How to Improve Your Art

Now by no means am I an expert at art. In fact, I only recently started drawing consistently about a month ago, and I have no formal training in art. It is just a hobby that I enjoy. That being said, I do think that there is definitely an improvement from my first drawing to my recent ones. So these are some tips that I have for anyone looking to improve their sketching:

1. Draw everyday- Try to make an effort to draw every day, or as often as you can. Try to make it a habit and fit it into your daily routine, even if you are just taking 10mins a day to do a quick messy sketch, it is better than not drawing at all. I personally like the draw in the evenings while I’m watching TV, or Youtube videos. 

2. Don’t think too much- I think that when we think too much about trying to improve, we end up putting pressure on ourselves. What’s the rush? You have your whole life ahead of you, and every time you sit down to draw you are improving whether you think you are or not. I also believe that stressing about this kind of thing makes the activity less enjoyable. 

3. Challenge yourself- Step out of your comfort zone and try to draw different things. I for one tend to draw inspiration from nature a lot of the time, but every now and then I try to draw humans, cartoon characters, and landscapes. Challenging yourself allows you to discover new tricks, and methods to improve your art. This also applies to mediums. If you're used to always using watercolor, try acrylic or gouache, or even markers, pastels, or pencil crayons. If you are used to using white paper, try brown, gray or black paper instead. Be creative. 

4. Sketch without pencils- I’ve heard many art YouTubers talk about this and after trying it out myself, I can definitely agree that my art improved when I started sketching with pens and colored pencil crayons. Using pens and colored pencils forces you to be more careful with your strokes because you can’t erase your mistakes. After a while, you will become more confident in your strokes. I find that now no matter what I sketch with, I make fewer mistakes and hardly ever have to use my eraser. 

5. Use reference photos- I know that some people think reference photos are bad, but I don't agree with that. In fact, the photos you see above were based on reference photos I found on Pinterest, but what I encourage you to try is to use reference photos but make them your own; Use different color schemes, force the object into a different position, change the hair, body parts, and shapes, or even add things that were never in the original picture. This will help your channel your creativity, and after a while, you may not need to use reference photos as much.  

These are all the tips I have for you today, and I hope they can be of help. Remember, art is supposed to be fun. It is a  way to express yourself and don’t let anyone tell you that there is a right or wrong way of doing it.