Thursday, December 9, 2010

Artist's Block - Part Deux

Say you are tired of drawing circles and doodling faces. What next?





One the the things that can stump you when you want to draw is choosing a subject. I like to wander through YouTube Videos, hit freeze frame and draw what you see. I have lots of drawings of Fred Astaire.

Or you can go outside and draw a plant or building. Drawing from life is takes concentration but if you do it enough you will really learn to "see" things. 



The most important thing is to tell that little critical voice in your head to shut up. Your inner critic will bang on about how lousy your drawing is, that it's not good enough, and on and on for days if you let it. If you listen to that voice you will never get anything done, so tell it politely that you are just practicing, it's okay to make mistakes and kick it down the stairs.

So, give yourself permission to draw. It sounds silly but it's true. Honor your work, allow yourself the time to practice and treat yourself to decent supplies and materials. I like to buy paper by the ream. With 500 pieces of paper, the pressure is off, all you need is time and a pencil.

How about you? What gets you going?

Draw on!

Marilyn

 Anything worth while certainly takes a while. ~ Mister Rogers

2 comments:

  1. These suggestions carry over well into writing, also. Taking the time (and opportunity) to draw people, animals and favorite things with words often triggers ideas from sources you might not otherwise consider. Also, you can't write and edit at the same time. These are sequential activities, and best done with time in between. Write, write, write and sift out the treasure later.

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  2. I am going to come back to this when I am free again. Will be lovely to meander around w/ sketchbook. I think I will take all of the suggestions, especially like the freeze frame one!

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