Theoretically, learning to draw is not too late at any age. And, without diminishing the importance of a passionate desire to master this art, it is immediately worth noting that it alone is not enough. Training information, materials and a lot of practice - you will need this too.
Plus, a certain set of recommendations and tips with which it is easier to navigate everything that happens and achieve the desired results faster.
It's about how to learn how to draw, it is worth starting with the fact that, unfortunately, mastering this art quickly from scratch to the level of not even Leonardo Da Vinci, but, say, professionals from Marvel comics, is impossible.
But it is also worth emphasizing that it is quite possible for a short period (from 3 to 18 months) to develop your skills and talents enough to, firstly, receive from their embodiment sincere, unclouded by abundant criticism pleasure, and secondly, even have the opportunity turn a hobby into a professional activity.
But the lion's share of the problems of beginners rests, often, precisely on how to start.
And to break everything here is, first of all, the following aspects:
- Time. Only regular classes benefit, so they plan from 6 (to infinity) study hours per week, in which nothing and no one distracts the painter.
- Expenses. High-quality materials, the result of which is noticeable, in any case expensive, it does not matter that it is paints, pastel pencils and paper or a tablet and special software. It is wise to immediately examine the market and decide what is available.
- Style. Experienced artists maneuver between them, but for beginners it is better to choose one thing - Japanese manga, one of the illustrations of Soviet children's books or a trend in demand in women's glamorous magazines (or something else).
- Prospects. Determining the final goal or at least the desired result (drawing level) after a certain time (for example, after a year) will allow you to plan the educational process and monitor the results achieved.
It is also worth noting about time, that in addition to major lessons, creativity should fill the maximum time of the day to arrive at speedy results, since practice is the golden basis of this science.
Since this is an independent study of drawing, it is important to note the role of assistants in this. They can be relatives, friends or strangers (with whom, however, it can turn out to be friends) from drawing communities on the Internet. The opinion of the latter is even slightly preferable, since they:
- do not praise out of politeness;
- being numerous and with different drawing skills, they can indicate diverse shortcomings and give practical advice.
Plus, this way you can remain anonymous, not be afraid to be misunderstood or seem too intrusive in your thirst to gain knowledge and feedback.
And here it is important to touch on the role of criticism.
Evaluation of the drawings is different. After all, somewhere in the world, blotches are worth millions of dollars.
But even if it’s just a cat that looks like a pumpkin, don’t stand in a rage to throw out pencils. First of all, one should perceive one's failures as an invaluable experience, an opportunity to discover strengths in creativity and improve / learn to get around weaknesses.
To clearly see the flaws, experienced artists recommend looking at the pictures in the mirror (you can still take a picture and flip the image).
In general, it’s useful to keep examples of your drawing levels to motivate yourself with the degree of progress (even many recognized artists on the Web show collections of pictures by year of "was-it-become").
It is impossible to draw a horse well (even in the style of the Disney cartoon) without knowing its anatomy and not having an idea of its living movement.
In other words, a true artist must be able to penetrate the essence of the depicted, if he does not want to be able to just draw, copy (although this, of course, also requires skill).
And in fact, in order to learn how to draw well, it is advisable to tune in to the study of the following (probably not all at once, but you cannot do without something):
- color theory;
- light and shadow transmission;
- perspectives (needed from the image of the castle to the vase);
- anatomy (human, animals, etc.);
- basics of composition.
It is also worth noting that having the opportunity, do not neglect drawing something not only in imagination or in the finished image, but also from nature.
It can be a person, a tree branch, dawn over the river, a package of milk. Anything.
Also valuable is the ability to look at something and sketch right there from memory.
At first it’s natural to stay in search of your style, which involves copying the techniques of other artists. The main thing - even if you want to draw it seems, always bring your own personality to the drawings.
You can make a "hodgepodge". Suppose one artist paints people ’figures beautifully, and the other masterfully depicts Renaissance costumes. It is wise to learn from both.
Even if you want to learn one thing, say, a giraffe, it is not recommended to exercise this for weeks. Unless all plans are limited to giraffes.
It’s worth drawing more, say, lizards, apples, cubes and clouds. Diversity allows you to refresh your eyes on the work done and learn new techniques.
It is also recommended not to be afraid to try new materials - if you are not dealing with gouache, perhaps everything will turn out with coal.
If you fail, do not abuse the erasers or draw over the finished one, correcting it - it’s more valuable to repeat the successful steps and carefully work out the problematic ones.
And finally, it is important to note that convenience and comfort are important for teaching drawing.
Even if it is very comfortable to curl up in an armchair, most of the creative lessons should be carried out for yourself at the table, trying to keep posture and materials in your hands in the recommended way (you can definitely find out in the textbooks).
The fact is that the muscles involved in the work will not be overextended, and they will also be able to stay in conditions that allow achieving results, as the lessons promise.
