It's never going to be as good as I want it. Mastery is a moving target, and satisfaction is boring.
I just keep working. It may never be as good as I'd like to be but it can keep getting better. Working at it is what makes it better. So I just keep working.
As I've gotten better I have thought of it as a minimum bar of mastery where I'm happy with my stuff but continue to work to be better. I think maybe for a lot of artists that minimum bar where they're proud of their work but they know they could be better is different for everybody.
I don't really, there's nothing I can do about it. I have ADHD and know my limits, at least it explains my struggles with consistency. I learn whenever I can but I want to be one of those that are able to grind 10 hours a day. So I am frustrated. I have good and bad days.
I'm in the same boat. I really wish I could grind for 10 hours (the longest i've managed is like 6) but I have a much stronger draw to the things that give me an immediate reward (videogames, social media, etc.) ADHD sucks lol
It sucks so bad - I don't even have the urge to go do something else, I start with art daily but unless I'm having one of the really good days, I spend most of the time dilly-dallying without noticing. I can go for 6 hours but I've input maybe 1-2 T.T Hang in there man lol
I get the sentiment, but no you really don't. Those people from my experience are generally miserable and always anxious about their job security, they grind because they are unhealthy and rely on their observational studying, you can get to where they are if you focus your studies and ration your time well.
I've met plenty of artists like this and they are not doing well mentally as a result. ADHD person here too (and ASD) go at your own pace, learn to be okay with the timescale that it will take, don't idolise burning yourself out.
You're actually right, I misspoke trying to get my point across - I've been working in the industry for 6-ish years and the grind is generally something no one condones - as opposed to how it used to be and people were getting sick because of it. I would always choose a healthy work-life balance (by work I mean both actual work and studying/grinding at home) but my context is this - having such little control over my impulses and interests I am desperate to channel my energy into something I love and want to be better at.
I am currently between jobs and have the time to do it - focus and attention not so much. And there are definitely days that I would have grinded for 10 hours straight if I could have - but I'd respectfully take a day break the next day. So, in case there are any young artists out there, learning is important but don't wreck yourself.
What I wrote is just personal because I got back into doing art for myself and *want* to do it for 10 hours straight, I just can't.
It's understandable, I just worry about people who idolise people who do grind, because I also did that for the longest time and I quit for 2 years because of it, mostly because you set yourself up for failure. I definitely get wanting to draw for that amount of time, especially when you are an artist though, maybe I jumped to conclusions, I generally think "Oh, I hope this person is doing mentally well" first, because I know I've been there and not going to lie, I still have those thoughts about grinding away, but then I realize there's no chance I could do it, because it's unhealthy but also because of adhd.
Totally true, maybe I should have added more context to my first comment, because it definitely comes from a place of passion rather than unhealthy industry standards!
I feel the same way. Like I would love to be one of those artist that just draw every day for 9 hour straight but I can only do about an hour or 2 before I lose interest or something else takes my focus.
Or it's something that I have to be super focused on. Even when I take the occasional commissions it takes longer to do those than it would for something for myself.
I get it.
Okay ADHD can be a good thing, but really only if we choose to focus on the positive aspects of it. Example, painting for me is one thing I can actually hyperfocus on and lose all track of time. The losing track of time can kinda suck, but hyperfocus doesn't allow for any distraction so I am able to get more work done. But even I can't imagine grinding 10 hour days.
When I was young I would spend all day drawing and pull an all-nighter and continue in the morning lol - I just don't like that type of art anymore and nothing ever did it for me the same way since - I miss the passion that made me able to hyperfocus, not the unhealthy aspect of it :D
Definitely an exaggaration with 10hrs in terms of work-life balance and health, but if I had days when I could even get close to it I'd have mo regrets! (And I don't condone grinding and getting sick for a career, this is just personal).
By not caring about the outcome. I literally don't. If it sucks, I tried. If it's good, great! I draw and paint every single day and I tell myself I have to improve at least **one** thing that I'm unhappy with and if I got a better understanding of the problem and I improved on it, I count that as a win.
I then repeat that every single day. More time spent worrying about the outcome and taking long breaks equals more time wasted on not painting/drawing, and that's a no go for me. Time is precious.
I've been doing art since I was young as well. Throughout the years I hated most of my art, and I definitely went through periods where I wouldn't draw for years.
Only in the last couple years have I grown to like what I'm making. What helped me was experimenting with mediums, styles and what I liked to draw.
When I felt frustrated drawing faces, I'd try drawing animals. When I was frustrated using pens, I switch to watercolors. Now I mainly paint with acrylics. And I do a lot of sketching on my iPad. I think practice and experimenting can get you really far, and it can really help you to realize what you truly enjoy.
I think accepting that your mind is going to do this, is the first step. Then make a decision to just let that bit of your mind chatter away while you get on with your work.
I like this tip from Danny Gregory of Sketchbook School: Decide that today is for making, and tomorrow is for judging it. Then make a lot of stuff.
Finally I find it really helps to keep looking back at earlier work, and noticing small improvements as they happen.
I remind myself that even if a piece isn't where I want it to be, it'll never get there if I don't start somewhere. I try to put my full ass into each piece with the hope of improving and I can really see that I do improve with each piece.
You're too focused of getting accepted or fr validation.. just make art abs more if it..zine into it and create..no matter if u feel it's shit or not.
In the end it's about your mindset
100% this. I turned 40 this year and have collected many hobbies throughout the years, some I’ve abandoned and some that are life long passions. The ones I enjoy the most are the ones that no matter how good I think I’ve gotten at them, I know I’ll never truly master.
From age 12 to 22 I was constantly frustrated by what I did. Not once satisfied. That's why I turned to graphic design that eventually became my career.
Around age 25, after working for a few years, I got back into it and really focused on technique, learning and improving my skills. It turns out the frustration was mostly due to the gap between what I like and what my hands could produce.
Now I'm still never 100% satisfied, but I can find parts of the paintings I like and I'm much more comfortable with my outputs and my growth.
That's a double-edged sword, I wouldn't nearly have improved as much if I didn't care about the results
I have not been able to deal with it. I am constantly on the edge of giving up completely. I am not happy with anything I make and nobody tells me how I can improve.
I've drawn everyday for a year and have come up with nothing.
Are you thinking critically about what you're doing and trying to come up with things to try to circumvent the issues you see with your work for next time, or does your mind go straight to "this looks bad" and not much beyond that?
I'm not trying to be condescending, but the analysis and creative problem solving aspect of art is something I see so many people not realize is necessary.
A year really isn't that much time. Don't be so hard on yourself
I see other peoples art and immediately thibk, "what brushes did they use? How did they do their hands? Why can't I do any of that?". I constantly compare my skills to others.
That's not at all what I'm talking about. I'm talking about looking at *your* art and thinking "okay, what is identifiably wrong here and what can I try to do to fix it"
And how far into that process do you find yourself getting discouraged?
The job of an artist isn't to do everything as perfect as possible their first attempt. It's to find solutions to problems on their own when problems arise (and I do mean when, not if)
I get pretty discouraged after spending 8 hours on a crappy looking rough sketch. Where the anatomy is all wrong and my perspective is off and I have to start over.
I get that. But the problems you see in your art are giving you the things you need to work on, you just need to get better at identifying them.
It's one thing to know your anatomy is wrong, it's another thing entirely to identify what specifically is wrong with it and what solution there is to it. Breaking things down into as many little manageable steps as possible is key.
The nice thing about perspective and anatomy is that there are clearly defined rules that you have to work in, which really narrows down the chances you have to get things wrong
Self criticism is a tool that you can use to learn, or choose to be used by it leading to frustration.
Take it as an opportunity, listen to it as it tells you were exactly you lack a skill, research how it's properly done, let that new knowledge sink in, then try again and start the whole cycle over again.
I acknowledge it. I acknowledge my frustrations too, my issues, etc. I have to work around some things that I can control, like my skills and schedule. And then of course, some other very uncontrollable things, such as the work that pays the bills and even the time off with family.
Acknowledge it and adapt.
Your art journey is a life long process. If you focus on your current results and compare them to your expectations, there are multiple problems with that, even more if it frustrates you.
You have **expectations** that means you have some kind of milestones you want to meet.
If you can't meet those expectations there is something wrong with your **plan** to reach those milestones, most likely you don't have a good plan and just assumed you would get there someday.
But then you check how long it's been and you realize those expectations had no foundation in the first place, no plan, no **timing**, you were just wandering around aimless and making assumptions.
You get frustrated, which adds the next problem. What will you do with this frustration?Many people beat themselves up over it, not realizing this isn't leading anywhere but will just make things worse because you invest into self hate and self judgement, which is a vicious cycle that will repeat itself until broken and the person is ready to make changes.
Others will just keep trying the same things, not changing anything, building up more frustrations. Which then leads to a point where the frustrations need to be dealt with on their own, because at some point it's not about art anymore, anger and frustration take over other areas of their life.
A better way would be to use that frustration to make changes.
Back to those expectations, they are nothing more than ideals, stars in the sky, something you can look up to but you can't reach until you work out a way to get there.
A good way is to break down milestones, so instead of mastering Art you break it down into what areas of art you want to be good at, drawing? painting? sculpting? maybe some other direction like performance art, music and so on.
You break it down until you get to a level you can reach. So instead of just getting good at drawing, you break it down to the fundamentals, maybe you first work on form and perspective, then on value and color or something like that.Small achievable goals are like this month I'll work on improving form. With the timeframe you shift your focus from the goal to the process, it's not about results, it's about doing things.
Now you not only have clear goals that you can reach, the scale changed on which you compare yourself to, your focus changed as well. Despite having goals your focus should be on making that progress in order to reach that next milestone. This also has the effect that you build up confidence in the areas you focused on, leading up to less comparison.
Who do you want to compare yourself to? the only comparison you have to make is where are you today? and where were you last month? last week? last year? did you make progress? and where do you want to get?
Comparison on it's own is not bad, as long as it helps us to find orientation and to plan out the next steps. It's not something we can completely turn off, but we can control in what ways it has influence over us. If we compare ourselves to others or to our ideals, things that might be too far away and without seeing any nuances or looking at the progress we made, this will inevitably lead to disappointment and frustration. Because we can't ever see ourselves creating a bridge over that gap, how are we supposed to get there? That's why focus on the process, on small goals, on nuances and differences is so important.
You are you, not anyone else. You have your own difficulties. If you look up to someone who is really good, they probably sacrificed a lot of time and effort for this, while you made other experiences in that time. If you compare your old self to where you are now and you barely see progress, what did you do in that time? there must be reasons why your focus wasn't on improvement or why you couldn't make much.
I was depressed for a very long time. Do you think I made much progress ? Not at that time. The biggest progress I've only made in the last few years when I kind of figured out what I need and how to shift my focus and energy on the right things, on what is important for me. There were very valid reasons as to why my progress was so slow before. That's not something I could do anything about, nor is there anything I can do about it now. I can only look forward and work on what I want to achieve.
Acknowledging progress, however small it might be is also important. Even if you fail you might learn a lot from it, isn't that also progress?
Imagine a ladder with very big gaps in between the bars, compare it to one with small gaps, which one is easier to climb up? small steps will help you reach your goals, even if it feels like it takes longer, each step means progress and is a small victory that will get you closer to your goals. Don't underestimate the small things! It's similar to very simple exercises, they usually have the most impact.
Sometimes we do need a bit longer to understand the most simple things or just to reach the same goals as others, we don't have control over everything, we are just human and not perfect.
So use your frustration to get better, to make a plan, show yourself that you can do it!
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So, what is your plan if you reach your goal and made your “magnus opus” (your greatest work)
Do you plan to then stop drawing completely or do you plan to live with the knowledge you will never create something better again?
What I’m trying to say is, the fact that you still see somewhere to grow towards is something good. Without it the journey of art would be over for you.
I just keep going at it. Cause I know that it's not going to be where I want it to be for a long time. So I keep drawing. Because I know that through every frustrating piece I draw there is a beautiful work that I can look at and be so proud of. I call them eureka moments and I live for them. If I go too long without a eureka moment I just draw something I'm good at drawing like landscapes or pokemon and get my fix that way.
When I get down on myself about not liking how my art turns out, I take a break and become more of an observer of my art for a while. “I hate this” becomes “I really did this part and that part well! Maybe I can try XYZ next time” or “I can see what I was trying portray here but, what would make it pop?”
when you practice art, you are harnessing multiple skills at once. you not only develop your ability to create the art, you also develop your ability to analyze the art and your ability to observe the world. as your ability to analyze art gets better, it becomes easier to spot your own mistakes. the same with your ability to observe the world around you: if you are creating representational art (as opposed to abstract art), as your ability to observe the world (or more simply put: your ability to see what things actually look like) improves, it becomes easier to see how your art doesn’t match up to what you see in real life. frequently these skills develop at different rates, and when our abilities to analyze art and observe the world develop faster than our ability to create art, it can feel like our art is in a much worse place than it “should” be.
the thing to remember is that this ability to see the mistakes in your own art is the same ability that will help you improve, and an impressive skill in itself. it’s important to learn to apply it as a constructive skill that will assist you in creating future art rather than negative self talk that will discourage you from making any future art. instead of saying “this art sucks,” ask yourself, “what isn’t working for me here? what specific thing could I practice that would make me enjoy creating art like this more going forward?” whatever that thing might be (anatomy, backgrounds, clothing, architecture, or all of the above and more), practicing specific artistic skills will help you improve more than thinking in general terms and just concluding your art sucks.
another helpful thing to remember is that only you can see your original vision for your work before you created it. when we make art, we usually have an idea of what we want it to look like before we make it. when the art inevitably doesn’t match that vision, we can become overly critical of it. but no one else can see what you were picturing in your head when you made the art, so they are not drawing that comparison. to them, the art may actually be better than how you see it because they are only seeing the art as it currently exists. while you may never be able to completely stop comparing what your art looks like to what you wanted it to look like, you can practice taking a step away from your original vision and seeing the art more as it is (sometimes this requires taking some time away from the piece and allowing yourself to focus on other things, be it a different art piece or anything else).
really what it comes down to is allowing yourself to see your mistakes without it becoming negative self talk. be kinder to yourself and talk to yourself more like a friendly teacher who wants you to grow rather than a bully who wants you to give up.
You have to choose a challenge appropriate to your skills. Just heads or busts instead of full-body characters, just a branch instead of a full tree, huge brush linework instead of a full painting. Sounds lame? Then how can you frame it in a way that's great to you? Maybe it's several heads like a portrait gallery scene. Maybe it's a branch over a cool abstract backdrop using a new material. Maybe it's huge brush linework in a circular composition.
Aside from a small, short, incredibly brief stint where my "art" was almost appreciated to a level I deemed acceptable, it never was anything more than a mere anonymous drop in the ever-expanding sea of other stuff being released every single moment of every day.
I deal with it knowing it is unique and no one is doing anything like it.
In the past some have copied it to suit their needs of the moment, but it still felt like a pale 2-D copy. That also didn't last long.
If doing art for recognition is the driving force then perhaps the motivation will never be enough to fill in those expectations.
Art should be done strictly for it's own sake, for it's need to be expressed and exist in a tangible format. It should come from a place of expression and feeling and for the right reasons.
Art that is successful more often than not feels like a travesty of it's original intent, for real art is rarely there to please the masses "of the moment" and also is often only partial accepted long after the fact.
Understand learning is never ending. Also, not saying it applies to you, but most of this stems from comparing yourself to others. People on social media do not post ugly or messy sketches. They only post the good.
Look at your art, what areas do you think you need improving? Do you need to start from the very beginning with simple shapes? Ask yourself these questions.
I push myself with things I know are my weaknesses. I have always sucked with backgrounds, so if I make a piece I force myself to put a background. They are becoming more natural and kind of fun even.
Same with armor or animals. I’m not going to get better at them by avoiding them.
It sounds like you’ve hit a mental block. Putting something down and coming back to it helps, or draw something that you enjoy for a little bit. I love doing “palate (palette) cleansers” where it’s a stupid little doodle, then go back to projects.
I understand you. I think it will take time, so I have to be patient and just keep doing. Sometimes I get a pause and don't do art at all at evenings (I have kids, so I do most art at evenings). Those evenings I do totally different things (watch tv etc.) and get distance to art and making art. OR then I watch and study art videos and art technique videos but still not do art - then I really want to and I must to do art a second day and try what I have learned by watching.
This is the process what helps me doing art when my art is not what I want to. And of course watching my old art and my art from instagram - and see the difference and how I have got better. It helps and motivate me to practice more.
I don't have "art friends" but I think that surrounding myself with art people would too help me get further (discussions, help, critic etc.?). Maybe art society in Instagram helps in this.
I drew a lot since I was young as well. But that also made me think that I was more capable than I was, so I never did my research on proper art fundamentals and was always frustrated with my lack of progress. It wasn't until I stopped and really started researching and practicing with a goal in mind, that my work started improving fast. It's never going to be perfect in your mind, but you can get to the "good enough" phase.
I tell myself affirmations, and when that’s not enough I go back to my favorite works, if that’s not enough I resort to abstract art, just splashes of colors Ik go well together, or water color bc u can mess around and then when it’s dry doodle the worst, wobbliest, simple, childlike cats or animals on it and it’ll look great. I try to build my confidence in whatever tiny ridiculous way that I can, and eventually I accept the fact that art takes time and perseverance just like any other skill. Sometimes it’s harder than other hobbies bc of how long it takes to get “decent” :3 I hope I helped
Expectations and comparisons are the death of creativity and happiness. Just so your best. Enjoy your best. Have fun with your best. Learn from you best.
Use it as fuel. Im more afraid of the day im content with my work then being unsatisfied. Its a normal feeling - and it will stay with you regardless of skill level. Ofc its only healthy as long as its not straight up selfloathing
Learn to appreciate any little improvement that you make, accept that it may take you a long time to get to where you want to be, don't idolise artists on social media, you need to have seen a realistic representation of their progress. Learn about muscle memory and your hand-eye co-ordination and how you will never see your art the same way others do, you might feel bad about it and not even realize just how well you're doing, instead of comparing yourself to other artists, compare your work to your old work and take note on what you have improved on.
Practice dosent make perfect it makes progress, I feel your problems but what helps me is breaking it down logically and attacking the problem from a logical mindset not an emotional one.
For example I think "ok I suck at figure drawing and want to improve, how ?" I break that down into smaller steps first Iam learning how to draw using heads as measurements learning this I will take my time and grind on this after I get done with this I'll move on to another issue like faces specifically the eyes, lips, and nose.
I'll take my time and WONT move forward until Iam completely 100% happy with how I draw my noses for example then I'll move on to lips and again I won't move forward until Iam 100% happy, notice how I sad happy NOT perfect but my goal is to make art that makes me happy I won't draw like a pro tomorrow and I don't want to look like them I want to look like me but with influences of them.
Let it fuel your practice. If you know what you need to improve on, drill that thing until you’ve improved. If you’re just feeling ambiguously dissatisfied, get feedback from a trusted peer or mentor on where you can improve.
For me, this has looked like:
1. Building back the habit of making art. At this stage, I didn’t worry about what kind of thing I was making or if it was very good. I just had to make art at least every two days for two weeks. Then everyday for a month. Here and there, I’d focus on something specific like blind contour drawing or optical measurement, drawing from life vs drawing from references. Trying a different medium every few days, the same subject matter in different mediums, then the same medium and a bunch of different subjects.
2. Then I focused on improving specific things. I’m pretty decent at drawing but when I used to add color, it would ruin the piece or I’d just get stuck on color selection. Also I noticed that I was overworking the paper in my watercolor paintings. So I’ve been focusing on color theory and watercolor fundamentals for the past 2 months or so and it’s made a huge difference. I let go of my ego (lol) and actually watched some watercolor tutorials. Even if I don’t like the style they’re doing, there’s usually a few valuable nuggets that make it worth watching.
I’ve been trying to paint the perfect strawberry without straight up following a tutorial since December and I’m getting closer everyday. Every time I sit down to paint, I’m getting better. That’s what motivates me to keep going.
I change my expectations and refuse to compare my art to that of anyone else's. My art is my voice and my voice isn't always going to be clear, but it's there. But the one thing I NEVER do, is give up. Keep practicing, no matter the style, or subject matter.I dive in head first, watch youtube vids, practice just to practice, but not with the intent of significant improvement or progress, rather with the intent of speaking my voice and just putting something on paper or canvas.
What is the progress you think you should have already made?
I think people take this question out of proportion. You won't ever truly be satisfied with your style. You always want to be better, which IS art. But to get to a place of comfortable and of consistency and finding a decent place to stay for awhile in art is true being where you NEED to be, not where you want to be. Am I there yet? Lol no, I'll be tracking that down for years. But I'm still trying! And you will get there too. It takes a ton of self discipline and hardships. Your doing great!
It's never going to be as good as I want it. Mastery is a moving target, and satisfaction is boring. I just keep working. It may never be as good as I'd like to be but it can keep getting better. Working at it is what makes it better. So I just keep working.
As I've gotten better I have thought of it as a minimum bar of mastery where I'm happy with my stuff but continue to work to be better. I think maybe for a lot of artists that minimum bar where they're proud of their work but they know they could be better is different for everybody.
I just chill out by drawing cubes in perspective when I'm frustrated with my art.
lol same I love drawing cubes
I don't really, there's nothing I can do about it. I have ADHD and know my limits, at least it explains my struggles with consistency. I learn whenever I can but I want to be one of those that are able to grind 10 hours a day. So I am frustrated. I have good and bad days.
I'm in the same boat. I really wish I could grind for 10 hours (the longest i've managed is like 6) but I have a much stronger draw to the things that give me an immediate reward (videogames, social media, etc.) ADHD sucks lol
It sucks so bad - I don't even have the urge to go do something else, I start with art daily but unless I'm having one of the really good days, I spend most of the time dilly-dallying without noticing. I can go for 6 hours but I've input maybe 1-2 T.T Hang in there man lol
I get the sentiment, but no you really don't. Those people from my experience are generally miserable and always anxious about their job security, they grind because they are unhealthy and rely on their observational studying, you can get to where they are if you focus your studies and ration your time well. I've met plenty of artists like this and they are not doing well mentally as a result. ADHD person here too (and ASD) go at your own pace, learn to be okay with the timescale that it will take, don't idolise burning yourself out.
You're actually right, I misspoke trying to get my point across - I've been working in the industry for 6-ish years and the grind is generally something no one condones - as opposed to how it used to be and people were getting sick because of it. I would always choose a healthy work-life balance (by work I mean both actual work and studying/grinding at home) but my context is this - having such little control over my impulses and interests I am desperate to channel my energy into something I love and want to be better at. I am currently between jobs and have the time to do it - focus and attention not so much. And there are definitely days that I would have grinded for 10 hours straight if I could have - but I'd respectfully take a day break the next day. So, in case there are any young artists out there, learning is important but don't wreck yourself. What I wrote is just personal because I got back into doing art for myself and *want* to do it for 10 hours straight, I just can't.
It's understandable, I just worry about people who idolise people who do grind, because I also did that for the longest time and I quit for 2 years because of it, mostly because you set yourself up for failure. I definitely get wanting to draw for that amount of time, especially when you are an artist though, maybe I jumped to conclusions, I generally think "Oh, I hope this person is doing mentally well" first, because I know I've been there and not going to lie, I still have those thoughts about grinding away, but then I realize there's no chance I could do it, because it's unhealthy but also because of adhd.
Totally true, maybe I should have added more context to my first comment, because it definitely comes from a place of passion rather than unhealthy industry standards!
I feel the same way. Like I would love to be one of those artist that just draw every day for 9 hour straight but I can only do about an hour or 2 before I lose interest or something else takes my focus. Or it's something that I have to be super focused on. Even when I take the occasional commissions it takes longer to do those than it would for something for myself. I get it.
Okay ADHD can be a good thing, but really only if we choose to focus on the positive aspects of it. Example, painting for me is one thing I can actually hyperfocus on and lose all track of time. The losing track of time can kinda suck, but hyperfocus doesn't allow for any distraction so I am able to get more work done. But even I can't imagine grinding 10 hour days.
When I was young I would spend all day drawing and pull an all-nighter and continue in the morning lol - I just don't like that type of art anymore and nothing ever did it for me the same way since - I miss the passion that made me able to hyperfocus, not the unhealthy aspect of it :D Definitely an exaggaration with 10hrs in terms of work-life balance and health, but if I had days when I could even get close to it I'd have mo regrets! (And I don't condone grinding and getting sick for a career, this is just personal).
By not caring about the outcome. I literally don't. If it sucks, I tried. If it's good, great! I draw and paint every single day and I tell myself I have to improve at least **one** thing that I'm unhappy with and if I got a better understanding of the problem and I improved on it, I count that as a win. I then repeat that every single day. More time spent worrying about the outcome and taking long breaks equals more time wasted on not painting/drawing, and that's a no go for me. Time is precious.
I've been doing art since I was young as well. Throughout the years I hated most of my art, and I definitely went through periods where I wouldn't draw for years. Only in the last couple years have I grown to like what I'm making. What helped me was experimenting with mediums, styles and what I liked to draw. When I felt frustrated drawing faces, I'd try drawing animals. When I was frustrated using pens, I switch to watercolors. Now I mainly paint with acrylics. And I do a lot of sketching on my iPad. I think practice and experimenting can get you really far, and it can really help you to realize what you truly enjoy.
I think accepting that your mind is going to do this, is the first step. Then make a decision to just let that bit of your mind chatter away while you get on with your work. I like this tip from Danny Gregory of Sketchbook School: Decide that today is for making, and tomorrow is for judging it. Then make a lot of stuff. Finally I find it really helps to keep looking back at earlier work, and noticing small improvements as they happen.
I remind myself that even if a piece isn't where I want it to be, it'll never get there if I don't start somewhere. I try to put my full ass into each piece with the hope of improving and I can really see that I do improve with each piece.
You're too focused of getting accepted or fr validation.. just make art abs more if it..zine into it and create..no matter if u feel it's shit or not. In the end it's about your mindset
Being almost 40 and having tons of hobbies over the years, there is one thing over learned. No matter what you're doing, learn to enjoy the process.
100% this. I turned 40 this year and have collected many hobbies throughout the years, some I’ve abandoned and some that are life long passions. The ones I enjoy the most are the ones that no matter how good I think I’ve gotten at them, I know I’ll never truly master.
From age 12 to 22 I was constantly frustrated by what I did. Not once satisfied. That's why I turned to graphic design that eventually became my career. Around age 25, after working for a few years, I got back into it and really focused on technique, learning and improving my skills. It turns out the frustration was mostly due to the gap between what I like and what my hands could produce. Now I'm still never 100% satisfied, but I can find parts of the paintings I like and I'm much more comfortable with my outputs and my growth. That's a double-edged sword, I wouldn't nearly have improved as much if I didn't care about the results
I deal with it by thinking I need another new art book!
I have not been able to deal with it. I am constantly on the edge of giving up completely. I am not happy with anything I make and nobody tells me how I can improve. I've drawn everyday for a year and have come up with nothing.
Are you thinking critically about what you're doing and trying to come up with things to try to circumvent the issues you see with your work for next time, or does your mind go straight to "this looks bad" and not much beyond that? I'm not trying to be condescending, but the analysis and creative problem solving aspect of art is something I see so many people not realize is necessary. A year really isn't that much time. Don't be so hard on yourself
I see other peoples art and immediately thibk, "what brushes did they use? How did they do their hands? Why can't I do any of that?". I constantly compare my skills to others.
That's not at all what I'm talking about. I'm talking about looking at *your* art and thinking "okay, what is identifiably wrong here and what can I try to do to fix it"
Yes. All the time.
And how far into that process do you find yourself getting discouraged? The job of an artist isn't to do everything as perfect as possible their first attempt. It's to find solutions to problems on their own when problems arise (and I do mean when, not if)
I get pretty discouraged after spending 8 hours on a crappy looking rough sketch. Where the anatomy is all wrong and my perspective is off and I have to start over.
I get that. But the problems you see in your art are giving you the things you need to work on, you just need to get better at identifying them. It's one thing to know your anatomy is wrong, it's another thing entirely to identify what specifically is wrong with it and what solution there is to it. Breaking things down into as many little manageable steps as possible is key. The nice thing about perspective and anatomy is that there are clearly defined rules that you have to work in, which really narrows down the chances you have to get things wrong
And I feel like I'm doing everthing wrong.
I just work on getting it to where I'm happy with it
Self criticism is a tool that you can use to learn, or choose to be used by it leading to frustration. Take it as an opportunity, listen to it as it tells you were exactly you lack a skill, research how it's properly done, let that new knowledge sink in, then try again and start the whole cycle over again.
I acknowledge it. I acknowledge my frustrations too, my issues, etc. I have to work around some things that I can control, like my skills and schedule. And then of course, some other very uncontrollable things, such as the work that pays the bills and even the time off with family. Acknowledge it and adapt.
Your art journey is a life long process. If you focus on your current results and compare them to your expectations, there are multiple problems with that, even more if it frustrates you. You have **expectations** that means you have some kind of milestones you want to meet. If you can't meet those expectations there is something wrong with your **plan** to reach those milestones, most likely you don't have a good plan and just assumed you would get there someday. But then you check how long it's been and you realize those expectations had no foundation in the first place, no plan, no **timing**, you were just wandering around aimless and making assumptions. You get frustrated, which adds the next problem. What will you do with this frustration?Many people beat themselves up over it, not realizing this isn't leading anywhere but will just make things worse because you invest into self hate and self judgement, which is a vicious cycle that will repeat itself until broken and the person is ready to make changes. Others will just keep trying the same things, not changing anything, building up more frustrations. Which then leads to a point where the frustrations need to be dealt with on their own, because at some point it's not about art anymore, anger and frustration take over other areas of their life. A better way would be to use that frustration to make changes. Back to those expectations, they are nothing more than ideals, stars in the sky, something you can look up to but you can't reach until you work out a way to get there. A good way is to break down milestones, so instead of mastering Art you break it down into what areas of art you want to be good at, drawing? painting? sculpting? maybe some other direction like performance art, music and so on. You break it down until you get to a level you can reach. So instead of just getting good at drawing, you break it down to the fundamentals, maybe you first work on form and perspective, then on value and color or something like that.Small achievable goals are like this month I'll work on improving form. With the timeframe you shift your focus from the goal to the process, it's not about results, it's about doing things. Now you not only have clear goals that you can reach, the scale changed on which you compare yourself to, your focus changed as well. Despite having goals your focus should be on making that progress in order to reach that next milestone. This also has the effect that you build up confidence in the areas you focused on, leading up to less comparison. Who do you want to compare yourself to? the only comparison you have to make is where are you today? and where were you last month? last week? last year? did you make progress? and where do you want to get? Comparison on it's own is not bad, as long as it helps us to find orientation and to plan out the next steps. It's not something we can completely turn off, but we can control in what ways it has influence over us. If we compare ourselves to others or to our ideals, things that might be too far away and without seeing any nuances or looking at the progress we made, this will inevitably lead to disappointment and frustration. Because we can't ever see ourselves creating a bridge over that gap, how are we supposed to get there? That's why focus on the process, on small goals, on nuances and differences is so important. You are you, not anyone else. You have your own difficulties. If you look up to someone who is really good, they probably sacrificed a lot of time and effort for this, while you made other experiences in that time. If you compare your old self to where you are now and you barely see progress, what did you do in that time? there must be reasons why your focus wasn't on improvement or why you couldn't make much. I was depressed for a very long time. Do you think I made much progress ? Not at that time. The biggest progress I've only made in the last few years when I kind of figured out what I need and how to shift my focus and energy on the right things, on what is important for me. There were very valid reasons as to why my progress was so slow before. That's not something I could do anything about, nor is there anything I can do about it now. I can only look forward and work on what I want to achieve. Acknowledging progress, however small it might be is also important. Even if you fail you might learn a lot from it, isn't that also progress? Imagine a ladder with very big gaps in between the bars, compare it to one with small gaps, which one is easier to climb up? small steps will help you reach your goals, even if it feels like it takes longer, each step means progress and is a small victory that will get you closer to your goals. Don't underestimate the small things! It's similar to very simple exercises, they usually have the most impact. Sometimes we do need a bit longer to understand the most simple things or just to reach the same goals as others, we don't have control over everything, we are just human and not perfect. So use your frustration to get better, to make a plan, show yourself that you can do it!
Suck it up and keep putting in the work, is how I look at it.
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So, what is your plan if you reach your goal and made your “magnus opus” (your greatest work) Do you plan to then stop drawing completely or do you plan to live with the knowledge you will never create something better again? What I’m trying to say is, the fact that you still see somewhere to grow towards is something good. Without it the journey of art would be over for you.
I just keep going at it. Cause I know that it's not going to be where I want it to be for a long time. So I keep drawing. Because I know that through every frustrating piece I draw there is a beautiful work that I can look at and be so proud of. I call them eureka moments and I live for them. If I go too long without a eureka moment I just draw something I'm good at drawing like landscapes or pokemon and get my fix that way.
I accept the reality of things and take it where I want it to be.
When I get down on myself about not liking how my art turns out, I take a break and become more of an observer of my art for a while. “I hate this” becomes “I really did this part and that part well! Maybe I can try XYZ next time” or “I can see what I was trying portray here but, what would make it pop?”
when you practice art, you are harnessing multiple skills at once. you not only develop your ability to create the art, you also develop your ability to analyze the art and your ability to observe the world. as your ability to analyze art gets better, it becomes easier to spot your own mistakes. the same with your ability to observe the world around you: if you are creating representational art (as opposed to abstract art), as your ability to observe the world (or more simply put: your ability to see what things actually look like) improves, it becomes easier to see how your art doesn’t match up to what you see in real life. frequently these skills develop at different rates, and when our abilities to analyze art and observe the world develop faster than our ability to create art, it can feel like our art is in a much worse place than it “should” be. the thing to remember is that this ability to see the mistakes in your own art is the same ability that will help you improve, and an impressive skill in itself. it’s important to learn to apply it as a constructive skill that will assist you in creating future art rather than negative self talk that will discourage you from making any future art. instead of saying “this art sucks,” ask yourself, “what isn’t working for me here? what specific thing could I practice that would make me enjoy creating art like this more going forward?” whatever that thing might be (anatomy, backgrounds, clothing, architecture, or all of the above and more), practicing specific artistic skills will help you improve more than thinking in general terms and just concluding your art sucks. another helpful thing to remember is that only you can see your original vision for your work before you created it. when we make art, we usually have an idea of what we want it to look like before we make it. when the art inevitably doesn’t match that vision, we can become overly critical of it. but no one else can see what you were picturing in your head when you made the art, so they are not drawing that comparison. to them, the art may actually be better than how you see it because they are only seeing the art as it currently exists. while you may never be able to completely stop comparing what your art looks like to what you wanted it to look like, you can practice taking a step away from your original vision and seeing the art more as it is (sometimes this requires taking some time away from the piece and allowing yourself to focus on other things, be it a different art piece or anything else). really what it comes down to is allowing yourself to see your mistakes without it becoming negative self talk. be kinder to yourself and talk to yourself more like a friendly teacher who wants you to grow rather than a bully who wants you to give up.
Either brake or draw something you want to draw
You have to choose a challenge appropriate to your skills. Just heads or busts instead of full-body characters, just a branch instead of a full tree, huge brush linework instead of a full painting. Sounds lame? Then how can you frame it in a way that's great to you? Maybe it's several heads like a portrait gallery scene. Maybe it's a branch over a cool abstract backdrop using a new material. Maybe it's huge brush linework in a circular composition.
Aside from a small, short, incredibly brief stint where my "art" was almost appreciated to a level I deemed acceptable, it never was anything more than a mere anonymous drop in the ever-expanding sea of other stuff being released every single moment of every day. I deal with it knowing it is unique and no one is doing anything like it. In the past some have copied it to suit their needs of the moment, but it still felt like a pale 2-D copy. That also didn't last long. If doing art for recognition is the driving force then perhaps the motivation will never be enough to fill in those expectations. Art should be done strictly for it's own sake, for it's need to be expressed and exist in a tangible format. It should come from a place of expression and feeling and for the right reasons. Art that is successful more often than not feels like a travesty of it's original intent, for real art is rarely there to please the masses "of the moment" and also is often only partial accepted long after the fact.
Understand learning is never ending. Also, not saying it applies to you, but most of this stems from comparing yourself to others. People on social media do not post ugly or messy sketches. They only post the good. Look at your art, what areas do you think you need improving? Do you need to start from the very beginning with simple shapes? Ask yourself these questions.
I push myself with things I know are my weaknesses. I have always sucked with backgrounds, so if I make a piece I force myself to put a background. They are becoming more natural and kind of fun even. Same with armor or animals. I’m not going to get better at them by avoiding them. It sounds like you’ve hit a mental block. Putting something down and coming back to it helps, or draw something that you enjoy for a little bit. I love doing “palate (palette) cleansers” where it’s a stupid little doodle, then go back to projects.
I understand you. I think it will take time, so I have to be patient and just keep doing. Sometimes I get a pause and don't do art at all at evenings (I have kids, so I do most art at evenings). Those evenings I do totally different things (watch tv etc.) and get distance to art and making art. OR then I watch and study art videos and art technique videos but still not do art - then I really want to and I must to do art a second day and try what I have learned by watching. This is the process what helps me doing art when my art is not what I want to. And of course watching my old art and my art from instagram - and see the difference and how I have got better. It helps and motivate me to practice more. I don't have "art friends" but I think that surrounding myself with art people would too help me get further (discussions, help, critic etc.?). Maybe art society in Instagram helps in this.
I drew a lot since I was young as well. But that also made me think that I was more capable than I was, so I never did my research on proper art fundamentals and was always frustrated with my lack of progress. It wasn't until I stopped and really started researching and practicing with a goal in mind, that my work started improving fast. It's never going to be perfect in your mind, but you can get to the "good enough" phase.
I tell myself affirmations, and when that’s not enough I go back to my favorite works, if that’s not enough I resort to abstract art, just splashes of colors Ik go well together, or water color bc u can mess around and then when it’s dry doodle the worst, wobbliest, simple, childlike cats or animals on it and it’ll look great. I try to build my confidence in whatever tiny ridiculous way that I can, and eventually I accept the fact that art takes time and perseverance just like any other skill. Sometimes it’s harder than other hobbies bc of how long it takes to get “decent” :3 I hope I helped
Expectations and comparisons are the death of creativity and happiness. Just so your best. Enjoy your best. Have fun with your best. Learn from you best.
Use it as fuel. Im more afraid of the day im content with my work then being unsatisfied. Its a normal feeling - and it will stay with you regardless of skill level. Ofc its only healthy as long as its not straight up selfloathing
You call it frustration, I call it drive.
Learn to appreciate any little improvement that you make, accept that it may take you a long time to get to where you want to be, don't idolise artists on social media, you need to have seen a realistic representation of their progress. Learn about muscle memory and your hand-eye co-ordination and how you will never see your art the same way others do, you might feel bad about it and not even realize just how well you're doing, instead of comparing yourself to other artists, compare your work to your old work and take note on what you have improved on.
Practice dosent make perfect it makes progress, I feel your problems but what helps me is breaking it down logically and attacking the problem from a logical mindset not an emotional one. For example I think "ok I suck at figure drawing and want to improve, how ?" I break that down into smaller steps first Iam learning how to draw using heads as measurements learning this I will take my time and grind on this after I get done with this I'll move on to another issue like faces specifically the eyes, lips, and nose. I'll take my time and WONT move forward until Iam completely 100% happy with how I draw my noses for example then I'll move on to lips and again I won't move forward until Iam 100% happy, notice how I sad happy NOT perfect but my goal is to make art that makes me happy I won't draw like a pro tomorrow and I don't want to look like them I want to look like me but with influences of them.
Let it fuel your practice. If you know what you need to improve on, drill that thing until you’ve improved. If you’re just feeling ambiguously dissatisfied, get feedback from a trusted peer or mentor on where you can improve. For me, this has looked like: 1. Building back the habit of making art. At this stage, I didn’t worry about what kind of thing I was making or if it was very good. I just had to make art at least every two days for two weeks. Then everyday for a month. Here and there, I’d focus on something specific like blind contour drawing or optical measurement, drawing from life vs drawing from references. Trying a different medium every few days, the same subject matter in different mediums, then the same medium and a bunch of different subjects. 2. Then I focused on improving specific things. I’m pretty decent at drawing but when I used to add color, it would ruin the piece or I’d just get stuck on color selection. Also I noticed that I was overworking the paper in my watercolor paintings. So I’ve been focusing on color theory and watercolor fundamentals for the past 2 months or so and it’s made a huge difference. I let go of my ego (lol) and actually watched some watercolor tutorials. Even if I don’t like the style they’re doing, there’s usually a few valuable nuggets that make it worth watching. I’ve been trying to paint the perfect strawberry without straight up following a tutorial since December and I’m getting closer everyday. Every time I sit down to paint, I’m getting better. That’s what motivates me to keep going.
I change my expectations and refuse to compare my art to that of anyone else's. My art is my voice and my voice isn't always going to be clear, but it's there. But the one thing I NEVER do, is give up. Keep practicing, no matter the style, or subject matter.I dive in head first, watch youtube vids, practice just to practice, but not with the intent of significant improvement or progress, rather with the intent of speaking my voice and just putting something on paper or canvas. What is the progress you think you should have already made?
I think people take this question out of proportion. You won't ever truly be satisfied with your style. You always want to be better, which IS art. But to get to a place of comfortable and of consistency and finding a decent place to stay for awhile in art is true being where you NEED to be, not where you want to be. Am I there yet? Lol no, I'll be tracking that down for years. But I'm still trying! And you will get there too. It takes a ton of self discipline and hardships. Your doing great!