How to Get More From Your Art/Drawing

After the art essay I handed in a few days ago. It got me thinking how could I create better drawings and concept art, compared to what I am doing now. I was looking up some help and different art styles, but I found a post from Monika Zagrobelna. It allowed me to see the idea of being a better artist more clearly, but sure their was the stereotypical "do more and practice more to be better" kind of talk but there was also a few handy pointers I would like to share.

1. Anatomy, Something that can be incredibly important is knowing what you are trying to draw and how well you know the scale of that object. We as humans can generally overlook some similarity flaws (such as a lemur having dog proportions), however if you have never drawn what you are drawing before, without studying it first, do not expect it to be as close to the final product that you thought it would be.

2. Adaptation, Taking criticism from the same people over and over, can give your work some leniency. If you want to improve from response, you must ask other people that you might not be familiar with. That also translates to your style, not just your standard of art and the more of an audience that can give you criticism, the more you can improve.

3. Realism and Non-realism, You may get more criticism for drawing realistic objects, than imaginary creations. This is because people know what and where to criticize (including 4 limbs and having tails on a abdomen).

Other points that she used was for was after the main drawing would be complete.

1. Shading, It is incredibly hard to create a good piece of art that relies on light and shadow,rather than outlines. It takes a much more observant eye to make it work well. However the effect makes it appear much more realistic.

2. Colour, Most artists go for the most generic and realistic colours possible. This can only be done so many times before it becomes boring/photorealism. You need to experiment with what works and what doesn't so the image can have a much more lasting impact.

3. Details, they are not as important as you may think; even when creating art that is realistic. You can sacrifice certain elements of the shot you are re-creating, to create another style. Drawing detail can in some cases detract from the "actual meaning of the situation". It is not saying that having ridiculous detail is bad but combing different elements can be show to be better (as shown in the image).

A final point of what I want to share is that if you are trying to go for photorealism in art. It might night leave such a lasting impression. Plus it can only be copied so many times before it becomes repetitive. Try different styles constantly, you may just find ones that suit you better.

So, you can use these ideas and go and improve your work.

This link is to go to the post for the pointers she gives out in more detail. If I share all pointers I wouldn't be doing her credit for her ideas and pointers.

http://design.tutsplus.com/articles/realism-photorealism-and-style-in-drawing--cms-21630