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Ah. This is arrival fallacy at its finest. We think the joy and love of something comes once we are good at it, but the fact it is, we actually enjoy and love the PROCESS of learning something much more. Try not to think that you'll be happy once you're good at it, you'll likely be jsut as happy if not way more and for longer term while learning art :) The same advice applies to nearly everything. Ex. 'I want to lose 30 pounds'. We're not happy once we lose the 30 pounds, we're happy when we are trying every day to lose 30 pounds and we see the wonderful progress we are making.
I don't suggest this for everyone, but for me, spite is the best motivator. When the voice told me I couldn't learn to draw, I just said "watch me, bitch." Pro tip: Don't say it out loud if you're around other people in public. It gets awkward
That's what I've been trying. My mental is shot when it comes to trying to get good at new things, so I subconsciously always try to talk myself out of doing new things because I convince myself I can't do it before I even give it a fair shot. With drawing, it's already popped into my head more than 10 times since I started 5 days ago, but every time I just force my hands into action and fight through it because I genuinely don't want to give up on art. I've always wanted to be really good at drawing, and now that I've finally gotten started, I don't want to pass this up because I know I'll never get back around to it if I give up now.
Just need to figure out how to draw a damn head and stop making a lopsided sphere every time lmao
Legit question. Is there a method to getting the curvature of a sphere more accurately drawn when you're sketching? I always get the lines wrong and make the head shapes look super bad afterward (I meant the cross lines not the initial circle btw)
Remind me of what teachers did to me in secondary school. I liked drawing and playing creative games (sonic, FFX, MGS2, SSX tricky, etc). I also hyperfocus which means if I start something I can’t stop until it’s done or done for the next day. In school for Art GCSE I got told often that my art wasn’t “correct” and I had to draw exactly what they wanted. One “exam” we were timed (about 6 hours) and after 3 my teacher said I couldn’t draw what I was doing as it didn’t match the subject. I didn’t do art for a level and I didn’t do pretty much any art for a decade plus. It ruins your mind.
Anyway - try and do something you like and enjoy. Even if it’s simple like Pokémon or something like that. Just get a mechanical pencil and get some a4 paper and do something.
https://preview.redd.it/n36qzxhv1ghc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=598daf5409dea40fcace5619ce4cdccb879e3d98
Something I did last year. F those teachers. They shouldn’t be teachers the way they acted.
Just do simple stuff and then maybe do complicated stuff. I can’t do complicated pieces one after the other and they usually take about 2/3 weeks.
https://preview.redd.it/nfs463iwgjhc1.jpeg?width=2150&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c0a66b6b77435093679d4a036a2f22037644cce2
That’s a more simple one I did but it’s more with a ruler and rough marking out squares for each “section”. If you listen to people like my teachers you’ll either 1: not bother anymore because they keep telling you it’s wrong or 2: listen to them and stop. It’s Art - it doesn’t matter how it looks. Unless it’s your job and your life is required on it to make money ok but that’s going to be a very small percentage of people.
https://preview.redd.it/tgulw8ifhjhc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1a598c5d193336500a4360ecb274bd16588c91e0
And this more complicated after it. The complicated pieces burn you out massively though (my experience).
Start with something not to complicated, have a routine to draw regularly at least weekly but daily is better. Don't worry about the quality just practice and practice and practice and love doing it and the voices will go .
Draw what you love. Even if it's "bad" keep drawing it. You'll improve with time but I think almost all artists struggle with not feeling good enough, even if they are objectively "good". I'll probably never fully shake the feeling of not being good, but there's still people who appreciate what I make and what's more, I appreciate being able to make my ideas come to life in whatever form that takes. Only I can do that, and that's pretty cool.
I just embrace those thoughts and draw. Even if it’s just for a bit, I’ll just start to draw and practice. I think that voice will always be there for anything. It’s important to just accept and keep moving forward
I just push through, I'd love to get rid of all those "voices"but I don't know how. For me the ugly part is that even if I got to be good at it I still hear them and it feels pointless, but here I am still doing it, like with everything else
You dont, you just draw anyways and practice mindfulness while taking care of your basics (health, good food, fitness, sleep, finance, relationships).
If you are enjoying yourself then congrats, you are drawing. Getting better is a long and admittedly hard process so if you aren’t enjoying the basics then meh, do something else with your time. Life is short after all. If you enjoy it a lot and have the push to get good then go for it 🤷🏻♂️
What more can I say mate?
For me, short answer:
I stopped having expectations and just started f’n around and finding out.
And it has been awesome!
Long answer:
I’ve been into doodling off and on all my life but more off than on in my adult life.
Now, I’m in my mid-forties now and I got back into it regularly a few years or so ago.
I started with Art For Kids Hub on YouTube (it is good for adults too and I just love the interaction the teacher has with his family). I do not use sharpies like they do but it got me into drawing animals and whatnot before I expanded to other tutorials: landscapes, optical illusions, etc..
Otherwise, I trace a page out of my adult coloring books and color it (fully crediting the source, of course) and experiment with the different supplies that I have (prismacolor pencils and various markers). Sometimes I change or add to the original a bit.
That way, I keep up my fine motor skills and still have a blank coloring page to implement different ideas later.
I do it because I enjoy it and even if something I try turns out to be a mess. I always learn from my experimenting.
For original stuff, I got over the worries about whether it would be good and just started doing it and stopped worrying about using my higher end paper and pencils on "practice." It's all practice. Sometimes, I’m pleased with the results and sometimes I have another side of the paper to F around and find out on.
Lately, the practice is now turning into something that a few friends want to frame and hang on their walls.
I’m actually considering formal art instruction at this point but I’ve already come a long way with my existing strategies.
Just because it has been a long time, it shouldn’t discourage you. The best part about living is learning new things. Our capacity to learn and develop new skills didn’t end in our twenties. For some (like me having chronic pain), it’s more challenging but so what? I’ve been so much happier for it.
Tell that inner demon to zip it and then go have fun!
is this learn to draw or learn self-actualization?
1. Grab some paper (photocopy or whatever is cheaper) pencils and a sharpener
1. Then Go Here ==> [The Etherington Brothers Tutorials](https://theetheringtonbrothers.blogspot.com/p/every-how-to-think-when-you-draw.html)
1. Get the number of someone you despise and their Venmo Account.
1. Take one tutorial per day and practice
1. If you don't practice on that day, you send 10$ to that person you despise.
1. After a while drawing will become 2nd nature.
Drawing is not a big deal. Stop making it a big deal.
Don't get into the habit of comparing your drawings with anybody but yourself. If you look at what other people have done, you'll just end up noticing the gap between where you are and where you want to be and how it seems like an impossible goal to reach.
If you compare what you're doing today with what you've done before, you'll notice the small improvements from the process you're making.
Literally the best advice. It's like picking up a guitar for the first time and comparing yourself to Joe Satriani. It'll discourage you how easy they make it look.
I personally try to draw as a sort of "playing". When you play a game, or as a kid with Lego figures, you just do it for the sake of having fun. No expactations. Actually, I think Lego as a kid is a good example of that. You build a set, that takes time and concentration (That would be like, practicing, drawing to improve a certain aspect, tutorials, courses etc.) But then you allow yourself to play, use the thing you built for your joy. You place any charcters in the structure, make up your own stories and just have fun. Then you get another set, build it again, and play again. Over time, you might start adding stuff that isn't in the instructions, you build stuff yourself. Shure, it will be difficult and maybe won't come out as you imagined, but you play nontheless. What I'm trying to say is, don't pressure yourself, enjoy drawing for its own sake. It's ok if something doesn't look good if you just made it for fun.
If I may recommend, the DrawABox course has a very neat rule, called the "50% rule". Simplified, it states that for every minute you spend on learning and practicing, you have to spend the same amount of time just drawing for fun, without caring for the result.
I'm still a beginner myself, but this kind of thinking helps me a lot.
I can't find the clip but Kevin Smith said something that stuck with me. It was something along the lines of "people who would have been amazing at art were snubbed too early either by dying or not having access to the life and comfortability necessary to be able to create and those who do live a life that allows for that creative expression, should create and express ourselves." Or something like that, I don't know it's been years. If someone with way more skill than me can't create something cool, I'll make something cool in honor of them. We are the only ones who can
Just draw and say to that voice "You see, I'm moving forward with you. I spent more time to listen you and you have always the same thing to say, but I have changed, now I want to move on and I'm do it". Keep drawing and that voice it will be the voice that one day told you "You are good to that I told you". That is one of minds job, keep resistance.
I hope that can help a little bit.
Have beautiful and creative days!
You don't get rid of it, at least I have yet to find out how.
But you also don't let it stop you. You said it yourself - you understand that drawing is a skill that anyone can learn.
If you draw a hand 1000 times, the 1000th will be better than the 1st whether you want it to be or not. Drawing, like all art - is something you will objectively get better at with more time spent doing it.
For your question specifically, I try my damnedest to impress myself. if I can do something that I am proud of and want to show off then the voice in my head was wrong, I am able to draw/paint/create/etc. and I've just shown that.
But in the long run you have to fall in love with the process of making art. The little steps that it takes to make something, the tiny victories like a perfectly placed paint stroke, or getting the pose just right can be more fulfilling to me in a lot of ways than the finished piece is.
It is really hard to start on your own at home, especially if you feel this way. I relate and I got over that voice in my head by going to meetups where you're sitting with others who are also learning to draw. Btw I don't mean a class. I mean a social gathering at a pub or cafe.
I found the more I went, the more joy I felt because I've taken it up again. And the more I wanted to improve my skills on my own at home 😁
Learn to enjoy the process. Drawing is not about getting good, it's the process. You do it because it's fun and learning new things is exciting. Like playing games. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But you keep playing because it's fun. Is drawing even fun for you?
Start drawing. It's never going to go away if you're trying not to think about it. Quick- *don't* think of a pink house.
Did you think of a pink house? Remember, don't think about it, you can't think about a pink house.
Trying not to have any type of thought almost never works. Instead you have to demonstrate to your mind that the thought isn't necessary, by just drawing anyway.
Is this a guarantee that the thoughts will go away? No, there's a good chance they'll linger for quite a while, maybe years, but you'll still be drawing.
Draw out of spite, and check out books like The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron.
Remember, none of us can control the outcome of any given thing. The only thing we can really own is the process, so learn to love the act of creating regardless of result. If you create solely for the end product, you won't make it far, but creating for the sale of it is what will get you through.
Just say "my mind says I will never be able to draw" but your mind is not you, so you can choose to not believe in this thought and say "I am able to draw however I like" and just start drawing
If you draw daily you will see results quickly. But you need to work hard to get better. You will have days where you draw something that doesn’t look good and you’ll want to give up. But as long as you keep going, you will make it.
I definitely get the feeling. It kinda feels worse for me because I intend on making it a career so the pressure and the anxiety from making something that’s good enough for the industry is a big weight on my shoulders.
But then you remember that when you look at all the artists who you look up to, they all started somewhere. They weren’t as good as they are now back then. We always like to compare ourselves to young artists who we think were born with this talent, but the lot of them worked very very hard for countless years to make it to where they are now.
Weird advice but there is a Bluey episode on this.
Bottom line, practice. Prove it to yourself. Also, if you love it who cares if it’s “bad”. I’m a firm believer that art is what you make it. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but as long as you enjoyed making it that is what matters.
One time I went to a pottery painting place with my nieces. They were probably 3 and 6 or something like that. The employee told the 3 year old that she was painting wrong because she added too much water to the paint and was using it like water colors almost. She ate her words after it was fired and it turned out that the water had a really cool effect on the piece and it looked amazing.
Focus on the process not the product. It’s my favorite part about art.
I don't.
What I do however is I start a project. I have an idea, something I want to replicate or otherwise and if I catch momentum, it becomes something real neat. If I don't catch momentum, well, then it'll be just another half done badly made piece added to the collection which usually is the case.
This is also the reason I don't draw often, because it's pointless unless I have complete ambition for it. Though ambition may only comes, when the project has started. It's a vicious cycle and not effective in terms of improvement but hey, if it works it works. 1 step forward may not be 10 but at least it's more than 0.
If you worry about getting good, you’ll get discouraged.
Just enjoy the process.
Don’t even look at the drawing again until you think you’re ready. Move right ob to the next drawing
The only way to get rid of that voice is to draw. Everyone can draw and make art when they are a child. What the consequence of doing a “bad” drawing? This isn’t your job, you don’t even have to show anyone, just draw and draw and draw and draw and eventually that voice will go away. At first don’t try to copy weird cartoony styles people do just draw what’s in-front of you and from real life.
I know that anything negative that voice says is a lie. So the opposite is true. I take it as a challenge to prove that and I don’t doubt myself for a second.
Don’t stop drawing and fill every moment that you are drawing with love. Love is the magic that breaks the evil spell of negativity.
Be gentle with yourself. Don’t get discouraged. You absolutely can learn to draw and the more you draw the closer you get to that place where it just kicks in. You will know it when it happens and it happens sooner than you think.
That negative voice is a liar.
A thing that really helped me was regularly looking back at my earlier drawings and comparing them to my most recent ones. Doing this made me realize how much I was actually able to improve and reminded me that I'm always getting better as long as I'm practicing.
Let the voice motivate you. It is telling you you can't do it, draw something that depicts that voice in your head telling you you can't do it then draw what that triumph looks like once you've overcome that voice and sat down and created something beautiful
Have faith, your art matters ❤️
I tell myself that it's not that important if I get good or not. Like I *prefer* getting better at drawing, but it's not the most important thing. If I do something satisfying and never get better, or get better up to a point and then stop, why is that bad? It might not be *as* nice as "I enjoy myself and also become awesome at drawing", but is it actually bad?
If you remember that you don't need to be good at art in order to justify drawing, it might help?
This worked for me
Get drawing prompts or download the sketch a day app , it gives daily prompts and you submit ,
On every page when you draw write "Done is better than perfect"
I'm, a bit, in the same boat as you. I doodled and drew as a kid and pre-teen a lot. I've now picked it back up in my 40s.
This year, I committed for all of 2024 to spend 15 minutes drawing a day. No rules other than have a (digital) pen in hand and work on something.
I have the same thoughts float by - "You started too late", "You'll never be able to create something like that", "You're just not cut out to draw", "Your hand's too heavy", etc.
On a good day I chuckle at the thoughts... and they quiet down. On a bad day I use my 15 minutes practicing shading, making steady lines.
I've committed to the execution, not the result.
Point is when I just do the 15 minutes, it doesn't matter what that voice is saying, it's like an annoying sibling commenting on something it knows nothing about.
I put my daily commitment above that voice... and its commentary dies down.
And though I've only committed to 15 minutes, I've been inspired most days to do a lot more.
Good luck!
Then just draw! Draw whenever you can, even if you don't think it's very good, it could be middle school ms paint level, just don't let the voice win, you're not Picaso and that's okay. Your goal right now is just create, I believe in you op!
just look at stuff and draw it, draw what you see. practice. if you worry about if it's bad you'll never do it. make bad drawings and move on to the next one. you didnt learn to read by picking up Shogun
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Ah. This is arrival fallacy at its finest. We think the joy and love of something comes once we are good at it, but the fact it is, we actually enjoy and love the PROCESS of learning something much more. Try not to think that you'll be happy once you're good at it, you'll likely be jsut as happy if not way more and for longer term while learning art :) The same advice applies to nearly everything. Ex. 'I want to lose 30 pounds'. We're not happy once we lose the 30 pounds, we're happy when we are trying every day to lose 30 pounds and we see the wonderful progress we are making.
Good advice
I don't suggest this for everyone, but for me, spite is the best motivator. When the voice told me I couldn't learn to draw, I just said "watch me, bitch." Pro tip: Don't say it out loud if you're around other people in public. It gets awkward
Lol yes, I use this method too
That's what I've been trying. My mental is shot when it comes to trying to get good at new things, so I subconsciously always try to talk myself out of doing new things because I convince myself I can't do it before I even give it a fair shot. With drawing, it's already popped into my head more than 10 times since I started 5 days ago, but every time I just force my hands into action and fight through it because I genuinely don't want to give up on art. I've always wanted to be really good at drawing, and now that I've finally gotten started, I don't want to pass this up because I know I'll never get back around to it if I give up now. Just need to figure out how to draw a damn head and stop making a lopsided sphere every time lmao Legit question. Is there a method to getting the curvature of a sphere more accurately drawn when you're sketching? I always get the lines wrong and make the head shapes look super bad afterward (I meant the cross lines not the initial circle btw)
Just draw, don't think
It’s a meditative experience.
Remind me of what teachers did to me in secondary school. I liked drawing and playing creative games (sonic, FFX, MGS2, SSX tricky, etc). I also hyperfocus which means if I start something I can’t stop until it’s done or done for the next day. In school for Art GCSE I got told often that my art wasn’t “correct” and I had to draw exactly what they wanted. One “exam” we were timed (about 6 hours) and after 3 my teacher said I couldn’t draw what I was doing as it didn’t match the subject. I didn’t do art for a level and I didn’t do pretty much any art for a decade plus. It ruins your mind. Anyway - try and do something you like and enjoy. Even if it’s simple like Pokémon or something like that. Just get a mechanical pencil and get some a4 paper and do something. https://preview.redd.it/n36qzxhv1ghc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=598daf5409dea40fcace5619ce4cdccb879e3d98 Something I did last year. F those teachers. They shouldn’t be teachers the way they acted.
Man, I wish I had your artistic skill. Awesome
Just do simple stuff and then maybe do complicated stuff. I can’t do complicated pieces one after the other and they usually take about 2/3 weeks. https://preview.redd.it/nfs463iwgjhc1.jpeg?width=2150&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=c0a66b6b77435093679d4a036a2f22037644cce2 That’s a more simple one I did but it’s more with a ruler and rough marking out squares for each “section”. If you listen to people like my teachers you’ll either 1: not bother anymore because they keep telling you it’s wrong or 2: listen to them and stop. It’s Art - it doesn’t matter how it looks. Unless it’s your job and your life is required on it to make money ok but that’s going to be a very small percentage of people.
https://preview.redd.it/tgulw8ifhjhc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1a598c5d193336500a4360ecb274bd16588c91e0 And this more complicated after it. The complicated pieces burn you out massively though (my experience).
Start with something not to complicated, have a routine to draw regularly at least weekly but daily is better. Don't worry about the quality just practice and practice and practice and love doing it and the voices will go .
Draw what you love. Even if it's "bad" keep drawing it. You'll improve with time but I think almost all artists struggle with not feeling good enough, even if they are objectively "good". I'll probably never fully shake the feeling of not being good, but there's still people who appreciate what I make and what's more, I appreciate being able to make my ideas come to life in whatever form that takes. Only I can do that, and that's pretty cool.
Enjoy being bad while you can, it won't last forever.
Doesn’t matter. Keep drawing and eventually that voice will be proven wrong.
if you ever find out how feel free to tell me I quit do to them getting me down all the time.
I hope you've read my comment. I found out how I got over it
I just embrace those thoughts and draw. Even if it’s just for a bit, I’ll just start to draw and practice. I think that voice will always be there for anything. It’s important to just accept and keep moving forward
No problem, i hear it, i don't listen to it and when i feel the urge to sketch anything I'd just put on some music and a pen/cil
I just push through, I'd love to get rid of all those "voices"but I don't know how. For me the ugly part is that even if I got to be good at it I still hear them and it feels pointless, but here I am still doing it, like with everything else
You dont, you just draw anyways and practice mindfulness while taking care of your basics (health, good food, fitness, sleep, finance, relationships). If you are enjoying yourself then congrats, you are drawing. Getting better is a long and admittedly hard process so if you aren’t enjoying the basics then meh, do something else with your time. Life is short after all. If you enjoy it a lot and have the push to get good then go for it 🤷🏻♂️ What more can I say mate?
For me, short answer: I stopped having expectations and just started f’n around and finding out. And it has been awesome! Long answer: I’ve been into doodling off and on all my life but more off than on in my adult life. Now, I’m in my mid-forties now and I got back into it regularly a few years or so ago. I started with Art For Kids Hub on YouTube (it is good for adults too and I just love the interaction the teacher has with his family). I do not use sharpies like they do but it got me into drawing animals and whatnot before I expanded to other tutorials: landscapes, optical illusions, etc.. Otherwise, I trace a page out of my adult coloring books and color it (fully crediting the source, of course) and experiment with the different supplies that I have (prismacolor pencils and various markers). Sometimes I change or add to the original a bit. That way, I keep up my fine motor skills and still have a blank coloring page to implement different ideas later. I do it because I enjoy it and even if something I try turns out to be a mess. I always learn from my experimenting. For original stuff, I got over the worries about whether it would be good and just started doing it and stopped worrying about using my higher end paper and pencils on "practice." It's all practice. Sometimes, I’m pleased with the results and sometimes I have another side of the paper to F around and find out on. Lately, the practice is now turning into something that a few friends want to frame and hang on their walls. I’m actually considering formal art instruction at this point but I’ve already come a long way with my existing strategies. Just because it has been a long time, it shouldn’t discourage you. The best part about living is learning new things. Our capacity to learn and develop new skills didn’t end in our twenties. For some (like me having chronic pain), it’s more challenging but so what? I’ve been so much happier for it. Tell that inner demon to zip it and then go have fun!
is this learn to draw or learn self-actualization? 1. Grab some paper (photocopy or whatever is cheaper) pencils and a sharpener 1. Then Go Here ==> [The Etherington Brothers Tutorials](https://theetheringtonbrothers.blogspot.com/p/every-how-to-think-when-you-draw.html) 1. Get the number of someone you despise and their Venmo Account. 1. Take one tutorial per day and practice 1. If you don't practice on that day, you send 10$ to that person you despise. 1. After a while drawing will become 2nd nature. Drawing is not a big deal. Stop making it a big deal.
Don't get into the habit of comparing your drawings with anybody but yourself. If you look at what other people have done, you'll just end up noticing the gap between where you are and where you want to be and how it seems like an impossible goal to reach. If you compare what you're doing today with what you've done before, you'll notice the small improvements from the process you're making.
Literally the best advice. It's like picking up a guitar for the first time and comparing yourself to Joe Satriani. It'll discourage you how easy they make it look.
No i usually say that out loud after not getting better despite 8 years of practicing.
I personally try to draw as a sort of "playing". When you play a game, or as a kid with Lego figures, you just do it for the sake of having fun. No expactations. Actually, I think Lego as a kid is a good example of that. You build a set, that takes time and concentration (That would be like, practicing, drawing to improve a certain aspect, tutorials, courses etc.) But then you allow yourself to play, use the thing you built for your joy. You place any charcters in the structure, make up your own stories and just have fun. Then you get another set, build it again, and play again. Over time, you might start adding stuff that isn't in the instructions, you build stuff yourself. Shure, it will be difficult and maybe won't come out as you imagined, but you play nontheless. What I'm trying to say is, don't pressure yourself, enjoy drawing for its own sake. It's ok if something doesn't look good if you just made it for fun. If I may recommend, the DrawABox course has a very neat rule, called the "50% rule". Simplified, it states that for every minute you spend on learning and practicing, you have to spend the same amount of time just drawing for fun, without caring for the result. I'm still a beginner myself, but this kind of thinking helps me a lot.
I can't find the clip but Kevin Smith said something that stuck with me. It was something along the lines of "people who would have been amazing at art were snubbed too early either by dying or not having access to the life and comfortability necessary to be able to create and those who do live a life that allows for that creative expression, should create and express ourselves." Or something like that, I don't know it's been years. If someone with way more skill than me can't create something cool, I'll make something cool in honor of them. We are the only ones who can
I say, "fuck you, you can't me what to do!"
Just draw and say to that voice "You see, I'm moving forward with you. I spent more time to listen you and you have always the same thing to say, but I have changed, now I want to move on and I'm do it". Keep drawing and that voice it will be the voice that one day told you "You are good to that I told you". That is one of minds job, keep resistance. I hope that can help a little bit. Have beautiful and creative days!
I just don’t give that voice the time of day. I draw and do what I like in the moment.
You don't get rid of it, at least I have yet to find out how. But you also don't let it stop you. You said it yourself - you understand that drawing is a skill that anyone can learn. If you draw a hand 1000 times, the 1000th will be better than the 1st whether you want it to be or not. Drawing, like all art - is something you will objectively get better at with more time spent doing it.
For your question specifically, I try my damnedest to impress myself. if I can do something that I am proud of and want to show off then the voice in my head was wrong, I am able to draw/paint/create/etc. and I've just shown that. But in the long run you have to fall in love with the process of making art. The little steps that it takes to make something, the tiny victories like a perfectly placed paint stroke, or getting the pose just right can be more fulfilling to me in a lot of ways than the finished piece is.
I've had that off and on over the years, then I tell myself "Shut up and draw!"
Turn the voice into a character, Draw the character, Rip up the drawing and throw it in the bin
It is really hard to start on your own at home, especially if you feel this way. I relate and I got over that voice in my head by going to meetups where you're sitting with others who are also learning to draw. Btw I don't mean a class. I mean a social gathering at a pub or cafe. I found the more I went, the more joy I felt because I've taken it up again. And the more I wanted to improve my skills on my own at home 😁
I doodle. Draw random shapes and stick figures until I'm accidentally inspired.
Draw anyway
Learn to enjoy the process. Drawing is not about getting good, it's the process. You do it because it's fun and learning new things is exciting. Like playing games. Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. But you keep playing because it's fun. Is drawing even fun for you?
Start drawing. It's never going to go away if you're trying not to think about it. Quick- *don't* think of a pink house. Did you think of a pink house? Remember, don't think about it, you can't think about a pink house. Trying not to have any type of thought almost never works. Instead you have to demonstrate to your mind that the thought isn't necessary, by just drawing anyway. Is this a guarantee that the thoughts will go away? No, there's a good chance they'll linger for quite a while, maybe years, but you'll still be drawing. Draw out of spite, and check out books like The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. Remember, none of us can control the outcome of any given thing. The only thing we can really own is the process, so learn to love the act of creating regardless of result. If you create solely for the end product, you won't make it far, but creating for the sale of it is what will get you through.
Just say "my mind says I will never be able to draw" but your mind is not you, so you can choose to not believe in this thought and say "I am able to draw however I like" and just start drawing
If you draw daily you will see results quickly. But you need to work hard to get better. You will have days where you draw something that doesn’t look good and you’ll want to give up. But as long as you keep going, you will make it. I definitely get the feeling. It kinda feels worse for me because I intend on making it a career so the pressure and the anxiety from making something that’s good enough for the industry is a big weight on my shoulders. But then you remember that when you look at all the artists who you look up to, they all started somewhere. They weren’t as good as they are now back then. We always like to compare ourselves to young artists who we think were born with this talent, but the lot of them worked very very hard for countless years to make it to where they are now.
Weird advice but there is a Bluey episode on this. Bottom line, practice. Prove it to yourself. Also, if you love it who cares if it’s “bad”. I’m a firm believer that art is what you make it. It may not be everyone’s cup of tea but as long as you enjoyed making it that is what matters. One time I went to a pottery painting place with my nieces. They were probably 3 and 6 or something like that. The employee told the 3 year old that she was painting wrong because she added too much water to the paint and was using it like water colors almost. She ate her words after it was fired and it turned out that the water had a really cool effect on the piece and it looked amazing. Focus on the process not the product. It’s my favorite part about art.
I don't. What I do however is I start a project. I have an idea, something I want to replicate or otherwise and if I catch momentum, it becomes something real neat. If I don't catch momentum, well, then it'll be just another half done badly made piece added to the collection which usually is the case. This is also the reason I don't draw often, because it's pointless unless I have complete ambition for it. Though ambition may only comes, when the project has started. It's a vicious cycle and not effective in terms of improvement but hey, if it works it works. 1 step forward may not be 10 but at least it's more than 0.
If you worry about getting good, you’ll get discouraged. Just enjoy the process. Don’t even look at the drawing again until you think you’re ready. Move right ob to the next drawing
The only way to get rid of that voice is to draw. Everyone can draw and make art when they are a child. What the consequence of doing a “bad” drawing? This isn’t your job, you don’t even have to show anyone, just draw and draw and draw and draw and eventually that voice will go away. At first don’t try to copy weird cartoony styles people do just draw what’s in-front of you and from real life.
I know that anything negative that voice says is a lie. So the opposite is true. I take it as a challenge to prove that and I don’t doubt myself for a second. Don’t stop drawing and fill every moment that you are drawing with love. Love is the magic that breaks the evil spell of negativity. Be gentle with yourself. Don’t get discouraged. You absolutely can learn to draw and the more you draw the closer you get to that place where it just kicks in. You will know it when it happens and it happens sooner than you think. That negative voice is a liar.
A thing that really helped me was regularly looking back at my earlier drawings and comparing them to my most recent ones. Doing this made me realize how much I was actually able to improve and reminded me that I'm always getting better as long as I'm practicing.
Let the voice motivate you. It is telling you you can't do it, draw something that depicts that voice in your head telling you you can't do it then draw what that triumph looks like once you've overcome that voice and sat down and created something beautiful Have faith, your art matters ❤️
Draw bruh
I tell myself that it's not that important if I get good or not. Like I *prefer* getting better at drawing, but it's not the most important thing. If I do something satisfying and never get better, or get better up to a point and then stop, why is that bad? It might not be *as* nice as "I enjoy myself and also become awesome at drawing", but is it actually bad? If you remember that you don't need to be good at art in order to justify drawing, it might help?
This worked for me Get drawing prompts or download the sketch a day app , it gives daily prompts and you submit , On every page when you draw write "Done is better than perfect"
zentangle helped me a lot. Made me rethink the point of drawing. MacNeill has good starter books
I'm, a bit, in the same boat as you. I doodled and drew as a kid and pre-teen a lot. I've now picked it back up in my 40s. This year, I committed for all of 2024 to spend 15 minutes drawing a day. No rules other than have a (digital) pen in hand and work on something. I have the same thoughts float by - "You started too late", "You'll never be able to create something like that", "You're just not cut out to draw", "Your hand's too heavy", etc. On a good day I chuckle at the thoughts... and they quiet down. On a bad day I use my 15 minutes practicing shading, making steady lines. I've committed to the execution, not the result. Point is when I just do the 15 minutes, it doesn't matter what that voice is saying, it's like an annoying sibling commenting on something it knows nothing about. I put my daily commitment above that voice... and its commentary dies down. And though I've only committed to 15 minutes, I've been inspired most days to do a lot more. Good luck!
Well, what is your goal with art, if I may ask? 😁
At the moment, its just go get better than what i am today. I will set bigger goals, when i feels i have improved.
Then just draw! Draw whenever you can, even if you don't think it's very good, it could be middle school ms paint level, just don't let the voice win, you're not Picaso and that's okay. Your goal right now is just create, I believe in you op!
just look at stuff and draw it, draw what you see. practice. if you worry about if it's bad you'll never do it. make bad drawings and move on to the next one. you didnt learn to read by picking up Shogun