Is this the right place for me?
3yr
Styrbjörn Andersson
I've managed to create an art schedule that works for me, that includes things like figure drawing, gestures, hands/feet etc. I have done this for 1-2 hours a day for five weeks, and it seems sustainable. Weekends are spent doing "long draws" of up to 10 hours over the entire weekend, where I create a finished drawing or painting. This, to me, feels like I've got that important "draw every day" up and running, at least for the time being.
As for art studies and learning (as opposed to practice), I have bought but not completed the figure drawing and anatomy courses by Proko - they seem really good, and I should probably continue doing them.
I've also procured all the courses by Scott Harris on Udemy. They are all collected under the "Art School of Imagination" (ASI for short), of which I am currently an "Official Community Ambassador". Being an ambassador there pretty much means I volunteer to give feedback to their students on their assignments.
Lastly, I am subscribed to the New Master's Academy, which seems really nice so far.
What I lack at the moment is proper feedback. I can of course post in the ASI community, but it is very beginner focused (most students post "my first manga character ever" as their first assignment), so it kind of feels like I am outgrowing it. I get a lot of likes on practice pieces and artworks, but likes won't help me improve :)
This got me to think about this community, which I have not participated at all in so far. Looking at what's posted, I feel that people are generally at a higher level here, and there seems to be quite a bit of nice feedback being given as well. So, my question is, could this community be a good place to migrate for someone who is not a complete beginner anymore, that looks for people that can give more professional feedback and critique? I would of course be happy to provide feedback of my own as well, to the degree I am able to!
I've attached last month's practice, so you have an idea of what level I am currently at.
Having a schedule is going to make you level up way faste, if you are focused on being technically proficient it’s a great idea. There’s potential in your gesture drawings that needs attention. I always recommend the Walt Stanchfeld books drawn to life. There is a ton of information in those two volumes about what a gesture is and how economy of line can get you to an optimal place we’re you don’t need too much detail to convey a clear pose.
The second suggestion I’d like to add is to make sure you have a goal in mind, why do you want to study like this? And how long do you think you can manage to work in order to be proficient at what you want to do?
Make time for exercise, rest and fun. This mentality of drawing fr the sake of drawing is NOT healthy in the long run.
Thanks for the nice advice! I'm trying to find a balance of drawing/rest-of-life, although it has always been a struggle to get it right.
My goal right now is to get to a point where I can draw reliably at a level that is professionally viable. I can at the moment produce things that are portfolio worthy, but it's a hit or miss affair, and I believe my lacking fundamentals are to blame for this. As for long time goals, I would love to make art into a living somehow, but I am not sure in what way yet.
About gesture, you are absolutely right about me needing to develop more in that area. I understand the concept of line economy in theory, but more often than not I end up treating gestures as figure drawings in a hurry. I'm always on the lookout for more resources, and the book you suggested looks really interesting.
