Before I jump into the main topic, some housekeeping
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đĽ Iâm adding a special mini-podcast to the Daily Drawing club. Some added motivation, inspiration and stories⌠for members only. So, you know, I may talk about stuff I wouldnât normally talk about.
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OKAY now on to todayâs topicâŚ.
Be Bad to Get GoodâŚ
Youâve all probably heard âpractice makes perfectâ, but thatâs actually a lie.
No doubt, practice WILL make you improve. You SHOULD be drawing every damn day. But chasing perfection is like chasing rainbows.
Perfection is an illusion, and perfection is the enemy of the good.
Artists often hold back on pushing forward because they feel like their art isnât good enough. Or you want to pursue something, but you feel your bad at it. And you might indeed be bad at itâŚ. at least right now.
And thatâs the real secret. You DO have to be willing to be bad before you can get really good.
And the only way to do that is to dive right the fuck in. No fear. No judgement of your own work. Really be studious about whatever the thing is youâre desiring to do.
And itâs not about being a beginner or a pro. Even old pros get stuck in this mud.
Quick example. In my case THose POSCA art paint markers. I bought a few a few months ago and havenât even opened them.
The URGE and desire to learn was there for sure. I had seem some amazing art being made on instagram with them. It looked like fun. But⌠I didnât even start. Why?
Well, honestly itâs partly because Iâm really frigginâ busy đ and Iâm saying YES to too many things right now. But the other side is⌠I too was afraid Iâd be really bad at it.
Writing this now, is a reminder that I should carve out some time to explore those. I had totally forgotten the urge I had to explore those. And now I will.
Would-Be, Could-Be, Shoulda-BeensâŚ
I encounter a lot of artists who say âI always wanted to try drawing comics, butâŚâ
And itâs always the same. They just think they wonât be good enough at it, so why even bother starting.
The only way to make comics is to start making comics. In comics particularly, you might hear old pros say you have to get 1000 BAD pages out of you until you really start the good ones. And a 1000 more until the GREAT ones come.
Or they say⌠MAYBE NEXT MONTHâŚ. MAYBE WHEN X HAPPENS, THEN I CAN Y, AND THEN I WILL FINALLY Z.
Newsflash, a little reminder for you⌠your time is limited.
Tomorrow is NOT promised.
Stop putting these things you want to do deep down off.
You gotta start⌠TODAY.
Weâve been programmed to expect instant results
Isnât it crazy that we live in a society where everyone wants INSTANT results all the time? Your meal better be delivered SUPER FAST! And it better taste damn good.
You launch a social media account and give up of feel âbadâ when nobody follows you or engages with your work. That voice inside might say. âyou just werenât good enough, nobody gives a shit about you. Youâre an imposter.â
You want to pick up POSCA MARKERS and instantly crap out masterpieces onto a page? How unrealistic are we all?
Maybe you canât draw animals.
Or feet. (Rob Liefeld đ )
Hereâs the truth.
Getting GOOD takes some time and dedication.
It doesnât have to take a lot of time.
It can be just 10 minutes a day, just drawing something small.
Getting to GREAT just takes consistency and more time.
It takes dedication and a willingness to be wrong, while keeping an open mind.
Getting to Perfect? Thatâs complete fantasy.
The PatienceâŚthe Craft.
I donât know about any of you, but I suspect a few of you know what Iâm about to say is true. Thereâs something awesome about taking the time to dedicate yourself to a craft.
In drawing, itâs learning the subtle art of the illusion. How do you make things âpop off the pageâ. How do you bend light without light? How can random lines on a piece of paper, or blocks of black make a person FEEL something when they look at it?
Thatâs the magic. Thatâs the craft.
Artists are like magicians, slowly learning those spells.
What about you?
What are you avoiding because you think youâre bad at it? I challenge YOU to start working on something youâve been putting off.
Itâs time to dive in.
đĽThis Weekâs Drawing CHALLENGE!
isâŚ
BAD TO THE BONE.
Whatâs the first thing that pops into your head? DRAW IT!!! Then POST it somewhere, and tag #drawordieclub - Even if you think itâs not good enough. Remember⌠just not YET. But you gotta be bad to get good.
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Stay encouraged out there, and draw every day!!!
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Oh I like this weekâs post. Long ago I just did pencil drawings and shaded )minimally) I wasnât keen on coloring, not confident enough in which ones to use etc. Starting up college again some ten years after graduating high school I took an oil painting class, and not only did I find confidence to experiment with colors, but a new skill learned. Painting. Fast forward to some years later, I went full on learning different techniques and art forms to create art. Printmaking, digital, more figure drawing, sculpture. Iâm comfortable using any medium these days, and no fear of color either lol. Took a while lol.
Lmao, poor Rob. Huge unwieldy guns, all those pouches on his characters, and yeah canât draw an ankle to save his life. As anatomically incorrect as his characters are (Captain America), the man is still drawing and making bucks. What an anomaly lol.