So I’m going to be trying something different here on Tutorial Tuesdays. I see a ton of tutorials out there on Deviant Art and Tumblr on how to draw. 99% of them are great, but i noticed something: They’re all about the same things. You can find a dozen or more tutorials on how to draw faces, or hands, or bodies, or any of that stuff, and most of them are great. So I started thinking to myself, “why do I want to do tutorials about things other people have already done?” Unless I can add some insight to the process I haven’t seen before, or contributing anything new, I might as well just refer people to the tutorials that have come before me. It would save me time typing these up, and you’ll get the same benefit from it.
So from now on Tutorial Tuesday is going to be about things I have never, or very rarely ever seen a tutorial on. Thats not to say I’ll never do a tutorial again on how to draw faces or hands, but I’m not going to do it unless i can bring something new to the table.
That all being said today’s tutorial is on how to get yourself out of your comfort zone. Right off the bad you’re thinking “Isn’t my comfort zone a good thing? Isn’t that where I make the best art? Why would i want to leave that?” The short answer is if you stay within your comfort zone for too long you’ll never grow as an artist. Things will become so formulaic your art will become stagnant and boring. Forcing yourself to leave your comfort zone will consequently force you to adapt new techniques to compensate. At the very least it will force you to look at things with a new perspective or way of thinking about your own art. When you take that new way of thinking and new techniques back into your comfort zone, you’ll fine your art will have grown, become stronger, and more interesting.
So here is the step by step tutorial on how to do that. I’ll be using myself and my art as the example.
Step 1. Take the drawing tools You’re most comfortable with.
Step 2. Say goodbye to them
Step 3. Get rid of them
Step 4. Pick up the drawing supplies you feel very uncomfortable using
For me this is brush and ink. Not only am I uncomfortable using a brush and ink themselves (as I typically use copic multi-liners and brush pens) But I’m also uncomfortable using something permanent like ink without planning ahead with a pencil. I erase ALOT, so the idea that i can’t erase a mistake with brush and ink, scares the crap out of me….
You don’t have to use brush and ink, You can do pastels, or charcoal or anything that you don’t usually use, and actually scares you a little to try.
Step 5. Play a little
This media is foreign to you. So figure out what it can do. As you can see here, It’s going to be little more than scribbling. (you can also see formations of an idea I got here. You’ll see what it is by the end.)
Step 6. Draw a little
If your anything like me you’ll try drawing with your new medium the same way you draw in your comfortable media…. and it’s going to look really crappy, because it’s not the same. Try again…
Step 7. Try again
Okay this looks a bit better….
Step 8. …and again
Okay I really like the negative space in this one… Let me try another one with Negative space….
Step 9. …and again
Okay This is the point where i learned a new way of thinking about my drawings. Thinking about them as shapes of light and shadow instead of body forms to draw. And this has sparked an full on idea using my character Nekotsu, who’s costume is mostly black and white.
Let’s try it:
Okay, not bad. Especially with no advanced planning with a pencil. But it’s not exactly what i was going for. Let’s try again.
This is closer to what I’m looking for, but I’m finding that without advance planning with a pencil, achieving the negative space I want is just outside my capabilities. So I think it’s time to go to step 10.
Step 10. Take what you’ve learned back into your comfort zone.
So I want to do a brush and ink drawing with a lot of negative space. But I’m not skilled enough in this new medium to pull it off right right now. (It’s going to take me quite of bit of practice to pull that off in the future). So for now I’m going to combine what I’ve learned today with what I’m comfortable with. So first I’m going to pencil Nekotsu, planning the forms of the body and where the black and white will be:
Now lets ink it with the brush…
Not bad even if i do say so myself. And those of you who follow me and my art know that this has a look unlike most of my art… but it might be seeing something like this more often!
So I hope this little tutorial helps you guys get out of your comfort zones a bit, and help make you well rounded, strong artists!
I’m not sure what next week’s tutorial is going to be yet, but until then let me know what you think! Did this tutorial help you? What tutorial would you want to see in the future? I want to know ESPECIALLY if it’s something you can’t find any tutorials on.
Tomorrow I’m going to review an Indie comic I love. In the mean time follow me around the web:
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And if you love my artwork don’t forget to pick up my comics!
And remember. Make Comics! Not Excuses!
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