anymore thinking and my head is going to explode

[ctfan]

I'll be finishing my army stint in a couple of months...i've trying to get my slop of a brain working these couple of years to continue to practise drawing..but it has been an uphill task. The problem i'm facing now is i can't stick to one art style/my style and as such has started doing random things that i myself truly don't even know i like.my sketchings are all over the place,and i can't say i'm improving.

I like modelling and rigging,but i believe that a good foundation in one's fundamentals are just as important.And so i strive,but lately,it seems that the wanting is starting to wane.....any of you have any tips as how to cure this? Do i need to bungee off a bridge to clear this giant block in my head?

your's truly,
wreck

[TheMumm]

I thought there was a magic butt-kicker that would launch me forward -- but there's just no replacement but for the simple fact that you have to keep doing it.

It may not seem like you're improving, but the fact that you're doing it is what counts most. I picked up a whiteboard so I can track the days that I've drawn for a set amount of time; pretty soon, the chains are too awesome to break and it'll become part of your daily routine! Hang in there, matey.

[Star Eater]

Good luck with the service.

My advice would be to completely forget about establishing any kind
of style. It is just going to place undue pressure on you and will hold you
back from delving into the basics.

Draw for fun, draw what you feel like drawing and mix in studies of real objects,
people and animals that you find interesting. Console yourself with the fact
that the studies are making yourself a better artist. Capturing an object or person
down accurately with pencil and paper can actually create an addictive high.

[ctfan]

thanks mates, i heard of this site from a friend. Was told of several before me that have come here and shown their countless sketchbooks.Get critique,work on it,improve on them,and improve over time...i want to be like them....

i've been trying my hand on portraits lately.Would it be a good idea to upload them here?

[Star Eater]

thanks mates, i heard of this site from a friend. Was told of several before me that have come here and shown their countless sketchbooks.Get critique,work on it,improve on them,and improve over time...i want to be like them....

i've been trying my hand on portraits lately.Would it be a good idea to upload them here?

Definitely show us your work. Open up a sketchbook thread
or post individual pieces for -honest- and helpful critique in the
critique section:

http://conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=244280

[Sebastien Bailard]

The problem i'm facing now is i can't stick to one art style/my style

It's a bit too early for you to commit to a style.

If you're trying to develop as an artist, you might try tight academic realism:

Do bargue copies, cast studies, and still lives, using comparative measurement and sight-size. The nice thing about academic realism for study is that it forces you to look and make those tiny decisions and bits of problem solving that work your art muscles, and you've got that external reference, the thing you are looking at to use as guidance - unlike just coasting with some flashy paint handling or noodling in your comfort zone.

Along with that, and for your later work as an artist, I would suggest studying a number of illustrative styles and techniques.

Van Gogh basically took this approach in his studies, I think - studied tight, worked loose.

[ctfan]

@Sebastien Bailard,thanks i'll check some of these out=)

[Chaoz]

i think its okay to develop a style but i just think you shouldn't be attached to it. I experiement with effects and styles and they are not consistent either but i don't commit to it. just experiment and keep whats working for you.

[ctfan]

so it's alright toe experiment, but is it also alright to follow all the long monotonous fundamentals which i've been struggling all this while to do? i hate to say it,but sometimes it just gets real dull doing them

[littlebones]

thanks mates, i heard of this site from a friend. Was told of several before me that have come here and shown their countless sketchbooks.Get critique,work on it,improve on them,and improve over time...i want to be like them....

There's a part in the HBO special Talking Funny (watched it again last night, it is super good) where Jerry Seinfeld explains why he kept doing comedy even though he failed miserably the first time he tried. He says, "Success wasn’t my objective. It was just, ‘I want to be one of those guys’. If I can be one of those guys, then I win everything. Money was not the thing. So once I stepped on there for the first time, that’s it. I’m now one of these guys. I’m just going to keep doing this"

And well, he is Jerry Seinfeld, so that will explain how well that attitude worked for him.

If you want to be one of those guys, there is nothing stopping you except yourself. Even if you bomb like Seinfeld. As long as you're being that person you'll get where you want to be.

So if you want to be the type of person who gets critique and improves and gets better, why aren't you just doing that? Why are you asking how to do it right? Just do it, man. And if the fundamentals are really feeling that painful, draw what makes you happy. But know that the drawings that you do for fun will only become more and more fun if you get those fundamentals down so that things come easier and turn out "right". It'll be more satisfying.

So just be one of those guys.

[JeffX99]

Here's the deal...look at a lot of art, see what kind of work and which artists get you the most amped. Learn about them, try to narrow it down and discover what they have in common, see who they studied with and see if they left any teachings or if they teach currently. Follow their path.

If you like SydMead copying Bargue drawing would be ridiculous.

[ctfan]

okay...i've just uploaded one of my sketchbooks...but noone's replying. well i DID ask for constructive criticism and what not.but could it be that i simply uploaded it to the wrong sub group again?

i put it under sketchbooks

http://conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=245197

[Candra H]

You'll get replies in your sketchbook over time, but I wouldnt worry about people not jumping in and giving advice right off the bat. It's there for your personal improvement after all, not for outside feedback.

Sure, a sketchbook will give people an idea of how you work and improve, and their feedback will help, but it's not all about outside encouragement. Because if you rely on other people's input that'll just become a crutch and you'll run the risk of not being able to work without it.

Capturing an object or person
down accurately with pencil and paper can actually create an addictive high.

This. Absolutely. The more you do and the better you get, the more you want to do and the better you want to get. Thats how it works for me anyway. I don't do this shit for feedback from others. I do it because I love doing it, and improving in skill and observation just fuels that love so I keep doing it and will until I cant anymore.

[SmallPoly]

okay...i've just uploaded one of my sketchbooks...but noone's replying. well i DID ask for constructive criticism and what not.but could it be that i simply uploaded it to the wrong sub group again?

i put it under sketchbooks

http://conceptart.org/forums/showthread.php?t=245197

That's actually pretty normal. You're unlikely to get many comments on a new thread with one post. Keep posting new work, ideally every day (once per week at minimum). You'll get better and get some feedback. Mindcandyman is the classic example of doing things right. I'll give you some feedback when I have time.

[ShroudStar]

I'll just dabble in everything but if you find yourself locking onto something, it might be worth exploring for more insightful depths. You never know what could kick your art into high gear. Don't worry about style - that will develop by itself over time without you even noticing it. Style's almost like the second nature of your mind's eye once your brain and muscle memory work together to get the images in your head down on paper or digital canvas.

[Hunchdebunch]

My advice to you would be to simply keep a sketchbook and draw in it as regularly as possible. Draw in it every day if you can, even if it's just one quick sketch. Fill the entire sketchbook with drawings from life, from photos, and from your imagination. Once it's filled, look over it, and you're almost certain to see improvement throughout. Then buy a new sketchbook, and do the same again.

My lecturers always try to get everyone to keep their own personal sketchbook outside of the course, and it really does pay off. You'll find out what things you enjoy drawing, find stylistic quirks you like, and you'll improve at the same time. Hope this helps! Also, I'll take a look at the sketchbook link you posted, although I can't promise to give amazing advice haha.

[ctfan]

many thanks one and all..... i shall seek to improve myself in the next few years...