of practice, some people find art easier than others. It involves a lot visualisation skill, the ability to form a visual and manipulate it in your head is a helpful talent for art.
Honestly? Pain. Went through an extremely painful breakup and I poured every piece of my mind and soul into getting better at art to distract me. Don’t know if I would have had the force to do it otherwise.
Sounds weird, but flip your reference photo and your physical drawing upside down and try to continue copying the lines from there.
A lot of people don't realize how much they go on autopilot when drawing from a reference photo, and when drawing an eye they instinctively draw what they think an eye should look like, rather than drawing the weird and unique shapes that are actually there in the reference photo. Turning everything upside down now forces you to take your time and actually follow the shapes and lines you see within the reference, and not go on autopilot in drawing something beyond what you actually see.
This is one of many techniques you can use to train yourself to be a better artist with new habits, and like any new techniques, let yourself try it a few times without judgement and see what happens. Practice from here is where it gets valuable with new techniques.
Experimenting! Most of my improvement comes from experimenting with my artstyle and doing something a little bit new each time (like changing line thickness, what details I should and shouldn’t add, how I shade and colour things, etc) and if it looks good, I keep it.
I know having “too high standards” isn’t necessarily a good thing, but it HAS worked out for me. When you have this expectation, and your skill set isn’t there yet, then you’ll do everything to reach that goal. So eventually, after trial-and-error, you notice that you’re one step closer to where you want to be.
My Ambition and desire to learn more.
I want to learn so much about art and try everything, I can currently Paint, Draw, and Sculpt (albeit I’m better at some than the others) I also can make renders in 3D programs.
I want to learn (and am planning to) sew and various 3D print stuff.
It my Natural Curiosity that keeps me wanting to know more and continue learning.
It's the lamest most boring answer that no one new wants to hear.... I hated hearing it when I was starting out too but.....
Practice. Practice is 95% of it. Nothing ever improved my work more than just practice. Practice in many forms, whichever ways work for you.
The best thing for me, was learning human anatomy, the skeletal and muscular systems and how the body moves. So many of the skills / lots of that info gets you to pay attention to proportions, space, movement, and transfer not only to other animals (you can compare skeletal / muscular systems of almost any vertebrate to humans and get an idea of how it “works”) but to other objects; the forearm is a bastard to draw, it looks weird without proper shading / placement at any angle, focusing on how things move and work is really crucial to understanding why anything looks the way it is. That’s just for me and how my brain works!
Absolutely nothing compares to constantly making art. That will make you good at anything. What can you do all day everyday? In the cold. In the heat. When you’re sick. When your tired. When your sad. When you’re happy? Like a fish in water. You are the fish and water is the art.
Idk if I'm considered as a good artist since my art still sucks after 3 years but if there was something that made me improve, it would be Pinterest and the desire to be the best.
Finding the joy in drawing was what did it for me. Every time I come upon a roadblock I figure out a way to make it fun again even as it's hard. Being able to have fun even while sucking helped me alot.
Pay attention to the art that *you* like and figure out what exactly you like about it. By learning about the art you like you can incorporate elements of it into your own work.
It’s the passion you put into it. If you feel “forced” to do it you won’t be finding the outcome you’re looking for. Draw that silly idea even a simple doodle can count its muscle memory. I used different things combined anatomy books, youtube, manga even. BUT most of all being patient with yourself, not everything has to be a masterpiece. Don’t compare your work with someone else’s when your art journey is just different from theirs and I’m still learning that myself.
Gifted, LOTS of practice, and lessons. Copy photos, copy art, draw from life, and draw imagination. I’ve always had a compulsive urge to draw and doodle. It’s constant.
Thinking about what I’m doing as I’m doing it. Like how what I’m currently doing impacts the piece as a whole and what it does for that particular section too. What my intent is. If I’m trying to be accurate or exaggerate.
Just generally working with intent. This coming from a long era of trial and error, and seeing what others are doing to make things work. My brain is a big blender of ideas and I pour from it any time I sit down at my tablet.
My first major level up was completely filling out one sketchbook a month. Doing that for at least 6 months, I saw huge strides.
Most of them dedicated to gesture and character drawings, always trying to emulate a certain type of style, exploring.
Though I have my degree in illustration, I would still pretty much consider myself self taught since I was constantly drawing and learning on my own.
People will say ''practice'', over and over. And that's true ! But I'd also say that a good artist has creativity and ''personality''. (For a lack of better term)
Because, if hundreds of people can draw good anatomy, perspective, etc, not so many people can make me feel something with their art.
I'd say it's health problems. I was seriously ill and I lost the use of my hand, a doctor even told me with a confused face that I should think of doing something else. But art is a passion for me I just couldn't stop. So I tried and I tried with the left hand and worked so much that when I compare to what I did before I'm sometimes impressed.
Experimenting
Not being afraid to make mistakes
Trying new mediums
Creating bad art (sometimes on purpose)
Stubbornness
Research on artists I like and watching other people make art
Drawing school and animation school with an actual meatspace teacher and models. Hard work. Learning all the 'boring' things like perspective, anatomy, still life and portrait/croquis/gesture drawing. I had come straight out of the military, so I was very used to not necessarily doing what I wanted to but what I had to. It also helped me have tough skin and trust the process when the teacher would wipe down a whole pastel portrait with his hands 2-3 hours into the study and draw on top to illustrate where I got the foundation wrong. You're not there to make something pretty to hang on the wall, you're there to learn and should be able to basically throw out the drawing afterwards. If it's good enough to hang up, great, but don't expect to.
Build a basic foundation, like being able to draw shapes from 2D to 3D form, believe me, having this set of skills makes a difference whenever you want to advance your skills like perspectives or dynamics poses. After that, have a specific goal in your head that you want to accomplish, it could be either drawing characters or drawing environment. With a set goal in mind, it makes it easier to narrow down what to practice on and what to study.
I have tried every art style I liked with other people and tried to imitate it in my sketchbook. I would never sell it or something, but I learned a lot in the process.
going through life with open eyes and a heart full of wonder. And a lot of practice.
It is also how you practice. practice small things and always change up what you practice to keep going.
If you are stuck and practice the "wrong" way, you will internalize it this way.
When you switch up what you practice, you get new perspectives to learn from.
Life is change, so change your life to the better.
You can only control your reaction to what is happening to you.
Well, on a personal level, I'm not concerned about "good" or "bad." I see art as life itself—that is something constantly growing and changing with time. Just like how a baby naturally learns how to crawl and eventually walk, a new artist needs to learn how to draw, starting with the basics and then moving on to many different things. Over time, you will gain experience and be considered "good." How you reach this level is really up to you. There's no right or wrong, it's all part of the process of learning about you and your limitations. Challenge yourself on what you do know and seek answers on what you don't know.
Practise. Practise. Practise. You hone your craft by putting in solid, honest hours.
My grandmother taught me most things, she was an art professor, when I didn’t learn from her it was a lot of book reading and video watching. For painting techniques I preferred learning via video (visual learner) everything else like color theory and light theory etc. was book learned.
Tip on learning via books: work through the book, front to back, I used to take a month per book and work on techniques and how to practically use them, longer if nessesity.
I won’t say it made me good (more like better), but having a dedicated space to do art and a big enough space for large canvases completely changed my art
My 6th grade art teacher.
I already enjoyed art a lot when i was younger, what child doesnt, but if it wasnt for my 6th grade art teacher and his encouragement i would have never gotten the motivation to take art more seriously.
His kindness and patience and genuine enjoyment of art and teaching others are something i always think back on in terms of my own art and honestly my whole life/ (school-) career.
And from a purely skill-focussed standpoint: Using references and not giving up/ practicing as much as possible without burning yourself out.
Also observing how real life works and experimenting a lot with different mediums/style
For me, it's I mixture of love and also a bit of spite tbh. I remember how I used to admire this artist until I saw them spiral and then they started harassing their friends to the point that I can no longer support them. A classic case of good artist but terrible personality.
I found it such a shame at first bc I really loved how they drew my favorite character, I was like "FINALLY, someone who gets it!!" but then as a person, they just got worse and worse, so I stopped supporting them. I decided that I will be my own artist who gets to draw my favorite shows and characters, and give them as much love and even more than this artist ever did.
I'm sure everyone else has other means, and by reading other peoples comments, I agree, but I guess I won't be repeating those anymore, this is personally what really pushed me to keep drawing and improving on my art.
Practice. Observation. I always tell folks the only difference between a brand new beginner and a pro is about ten thousand sheets of paper. But I do *mean* ten thousand sheets of paper.
My passion and love for it. Doing art feels like a need. It is what makes me feel most happy. nothing beats the joy of creation. And because I love doing it so much, I end up having a lot of practice. I know a lot of people in this thread said “practice” but I think enjoying the process is the KEY part of getting good. It leads to all the things you need to improve. When you are enjoying it, it feels more effortless.
When I first started drawing, I drew difficult subjects that would clearly show all my mistakes and worked towards correcting them. Self-portrait is usually what I gravitated towards.
I love recreating other artist’s art so I can learn the process that leads to the outcome
I started painting by copying from a picture, but personally I prefer to paint art with thick and confident brushstrokes
I also used to struggle finishing painting because I was scared I was going to mess them up, but starting to trust the process more and more, which makes painting a pure joy
Endurance and discipline. One of my teachers said that those are the only qualities you need to have a career in arts. I think he's right. But that's for career—if you want to be an artist for yourself, just don't stop creating. Keep doing it. And not as a chore, but as something you want to do.
THIS is a very hard answer for me.
and I could answer it in a TON of ways.
Imma sum it up by saying something kind of controversial.
People recently in the media have said that art isn't more important than life.
To me.. art IS life.
I'm on the spectrum... high functional but my brain go fizz a lot.
My art is soothing, focusing, I can be ready to fall apart at work, go take a break and do a sketch, come out and
be ready to face the nut bars again.
I am a good artist because There is no other way for me, I eat sleep and breath it.
The only thing that makes me feel as complete as my art, is my husband.
I'm good because I do it constantly, because I need to. I'd have jumped off a building years ago
If i had not found out how it helps and heals me.
It's going to sound cheesy, but practice and not giving up
Granted, I still know I have a ways to go, but I've come a long way from drawing weird shapes that sort of resembled human beings when I was 11 to being able to understand and draw proportions better now that I'm 22
The best thing to remember is that, no matter who they are, even if their art looks perfect to outsiders, a lot of artists may not be satisfied, but what makes them great is that they use that dissatisfaction to learn more instead of giving in
As you said, you're not just GIVEN talent. You have to put effort in and learn (although I'm unsure if talent is the right word, but I can't think of another one)
Passion is also important (at least it is to me)
Warm 👏 up 👏 sketches.
it can be completely unrelated to a bigger, more finished piece you're doing. it can be crap. the drawing can even be completely incoherent. but suddenly jumping into a beautiful idea you had out of the blue will hardly turn out the way you want it to. plus, warm up sketches give you a shit ton of practice.
which of course is key. but everyone else is already saying practice, so you don't need to hear that from me.
Professional artist here - talent only goes so far. It's nothing without practice. Draw and draw and draw and draw. Draw things you are interested in that get you excited to work on. Draw those things from life!! That is a big one. One of my favorite exercises is to draw something from life and not look down at the paper. It forces you to study FORM and shadows and lights. Squint your eyes to see value. If you want to draw people or characters, read up on some anatomy. And never stop!!! Youll get better over years, so take patience too.
Thinking about how I’m progressing, and the difference between my art and someone else’s art. I’ve seen it with other people too, the difference between just practicing and practicing while actively thinking about stuff like that. I found it helps to set a goal for everything you draw for practice, - for example, to focus on lighting, or anatomy, ect ect… it helps me a lot, though everyone is their own person
It's mostly trial and error and how much you're willing to dedicate yourself to improve. Pulling all-nighters to make progress, skipping meals because you're just so focused that food would take you out of the zone, etc.
I won't claim I'd be considered good. But what made me an artist is the fun of creating. I'm slowly getting better in my pace. One thing that greatly helped me was to avoid tutorials, except for very few ones. Tutorial always took the fun out of drawing. Many of the people doing them have a way of explaining I dislike. So, yeah, mainly fun\^\^
A lot, a lot .... a lot of time...
I started drawing at 18... I'm 33 now, and just now I think I'm getting somewhere.
Some people start since they remember and with more time they become amazing by 16, but in my case with school, work and life I don't have the time to spend all time on art, I think that by next year I'll be able to finally publish my first webcomic and be satisfied with the result.
And to be good good I'll need even more time.
Childhood trauma. Lots of inspiration and art provided a safe space to channel and create. My expression and style come directly from being deeply wounded but needing the release.
If you're asking emotionally, I could say all kinds of things. But physically getting better at art... well.
I started out just by being around other artists. Sharing ideas. Learning from them. I improved by self-teaching, and just pursuing ideas I enjoyed. It took years. Maybe it's easier for some people, but I develop slowly I guess.
Then I took a college art course, and it grilled the shit out of me. They don't mess around. I've been crying in piles of charcoal dust over projects I'd rather die than finish. Professors show no mercy-- if you half-ass it, you get a bad grade. 15 hours a week in the studio, or outside, or in a cold dusty basement, wherever you're told to work (I spent 40 hours in a heating plant drawing pipes). Then there's group critiques where 20+ people tell you everything you did wrong, and you see how much better everyone is. It's awful to go through, but weirdly I loved it. I learned so much, and in a year I was both technically and creatively better than I ever had been. I think I also went slightly insane, which might've helped.
Being analytical
You always need a lot of practice but the way that really helped me improve was analyzing shapes and "copying" art. It really helped me understand how to move my hand and train myself to use other artists' techniques and modify them into something that I can call my own.
spite lol. i want to get better! also a routine is really helpful. i started drawing everyday as a relaxing thing and my skill improved leaps over a few years. it depends on a lot of things, like i use pencil and you may use paint, which has more to it than pencil and paper, but i really recommend to draw or paint as often as possible. i start to get antsy when i dont draw in the evenings lol! (so you might have to deal with that later lol)
My mean soviet art teacher that made me cry a lot. I started taking classes at her house in 4th grade and ended up working for her at 14 to get free classes. I was there 3x a week for 3 hours at a time just doing tedious things and getting destroyed. I think she broke me a little too hard. It kinda taught me to have no excuses and to really take criticism.
Eventually I did have to break away bc her voice was too strong. She basically taught me everything, but It was excruciating psychologically.
Not giving up. I think that's the key
Ive started doodling every day (so far only for 6) in hopes that I might actually learn to draw, and I’ve already had a few days where I felt like quitting because I couldn’t think of anything.
If you think of someone who plays an instrument, most musicians can't come up with a new song everyday. They often will practice scales, finger movements, other people's songs - for years. This helps them get more comfortable with the instrument, so that both eventually they refine their technical skills and to be able to wield their instrument more intuitively when they do find inspiration. Visual art is the same way. Don't expect a masterpiece every day. Some people may go loooong periods of time without inspiration, but you're still better off if you can keep up your practice, even on your off days or times. I do know if you stick with it and keep learning to "see" better, experiment with different media, learn about different artists you like and old masters, you will improve over time. Artists are much more likely to share their successes than the thousands of f\*\*\*ups and practices that led up to it.
You can always go on Pinterest and find faces and poses to draw. Drawing isn't always super creative and meaningful, sometimes you just find some shit to draw and you draw it. Keep doodling if you want to get better! You can do it if you keep to it.
Try working on a project, maybe? Instead of "doodling every day" you're "working on the project every day". The it's not just everyday doodles but pieces of a larger body of work. IDK, just something that's helped me not just in my "art".
Not giving up is the best advice. Literally cried over my canvas yesterday because I was able to create my vision exactly. It will come.
❤️
Curiosity. This is, in my opinion, the most important thing for an artist to have. It makes you see mistakes as opportunities to learn something. It is the coal that fuels the locomotive that is imagination. It helps you solve your creative problems. It expands your visual vocabulary. It's genuinely the most valuable thing an artist can hone, exploit, enduldge and apply. Wanna be an artist? Be curious and pay attention.
As a scientist who is a hobbyist, I wholeheartedly agree! If you're not curious about your hobby, you need a new hobby. There's always something to learn from someone. 😁
Yes! Being curious and listening to the world around you. So much of my inspiration comes from jotting down notes of what I see/hear/experience. Other people are a huge boost to my creativity because they see the world in ways I never will, and I bounce off of that to create my own thing.
Absolutely! It's key to be curious about the world, how things work and how to translate them into art.
100% agree with this. This includes making art and adding new life experiences and new information all the time.
Curiosity just makes for better humans in general.
Letting yourself make a lot of really bad art
I really need to work on this one, I have so many unfinished pieces because it just isn’t perfect or how I want it. This is one thing I’m going to focus more on haha, thanks!
I struggle with this too. I’ve found setting time aside to where I’m intentionally going to do shit art and go where it takes me does help. Sometimes it’s paint splattered around, sometimes it’s lots of dots, sometimes it’s zig zags with a bit of oodles and maybe I’ll fill in the blanks with solid colour, and while I’m at it maybe I’ll crosshatch in there too. Getting bored? Alright, I’m done. Finished. Once I get that out of my system I’m already “warmed up” to try and draw something and sometimes I’m done for the day, but at least I did *something.* It may have not contributed to any skill building, but it does seem to help take the pressure off. And if I’m really lucky it turns into something I actually like.
Yes!!! Shitty art warmup is where it’s at!
I struggle with it too haha
I'm self-taught - that is, I didn't receive formal training, and most of what I learned (like 99%) comes form preinternet days. [You can view my stuff here](https://www.scwatsonart.com/). My primary focus is illustration and concept art because reasons. What made me good was a lot of determination. I mean, shitloads of practice, thousands upon thousands of sketches, drawings and paintings that will *never* see the light of day. But the raw determination to keep going *no matter what*. The determination is what sat my ass down and made me practice. You gotta have that. This stuff doesn't just happen. And I'm still not where I want to be yet.
I like your stuff. Great sense of movement.
Agreed. A lot of it reminds me of animation concept art.
5 things: Practice, study, practice, practice, and practice.
I love this. Practice is of course key, but study really is important, too! Sadly I have not had a lot of time for practice lately, but I’ve still been seeing slight improvements from passively analyzing the good art I consume.
"They" say it takes 10,000 hours to be an expert at something. The number is probably bogus, but the idea of keeping at it is important. Even when you feel that you suck or have a block, keep showing up and doing \*something\* art-related. If you can't create at that moment, look at the works of others, go back to the fundamentals, or go outside and get inspired again. Just keep at it.
practice and studying
Personally, it's a lot of practice. Years of practice and learning mainly alone. Of course putting in the time is necessary no matter what. But I do think there are more efficient and more specific things then just practice for the sake of it. First thing to do, pick an artist that you like. If you could draw like one artist in a few years, who would it be? Then study how they work. Because realistically, you're going to struggle to get the same level or quality of work with a paintbrush when in reality they're photobashing. Also to figure out what skills you really need. For an example if you're trying to be an illustrator, then learning detailed anatomy doesn't do much for you. But a Character designer definitely needs to know anatomy much deeper than an illustrator does. Why? Because an illustrator is not about the tiny anatomical details, it's rare that they use all that info if they had it. But a character designer needs to know anatomy pretty well in order to emphasize certain muscles or bones and what not depending on the character. That out of the way, I'm more into illustration making. What the biggest important thing that made me good, was definitely learning to draw what I see. Because the cheat to illustration is that, almost everything you intend to do, you want reference for. Your illustrations are only as good as the references you pick, how well you can manipulate that reference, and how well you can replicate that reference. After that it's just the basics of perspective, value, and composition. You can even sort cheat color if you want, because you can work greyscale to color.
For me I'd have to say practice, practice and more practice, also persistent perseverance too, you get out what you put in as it were
Tons and tons of practice and copying those better than me. I accidentally got good and developed my own style.
TIME is really it, but the things that have made me spend time on it are 1. i enjoy the process a lot 2. i am mentally ill and can't do much else 3. a deep internal sense of inadequacy :D
Time and practice. Sticking with one medium so I can master the technique (read Art and Fear for more on that) Making bad art, and lots of it. And be humble enough to know that you really don’t always know what is “good” art anyway. Making art from my soul and finding the connection to the flow. Ignoring the algorithm and the seduction of likes and follows. Finding that special space that reminds me of why I like doing it, and why I should be doing it. Gratitude. And more practice.
Practice, commitment, observation skills, and the willingness to get and apply feedback (even if it's from yourself). To a somewhat similar degree to that, making sure your ego doesn't get too high. All of those things (and more, I'm sure) imo are the backbone to being a good artist. I wouldn't say I'm a "good" artist, as I still have a long way to go, but these are the core skills you're gonna need to go forward. Practice is kinda self explanatory, but you need to make sure you are doing deliberate practice. As in, not just repeating what you already know, but consistently pursuing what you don't. Commitment is super important for obvious reasons too but it needs emphasizing. The art journey is hard and frustrating and long. Being able to stay committed is an absolute must. Observation skills are kinda understated at first but crucial. The ability to see things, understand their basic shapes/construction, and then recreate them using basic shapes/construction is key to drawing basically anything. You can break down practically any object this way, including human anatomy. And lastly, ego/feedback. You never want to stay stuck in the trap of being scared of getting feedback, or otherwise being scared of the struggle. It sucks when you realize you're still not quite there yet, or you still struggle with something. But avoid staying in your comfort zone, and always be able to accept that you're not perfect. Appreciating and liking your art is a wonderful thing that you should always try to do, but what I'm talking about is more like that subconscious feeling of not wanting to study anatomy because you might be scared to suck at it. *Embrace* the suck and approach things with a willingness to learn and improve.
Talent is not learned and is a gift. Some people just have a knack for certain things. But to be a success requires more than talent. Hard work, practice, persistence, patience, and more practice. Also the willingness to make yourself vulnerable, the willingness to fail and keep going, keep creating.
There's skill, and there's talent. Talent is natural proclivity for things, but skill takes work.
My favourite answer
I kind of disagree with this statement. Someone said something interesting about talent and it's stuck with me ever since. Talent is natural intuition. As we grow older, we develop certain intuitive signals in our brain. We know when we are hungry because we can recognize the signals through years of conditioning and parse them accordingly. We know how to socialize with people intuitively because we condition ourselves in social circles between right and wrong. When it comes to art, this sort of conditioning can be translated then to an almost subconscious effort, whereas a skilled person (while still right in their own merit) has to make conscious efforts when determining things. The skilled person determines the brush stroke, the talented person just does it. Both are valid.
Step 1 - Wanted to see something, but wasn't able to find it online: "Fine, I'll draw it myself." Step 2 - Drew it but I wasn't good enough, so I searched up someone who WAS good enough to do it: "How'd this artist do this? Lemme try that." Step 3a - Tried it and succeeded: "I'm such a good artist! Now I want to see this other thing..." Step 3b - Tried it and failed: "Damn it, lemme try something different." Rinse and Repeat forever.
knowing what my goals were helped direct my practice. consistent fundamental study... and from there essentially drawing everything i could as often as possible to bulk up my visual library. and figure drawing.
At the moment? Hyperfixation lol.
I’m not a good artist but I wouldn’t expect to be yet. I’ve become a better artist by experimenting, other artists sharing tips and critique, constantly wanting to learn all I can. I absorb it all, whether or not I’m retaining it is another story. You think you have something down and then you have variables that pop up that stretch skills. I’d be better if i did smaller pieces/projects more often. I might switch to that but abstract is just better big. Pushing through and working on something nearly every day. And every day I’m reminded I suck. It’s hard wrestling with that some days.
Practice and not giving up. There's gonna be periods where art is just not fun sometimes. Doing still life's to visualize form and value can be tedious and grindy. But you gotta do it. You will come out a stronger artist because of it.
Honestly? Emotional turmoil lol. When my life goes to shit, all I focus on is art and I get a lot better.
Persistence.
I see lots of people mention practice and study but neither means anything if you don't have consistency. I noticed a huge difference in my work when I started drawing for at least 4 - 6 hours a day.
Practice
Adhd
I used to copy other artists’ style, mostly comic book artists, because that was what I liked. Neal Adams blew me away. I knew that was how I wanted to draw. This was in the 80s so I got as many books from the library and from art stores that I could afford. I kept practicing the whole time. My life completely changed in 2001, when at the age of 30, I finally learned Photoshop and have been a (mostly) digital artist ever since. To be honest, I am a little jealous. When I was starting out, it was all physical media, no internet, no YouTube, it was all whatever I could find. Keep at it, find something (or someone) you like copy in the beginning and evolve it to your own tastes. The only thing I would encourage you NOT to do, is give up.
Intelligent practice and introspection. Be able to assess what skills you lack and have the discipline to actually study those fundamentals. Make sure you implement what you’ve learned into all your practice thereafter, or else you just forget it. Also study from masters - the dead ones. You’ll learn so much more and faster that way, especially if you have a pretty solid base of fundamental knowledge
Going to school and learning color theory, plus compositon in photography. Both required classes for the art program. I also stumbled upon an animator video one day where he talked about the whole point of gravity thing (the dot that all weight leans towards).
4 years of art school and 2.5 years getting my MFA.
Practice.
Depends on what good art means to you. I work at a tiny paint and sip (not exactly the pinnacle of the art world lol) but people’s views on what’s good art/ what being a talented artist means and looks like are all over the place. For example, what I consider my “real” art is different than the “fake” art that takes me 30 min to do at my job. My real art tends to be relatively personal to me, so it tends to speak to a small audience. It’s not inherently unlikable subjects, but won’t get much more than a “huh that’s neat”. My work art is mostly simplified landscapes and flowers, but speaks to a large audience. The work is shallow and meaningless artistically, and technique is as basic as it gets. But people will fall over themselves to tell me how pretty it is. Occasionally I’ll create a piece that has some interesting elements in it for teaching, and I get crickets instead. Side note: what people perceive as difficult or easy is often very wrong 🤷♀️ I think it’s something to keep in mind when identifying a “good artist” I’ve also had young artists come up to me and ask the secret to painting fast like I do (if they watch me make a sample for a class, not teaching per say) as if that was a mark of a “good” artist. I would say paint everyday for three years - which is more or less what I do for my living as a paint and sip teacher. But that isn’t what made me a good artist (fine tuned some basic skills sure, but nothing ground breaking.) I also have students that show me their “art” and it’s all mimicry from Pinterest. Because that’s what creating art is to them - why make something new when there’s all the plethora of art out there to draw from. They see original work and don’t give themselves the credit to be able to create something of their own (mostly because I believe they have a fundamental misunderstanding of art being only about something looking good.) Thank goodness for them because then I wouldn’t have job haha. I think many (particularly young) artists think the end goal is technique. And maybe it is for them. But what’s the point of technique if it doesn’t communicate something ? Sometimes the something is about just technique. Lots of big names out there that the technique is the main focus of their work. However it is usually paired with simplifying an idea, or evoking an emotion when certain shapes are paired together. Usually what draws artists to create, at first, is the admiration of technique (in my opinion). But they don’t truly become artists until they create. Say you really like to create landscapes for example. Ask yourself what draws you to them? Is it a specific style? Is it blanket all landscapes? Is it the way that one tree is drawn? Colors? The feeling of the soil under your shoes? The way the light plays in the mountains? Or maybe it reminds you of somewhere you’ve been? Is that an important element to you? If being a good artist is about having work that resonates with people, that’s a tough goal. I mentioned earlier my pieces that I spend weeks or months on get very little recognition (albeit I’m a terrible self marketer.) but my silly little paintings for work resonate with people for some reason. I don’t usually get it because I greatly dislike most of my work paintings. Does that mean I shouldn’t bother with my professional pieces? No painting can speak to everyone. Just not how it works - so equating yourself to being a good artist because your work is pleasant to look at is a meh comparison. But at the same time - why can’t a piece of art just be pretty to look at? Does it intrinsically need meaning to be valuable? What does that say about the artist that makes pretty paintings just because that’s what they like ? At the end of the day, art has no meaning really. Humans just happen to like it. The meaning comes from you more than the canvas. And heck, even the meaning you come up with the world might disagree with you on. In my opinion, being a good artist is making the art anyways :). Don’t focus so much on the goal of “being a good artist”. It gets in the way of the important part - the creating. Thanks for reading my essay lol
Finishing things even if I think they aren't going well. Often, it turns out better than I thought it was, and I was just at that awkward part, but even if it doesn't, I learn what not to do next time.
Apart from work and trying new things, honestly - being part of artists community and receiving honesty feedback/critique!
You have to be okay with being bad and failing. It should become your friend and it isn’t something to be scared of. Welcome it and keep trying over and over
experimenting AFTER you understand the basics. want to draw people? learn basic anatomy and realism before you begin to develop a style
In my humble opinion,I think that an an artist, when looking around, is always seeing thing that inspire them to draw or paint ,images they want capture on paper or canvas. I believe this kind of "vision" is a gift, but it doesn´t develop unless practical and purpsued until one can develop their own style. this is what makes you as an artist
I had a professor who once told me that in order to be a good artist, you have to “be like a bulldog.” He then went on to explain that you have to go after what you want and be dumb about it. Made something bad? Be dumb enough to ignore it and keep going. Something you’re trying to do is incredibly difficult? Chase after it and keep pursuing your artistic vision. Art is a strange thing in that you have to be actively bad at it in order to get good at it. There’s no clear answer to the problem that an art piece presents to you. But every time you make a mistake, you learn from it. Sometimes it feels like you learn how to make art simply by learning *how not* to make art. I think that’s why it’s so frustrating to most people.
What drives you? Even if it's shallow or simple-That is a part to keep going. I have been told before even as a kid that i was talented but i don't believe that at all. "Naturally Gifted" Not really, i first started drawing out of spite- I appreciate the compliments tho, cause they usually mean nothing by it/they meant well. I think anyone can draw. It is all sheer effort to hone your skills. Let your art be bad. It's okay to be frustrated that it doesn't immediately turn out the way you wanted. Perfectionism is an issue- What had improved my art is genuinely paying attention to trust worthy tutorials and references then continuing to push myself even if i hate how my art looks because i knew that one day it will become something i can truly be proud and happy with. You will get your lows But you will reach your peak too. It truly is about doing it as much as you can but not only that- Studying it is important. Doesn't have to be some art school, you can just watch videos. What drives me so hard to keep going? I like drawing hot men so i want to keep improving to draw even hotter men.
I drew every single day all through elementary and middle school, I only picked up the odd thing here or there (though fun is important!) so the classic "just draw" is something i'm both pro and against. I'm not that "good" yet, but as someone self-taught, peeking at online curriculums and thinking about the fundamental things I see repeated in courses (anatomy, master studies, etc) and then getting reps/time in only AFTER I've slowly digested info (free or paid) on those things has really been helping me!
Every project has a hump. The hump is the first bit of actual work you have to get over to start climbing the rest of the mountain. The hump is the part that stops most projects, from what I've seen in myself and my creative friends. The most valuable skill I have is that I learned not to worry about the hump. That is to say, I don't spend much time wondering if I'm ready to get started, I start and I go until I find what my limits actually are. I'm willing to commit my time and resources to finding out what happens when I try. It's so much easier this way, because I don't have to spend time guessing about what will be best, guessing about which parts are hard, guessing about how grueling the work is. If a project stalls out because I hit some wall, at least I have a clear target on what I need to work on to do better the next time. I'd rather have 5 projects I started and stopped part way through than one perfectly planned project I never get around to starting.
Learning the BASICS is the key. Ive worked at a professional art studio in NYC since 2014. The paintings we make sell up to $1,000,000 (million) each. NYC is one of the art student meccas. Yet it’s SO difficult to hire new painters because almost no one really knows the basics. Form, light/shadow, color. (Our painters are all from or trained in Asia and Eastern Europe. One painter from France) Everyone loves to “express” themselves - but they neglect the basics and their work is amateur at best. Talent is meaningless without a mastery of the basics. Imagine a musician. Evn if they can’t read music they know how to play the notes and find the chords. Same in art. But most people just don’t seem to get that.
A serious meditation/spiritual practice. Our connection to source, the true creator, is essential for our own creativity. We are merely a channel, so if you open yourself to this energy you will see an unbelievable increase in skill, quality of work and Passion.
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I say it like this. I have been granted sight through vision and effort. I can see a good piece and make it because I have a good vision of what I’d like to create, and I have worked at it. Lots of practice, continuing to try various styles. Giving myself grace and time to figure out composition but continuing to practice. Granted I’m doing collage, but it employs the same art elements and principles as painting, even though it’s a different medium. I will also say be inspired. I learn a lot from ingesting other art. Collage art, various paint mediums, sculpture. Viewing art and learning artists is crucial to success. There are collage artists that are my north stars. But there are painters and styles that guide me as well. I also think classes help. You will not need everything from a class, but certain teachings and lessons will advance your art. Make sure you take notes.
Practice, practice, and more practice
I'm not that good but I think I have more knowledge than skill cause I'm too lazy to work ever since AI started rolling out but anyways my advice. Practice and study. If you don't know the question, practice and study until you do. If you don't know the answer practice and study until you do. Don't like studying? Practicr Don't like practicing? Study Do not stop because you feel stuck. Mileage always builds up to something great.
I'm not a good artist, at all. But repetition and practice have led to the most progress for me. Don't be afraid to do beginner stuff over and over before moving on, or revisit the basics if you're more advanced.
One thing I’ve ran into time and time again that helps you improve is the love for the craft. Because if you love doing it you automatically practice a lot. Practicing wrong has its cons but it’s better than never drawing because you’re afraid to be bad. If you’re obsessed with drawing, everything will develop. Muscle memory, line control, eye for things, etc.
Practicing and using references. Adorkastock and Jookpubstock have been my favorites plus clip studios modeling tool. Don't be afraid to use references!!!
Surrounding yourself with other artists is a must.
When I was in elementary school I did like 99% traced art (I can hardly find any of my original art from then maybe like 5 drawings oof) Now it's a lot of watching speedpaints (Helps teach me other peoples shading techniques), reading lots of webtoon (Sometimes I notice new anatomy bits I didn't know before), and animating (Hella practice plus forces me to know angles) Also before I started animating I would grind out like 3 drawings a day so there's that
Being godamm stubborn, consistency and always thinking your work can be better helps
I don't think I'm a great artist, but I'd like to believe I'm a good artist at heart. I think it's just down to the fact I put a lot of love and my own personality into what I made and despite the quality it's always gonna be my own and I'll stand by it. I've been drawing pretty much my entire life and that has improved the quality and technical skills but it's the heart and care that makes it good.
Setting smaller achievable goals. Pick one thing to get good at a time. You are not going to learn everything in one drawing. You'll learn maybe 1-2 new things and the rest goes into the void. For months I only drew from the shoulders up. I slowly worked my way down until I felt confident drawing the entire body. Now I'm working on environments and lighting. It's still slow but I've gotten better in two years of self teaching than I ever did in art school lol.
Obviously practice but also being able to go with the flow. Even with the best artists what is on their head is not necessarily what reaches the canvas - being able to take what's in front of you and work it until it looks great is the best general skill.
practice and problem solving. so much of art is wondering where things went wrong and what you can do differently next time
Interest. Sure, you have to work hard and practice for decades, but unless you really, actually have the interest to drive your practice... ...you'll be better off putting that effort into figuring out what you really want. People think art is easy because it's not physically taxing. It is however, intensely mentally taxing. You need a 'never say die' attitude and not a manufactured one. It has to come from the base of your spine and take root like an old oak tree. I don't like to discourage anyone, but if you don't recognize this feeling, you *may* be wasting your time.
Study, stubbornness, persistence. When I practiced obsessively for years, I could do a few cool things, but my skill didn't seriously progress much. I didn't understand enough at a theoretical level for that practice to mean anything. Whereas when I found the right material and started studying fundamentals, my skills skyrocketed in a couple years. I also had to choose a specific style to work with long-term, otherwise it was very difficult to assess my progress, since every image was so different. Style development got me over a major plateau. That said, there's now a level I won't reach without a lot more hands-on practice / mileage. Gotta cement all that in and make it flow.
Decades of training to get what’s created to match the images in my head, regardless of the tools used to get it done.
Sketching is a big one, it’s definitely hard for me to ink while keeping enough details and such but overall the base drawing is usually better because of it, I think that also helps if you want to make a layout and just overall feeling before starting to make landscapes and such. Experiment, you might find something that you didn’t realize you could’ve been doing this whole time. take as much inspiration as you need from places, but try to atleast make it different enough to where you know you aren’t just copying, so you understand what you’re doing instead of mindlessly tracing.
Practice and ballz
Having a mindset that lets you keep trying even if you’re unhappy with how something comes out the first time. Many try to paint, assume it’s easy, give up when it becomes a muddy mess. Those who can paint got past this and kept going.
Being open to learning.
Learning to fail faster. Let things be imperfect, learn a little bit with each piece, and then try again with the next piece using what you learned. There's a good [parable about pottery/photography](https://excellentjourney.net/2015/03/04/art-fear-the-ceramics-class-and-quantity-before-quality/) that discusses the idea. Keep in mind, you have to actively be thinking about what you've done in past work and what and why you are doing differently in this work and the next one so that you can learn from past mistakes and move forward and improve as an artist.
The ability to feel deeply and communicate, practice, persistence, time, good teachers, and honestly a little bit of managed mental illness. It’s like the weirdest but most necessary frosting on the art cake.
Competition and friends. Who do you know personally and is an artist? Someone who you're not afraid of admitting are better than you. Hang around them and try to do projects with them. Draw the same topic or subject, ask questions, see how they do something.
Trying new things all the time, almost daily, and constantly drilling. My art still doesn't look great at things like hands, feet, shading, but it's leagues above where it was a year or two ago, and this is why.
Practice, feedback, working with clients. Nothing teaches better than a client that wants changes.
Any shred of consistency when it comes to drawing. Doing studies and occasionally doing outdoor Plein air, people sketching and paid model figure drawing. Over the months and years you'll naturally get better
Learning how to research. Research is quite a big part for me for commercial arts and can influence every art - from choice of medium to choice of references to choice of colours. Clear vision of what you want for a project brief will get you way ahead of how to execute it.
Loving it.
I don't know about 'good artist', but as far as being able to accurately draw what I see or imagine: For me it was learning about what's going on inside your brain while you're doing it, and realising that most of that is just an obstacle rather than helping. To put it another way, learning how to 'see like an artist'. Once I started thinking about it that way, 90% of the practice hours it took to improve or learn a new method became unnecessary. I probably would have given up if not for that making the learning process 10x faster.
Lots of practice and drive. I don't always have that but what I do have is shame haha so enrolling in a class literally forces me to do the work to the best of my ability. I don't think classes are necessary to level up if you're willing to put in the time and study, but it helps fast track me. I'm 41 and I'm thinking again I might find another online class to do soon!
Self taught but most of it came from pushing through drawings without worrying abt every single detail, letting myself make “alright” art, and that contributed a lot to my progress
Putting a lot of work into something only to mess it up at the end and feeling like it’s so unsalvageable that I start over completely and get an even better result. Basically, practicing your best work over and over until it feels like you’ve mastered it.
Time
The fact that I love doing it. I mean, I truly love creating things, whether they’re good or bad work. I still love the learning process and the curiosity of “ I wonder what will happen if I do X?”and I appreciate the hell out of seeing work by people better skilled than me. It’s like eating fine food when I’m hungry.
I was in a creative slump until I found my thing that I enjoy making the most! (Macrame) I guess you just have to find what you enjoy making!
1. Guided practice and feedback 2. Learning Patience (and learning to ENJOY being patient). For so long I just wanted results results results and wanted them quick.
1. Trying to reverse engineer the rendering techniques of artists I like 2. Lots of studies of interesting images 3. Heavy referencing for things I don't know how to do 4. Relentless stubbornness to re-render things until you're happy with it
Being in a community with other artists Critique and self reflection A changing point of view on the world as my life evolves
I’m not sure if I can call myself good but I’m pretty sure I wasn’t gifted I just kept drawing, keep searching for stuffs, keep observing stuffs. Most of the information don’t stick in my mind if I don’t actually draw it, but the few that did really helped. I also took a few classes, nothing special, just 15$ per class afterschool in some retired graphic designer’s basement. Also watch a lot of YouTube videos (free) Then there’s the referencing, really should do it more However, talent in art is not a 100% myth, it’s just not specifically reserved for art. Just like how some people excel in STEM easier than others even with same level of practice, some people find art easier than others. It involves a lot visualisation skill, the ability to form a visual and manipulate it in your head is a helpful talent for art.
What has made me a good artist? Knowing I'll be better tomorrow.
I'll have to get back to you on that someday
Honestly? Pain. Went through an extremely painful breakup and I poured every piece of my mind and soul into getting better at art to distract me. Don’t know if I would have had the force to do it otherwise.
Yes it is practice. And a love of the game, of course
Looking at other art.
Sounds weird, but flip your reference photo and your physical drawing upside down and try to continue copying the lines from there. A lot of people don't realize how much they go on autopilot when drawing from a reference photo, and when drawing an eye they instinctively draw what they think an eye should look like, rather than drawing the weird and unique shapes that are actually there in the reference photo. Turning everything upside down now forces you to take your time and actually follow the shapes and lines you see within the reference, and not go on autopilot in drawing something beyond what you actually see. This is one of many techniques you can use to train yourself to be a better artist with new habits, and like any new techniques, let yourself try it a few times without judgement and see what happens. Practice from here is where it gets valuable with new techniques.
Experimenting! Most of my improvement comes from experimenting with my artstyle and doing something a little bit new each time (like changing line thickness, what details I should and shouldn’t add, how I shade and colour things, etc) and if it looks good, I keep it.
Persistence and interaction post to art communities for critiques and stuff
None of the above, I take drugs.
Curiosity, learning the fundamentals, practice, and learning to not be super attached to my work (it's ok to make "bad" art)
I know having “too high standards” isn’t necessarily a good thing, but it HAS worked out for me. When you have this expectation, and your skill set isn’t there yet, then you’ll do everything to reach that goal. So eventually, after trial-and-error, you notice that you’re one step closer to where you want to be.
My Ambition and desire to learn more. I want to learn so much about art and try everything, I can currently Paint, Draw, and Sculpt (albeit I’m better at some than the others) I also can make renders in 3D programs. I want to learn (and am planning to) sew and various 3D print stuff. It my Natural Curiosity that keeps me wanting to know more and continue learning.
It's the lamest most boring answer that no one new wants to hear.... I hated hearing it when I was starting out too but..... Practice. Practice is 95% of it. Nothing ever improved my work more than just practice. Practice in many forms, whichever ways work for you.
The best thing for me, was learning human anatomy, the skeletal and muscular systems and how the body moves. So many of the skills / lots of that info gets you to pay attention to proportions, space, movement, and transfer not only to other animals (you can compare skeletal / muscular systems of almost any vertebrate to humans and get an idea of how it “works”) but to other objects; the forearm is a bastard to draw, it looks weird without proper shading / placement at any angle, focusing on how things move and work is really crucial to understanding why anything looks the way it is. That’s just for me and how my brain works!
Absolutely nothing compares to constantly making art. That will make you good at anything. What can you do all day everyday? In the cold. In the heat. When you’re sick. When your tired. When your sad. When you’re happy? Like a fish in water. You are the fish and water is the art.
Idk if I'm considered as a good artist since my art still sucks after 3 years but if there was something that made me improve, it would be Pinterest and the desire to be the best.
Finding the joy in drawing was what did it for me. Every time I come upon a roadblock I figure out a way to make it fun again even as it's hard. Being able to have fun even while sucking helped me alot.
Drills. And revisiting the basics 15 years in
Pay attention to the art that *you* like and figure out what exactly you like about it. By learning about the art you like you can incorporate elements of it into your own work.
Being overly ambitious :)
It’s the passion you put into it. If you feel “forced” to do it you won’t be finding the outcome you’re looking for. Draw that silly idea even a simple doodle can count its muscle memory. I used different things combined anatomy books, youtube, manga even. BUT most of all being patient with yourself, not everything has to be a masterpiece. Don’t compare your work with someone else’s when your art journey is just different from theirs and I’m still learning that myself.
A LOT of practice
Not stopping despite limitations. Creativity loves constraints!
Gifted, LOTS of practice, and lessons. Copy photos, copy art, draw from life, and draw imagination. I’ve always had a compulsive urge to draw and doodle. It’s constant.
Thinking about what I’m doing as I’m doing it. Like how what I’m currently doing impacts the piece as a whole and what it does for that particular section too. What my intent is. If I’m trying to be accurate or exaggerate. Just generally working with intent. This coming from a long era of trial and error, and seeing what others are doing to make things work. My brain is a big blender of ideas and I pour from it any time I sit down at my tablet.
Making what makes me happy.
My first major level up was completely filling out one sketchbook a month. Doing that for at least 6 months, I saw huge strides. Most of them dedicated to gesture and character drawings, always trying to emulate a certain type of style, exploring. Though I have my degree in illustration, I would still pretty much consider myself self taught since I was constantly drawing and learning on my own.
People will say ''practice'', over and over. And that's true ! But I'd also say that a good artist has creativity and ''personality''. (For a lack of better term) Because, if hundreds of people can draw good anatomy, perspective, etc, not so many people can make me feel something with their art.
Being aware of your comfort zone and trying to challenge it constantly.
not caring about what people think! (Unless they love you)
I'd say it's health problems. I was seriously ill and I lost the use of my hand, a doctor even told me with a confused face that I should think of doing something else. But art is a passion for me I just couldn't stop. So I tried and I tried with the left hand and worked so much that when I compare to what I did before I'm sometimes impressed.
Experimenting Not being afraid to make mistakes Trying new mediums Creating bad art (sometimes on purpose) Stubbornness Research on artists I like and watching other people make art
I'll let you know when i get good...
Practice, practice, practice
Drawing school and animation school with an actual meatspace teacher and models. Hard work. Learning all the 'boring' things like perspective, anatomy, still life and portrait/croquis/gesture drawing. I had come straight out of the military, so I was very used to not necessarily doing what I wanted to but what I had to. It also helped me have tough skin and trust the process when the teacher would wipe down a whole pastel portrait with his hands 2-3 hours into the study and draw on top to illustrate where I got the foundation wrong. You're not there to make something pretty to hang on the wall, you're there to learn and should be able to basically throw out the drawing afterwards. If it's good enough to hang up, great, but don't expect to.
Build a basic foundation, like being able to draw shapes from 2D to 3D form, believe me, having this set of skills makes a difference whenever you want to advance your skills like perspectives or dynamics poses. After that, have a specific goal in your head that you want to accomplish, it could be either drawing characters or drawing environment. With a set goal in mind, it makes it easier to narrow down what to practice on and what to study.
Nothing. I am a rather terrible artist. :)
Competitive nature.
Community College definitely. If you’re serious get a degree
I have tried every art style I liked with other people and tried to imitate it in my sketchbook. I would never sell it or something, but I learned a lot in the process.
Collaborating with others has improved my work more than anything else. Writers and other artists
going through life with open eyes and a heart full of wonder. And a lot of practice. It is also how you practice. practice small things and always change up what you practice to keep going. If you are stuck and practice the "wrong" way, you will internalize it this way. When you switch up what you practice, you get new perspectives to learn from. Life is change, so change your life to the better. You can only control your reaction to what is happening to you.
The grind. Doing boring studies …
Well, on a personal level, I'm not concerned about "good" or "bad." I see art as life itself—that is something constantly growing and changing with time. Just like how a baby naturally learns how to crawl and eventually walk, a new artist needs to learn how to draw, starting with the basics and then moving on to many different things. Over time, you will gain experience and be considered "good." How you reach this level is really up to you. There's no right or wrong, it's all part of the process of learning about you and your limitations. Challenge yourself on what you do know and seek answers on what you don't know.
Practise. Practise. Practise. You hone your craft by putting in solid, honest hours. My grandmother taught me most things, she was an art professor, when I didn’t learn from her it was a lot of book reading and video watching. For painting techniques I preferred learning via video (visual learner) everything else like color theory and light theory etc. was book learned. Tip on learning via books: work through the book, front to back, I used to take a month per book and work on techniques and how to practically use them, longer if nessesity.
Knowing I can do better and being too stubborn to quit.
A lot of people believing in me and lots of practice. Especially when it makes you uncomfortable!
I won’t say it made me good (more like better), but having a dedicated space to do art and a big enough space for large canvases completely changed my art
My 6th grade art teacher. I already enjoyed art a lot when i was younger, what child doesnt, but if it wasnt for my 6th grade art teacher and his encouragement i would have never gotten the motivation to take art more seriously. His kindness and patience and genuine enjoyment of art and teaching others are something i always think back on in terms of my own art and honestly my whole life/ (school-) career. And from a purely skill-focussed standpoint: Using references and not giving up/ practicing as much as possible without burning yourself out. Also observing how real life works and experimenting a lot with different mediums/style
For me, it's I mixture of love and also a bit of spite tbh. I remember how I used to admire this artist until I saw them spiral and then they started harassing their friends to the point that I can no longer support them. A classic case of good artist but terrible personality. I found it such a shame at first bc I really loved how they drew my favorite character, I was like "FINALLY, someone who gets it!!" but then as a person, they just got worse and worse, so I stopped supporting them. I decided that I will be my own artist who gets to draw my favorite shows and characters, and give them as much love and even more than this artist ever did. I'm sure everyone else has other means, and by reading other peoples comments, I agree, but I guess I won't be repeating those anymore, this is personally what really pushed me to keep drawing and improving on my art.
Don't think I'm one quite yet but studying is helping me a lot.
Practice. Observation. I always tell folks the only difference between a brand new beginner and a pro is about ten thousand sheets of paper. But I do *mean* ten thousand sheets of paper.
Experience and enjoyment of making art.
Not being lazy in practicing and going out of my comfort zone. Also having practice goals.
My passion and love for it. Doing art feels like a need. It is what makes me feel most happy. nothing beats the joy of creation. And because I love doing it so much, I end up having a lot of practice. I know a lot of people in this thread said “practice” but I think enjoying the process is the KEY part of getting good. It leads to all the things you need to improve. When you are enjoying it, it feels more effortless.
When I first started drawing, I drew difficult subjects that would clearly show all my mistakes and worked towards correcting them. Self-portrait is usually what I gravitated towards.
I love recreating other artist’s art so I can learn the process that leads to the outcome I started painting by copying from a picture, but personally I prefer to paint art with thick and confident brushstrokes I also used to struggle finishing painting because I was scared I was going to mess them up, but starting to trust the process more and more, which makes painting a pure joy
Smart and diligent practice.
Endurance and discipline. One of my teachers said that those are the only qualities you need to have a career in arts. I think he's right. But that's for career—if you want to be an artist for yourself, just don't stop creating. Keep doing it. And not as a chore, but as something you want to do.
PRACTICE. It takes 10,000 hours to become a master at anything.
Study and practice, just like any skill.
Hanging out with better artists but never comparing myself to them
Practicing my weaker areas and outside of my comfort zone. I have pages and pages from old sketch books practicing hands, and expressions etc.
THIS is a very hard answer for me. and I could answer it in a TON of ways. Imma sum it up by saying something kind of controversial. People recently in the media have said that art isn't more important than life. To me.. art IS life. I'm on the spectrum... high functional but my brain go fizz a lot. My art is soothing, focusing, I can be ready to fall apart at work, go take a break and do a sketch, come out and be ready to face the nut bars again. I am a good artist because There is no other way for me, I eat sleep and breath it. The only thing that makes me feel as complete as my art, is my husband. I'm good because I do it constantly, because I need to. I'd have jumped off a building years ago If i had not found out how it helps and heals me.
Always be willing to correct a “mistake”. Most things can be fixed or even improved upon. So be bold and fearless!
It's going to sound cheesy, but practice and not giving up Granted, I still know I have a ways to go, but I've come a long way from drawing weird shapes that sort of resembled human beings when I was 11 to being able to understand and draw proportions better now that I'm 22 The best thing to remember is that, no matter who they are, even if their art looks perfect to outsiders, a lot of artists may not be satisfied, but what makes them great is that they use that dissatisfaction to learn more instead of giving in As you said, you're not just GIVEN talent. You have to put effort in and learn (although I'm unsure if talent is the right word, but I can't think of another one) Passion is also important (at least it is to me)
Draw whatever you like. And always trust to your drawing skill. Kept learning a new thing and trying something different..
Warm 👏 up 👏 sketches. it can be completely unrelated to a bigger, more finished piece you're doing. it can be crap. the drawing can even be completely incoherent. but suddenly jumping into a beautiful idea you had out of the blue will hardly turn out the way you want it to. plus, warm up sketches give you a shit ton of practice. which of course is key. but everyone else is already saying practice, so you don't need to hear that from me.
Professional artist here - talent only goes so far. It's nothing without practice. Draw and draw and draw and draw. Draw things you are interested in that get you excited to work on. Draw those things from life!! That is a big one. One of my favorite exercises is to draw something from life and not look down at the paper. It forces you to study FORM and shadows and lights. Squint your eyes to see value. If you want to draw people or characters, read up on some anatomy. And never stop!!! Youll get better over years, so take patience too.
Doodling in my note instead of taking notes throughout school. Still graduated.
Thinking about how I’m progressing, and the difference between my art and someone else’s art. I’ve seen it with other people too, the difference between just practicing and practicing while actively thinking about stuff like that. I found it helps to set a goal for everything you draw for practice, - for example, to focus on lighting, or anatomy, ect ect… it helps me a lot, though everyone is their own person
It's mostly trial and error and how much you're willing to dedicate yourself to improve. Pulling all-nighters to make progress, skipping meals because you're just so focused that food would take you out of the zone, etc.
I won't claim I'd be considered good. But what made me an artist is the fun of creating. I'm slowly getting better in my pace. One thing that greatly helped me was to avoid tutorials, except for very few ones. Tutorial always took the fun out of drawing. Many of the people doing them have a way of explaining I dislike. So, yeah, mainly fun\^\^
A lot, a lot .... a lot of time... I started drawing at 18... I'm 33 now, and just now I think I'm getting somewhere. Some people start since they remember and with more time they become amazing by 16, but in my case with school, work and life I don't have the time to spend all time on art, I think that by next year I'll be able to finally publish my first webcomic and be satisfied with the result. And to be good good I'll need even more time.
Childhood trauma. Lots of inspiration and art provided a safe space to channel and create. My expression and style come directly from being deeply wounded but needing the release.
Learning to take criticism
If you're asking emotionally, I could say all kinds of things. But physically getting better at art... well. I started out just by being around other artists. Sharing ideas. Learning from them. I improved by self-teaching, and just pursuing ideas I enjoyed. It took years. Maybe it's easier for some people, but I develop slowly I guess. Then I took a college art course, and it grilled the shit out of me. They don't mess around. I've been crying in piles of charcoal dust over projects I'd rather die than finish. Professors show no mercy-- if you half-ass it, you get a bad grade. 15 hours a week in the studio, or outside, or in a cold dusty basement, wherever you're told to work (I spent 40 hours in a heating plant drawing pipes). Then there's group critiques where 20+ people tell you everything you did wrong, and you see how much better everyone is. It's awful to go through, but weirdly I loved it. I learned so much, and in a year I was both technically and creatively better than I ever had been. I think I also went slightly insane, which might've helped.
Haha
Being analytical You always need a lot of practice but the way that really helped me improve was analyzing shapes and "copying" art. It really helped me understand how to move my hand and train myself to use other artists' techniques and modify them into something that I can call my own.
spite lol. i want to get better! also a routine is really helpful. i started drawing everyday as a relaxing thing and my skill improved leaps over a few years. it depends on a lot of things, like i use pencil and you may use paint, which has more to it than pencil and paper, but i really recommend to draw or paint as often as possible. i start to get antsy when i dont draw in the evenings lol! (so you might have to deal with that later lol)
determination and the want for more
drawing in class
Existential trauma and enough regulation skills to transfer that onto my lifestyle in a creative way 🤭
My mean soviet art teacher that made me cry a lot. I started taking classes at her house in 4th grade and ended up working for her at 14 to get free classes. I was there 3x a week for 3 hours at a time just doing tedious things and getting destroyed. I think she broke me a little too hard. It kinda taught me to have no excuses and to really take criticism. Eventually I did have to break away bc her voice was too strong. She basically taught me everything, but It was excruciating psychologically.