Keeping Motivation when Drawing (Help!)

[MDLineArt 93]

Hey all,

 

Wanted to post this as I've been trying to get back into drawing.  I've found myself starting projects, if only doing some really bad sketches, but time and time again I find myself more and more frustrated with my illustrations. 

It's not good enough to be worth posting, and it often times feels like I am not getting anything done because I just cant finish the work.  It stops being enjoyable and turns into me being hyper-critical of myself, and often times turns into useless criticism.

I am often times told I am a good artist, but thoughts often impede that (Not good enough for career or commission), and so I end up in a situation where I actually dont keep on drawing and end up losing losts of time, sometimes years, without me drawing and in doing so I am not improving at all.

This situation has culminated with the recent work in trying to build an OC, and what I find is it actually bringing out the worst in me.

I want to keep drawing, get better, and hopefully do some work of worth, but this self-deprecating mentality has been near crippling, and trying to push forward in fact brings a further backlash.

I know I am not the only one, but it often times feels like I am when I look at the vast array of work I see posted in this forum.  It's a lot of comparison and thinking 'Why can't I do this?!'

I've never really been the most confident person in my art, and it feels like my work has been just bland and half-hearted, even when I know I couldn't do anymore with a piece, I feel like I should have.  Instead, it turns into a mess and the feelings of failing.

Just felt the need to get this off my chest, and I appreciate you giving me your time in reading this.

-MDLA

[Moon Sugar 532]

Sometimes artists just get burn outs, that's okay! It's nothing to get discouraged over.

 

I find if I start posting my artwork in a forum, or an art site that that gets me motivated to drawing more. 

[MDLineArt 93]

Sometimes artists just get burn outs, that's okay! It's nothing to get discouraged over.

 

I find if I start posting my artwork in a forum, or an art site that that gets me motivated to drawing more. 

Yeah, but burnouts shouldn't kick in on your third image you've made in a few months time.

 

I started posting my work, but then "it kinda just made me realize how bad I am at it" is the first thought that came across my head.  Feel like there is something really wrong, and I don't know what it is.

[Moon Sugar 532]

Yeah, but burnouts shouldn't kick in on your third image you've made in a few months time.

 

I started posting my work, but then "it kinda just made me realize how bad I am at it" is the first thought that came across my head.  Feel like there is something really wrong, and I don't know what it is.

 

I think there might be a bigger underlying problem than a simple case of burnout. It seems like you might have some self esteem issues. 

 

"I really suck at this"

turn it into

"I really learned a lot from that pic!" 

"The next one is going to be better" 

"I liked *blank* but don't like *blank* I'll change that next time" 

 

Turn your self doubt into self empowering and believe me, it will be hard and silly at first, but it's the first step to being able to inspire yourself again, instead of beating yourself up for something you haven't even done yet.

[MDLineArt 93]

@@Moon Sugar

Appreciate the quick responses MS.  I am trying to understand how you change that view though, and quite frankly, I am not sure how you even start doing it

[Moon Sugar 532]

Yeah, but burnouts shouldn't kick in on your third image you've made in a few months time.

 

I started posting my work, but then "it kinda just made me realize how bad I am at it" is the first thought that came across my head.  Feel like there is something really wrong, and I don't know what it is.

 

The fact that you haven't had the inspiration to draw (though you did/do seem to like it)

And the fact that the first thing you think of when you post art is "How bad you are"  as well as feeling like something is really wrong with you, just seems to speak of a more underlying issue. 

 

Sorry if I escalated it further than you think it really is!

[MDLineArt 93]

@@Moon Sugar

Major Depression is a pain like that. Didn't really know how else to express it, save for this post.  Figured I would see if someone else has run into this same problem.  It's difficult to push past, and I would value insight if someone could be struggling with the same issues I do in this particular problem.

 

[Veil 260]

I've never had strong feelings about this before, but I started by taking things slowly. So I just did some hand drawn art that I wasn't really expecting to be that great, its mostly just for practice. Then when I started getting a bit better, I created an art dump on the forums so that people could see my art and hopefully comment on it, which some people did. Then when I felt like I was ready I moved up to D/A and I have some comments on there. It goes kinda slow, but I know if I keep working at it I'll get better as well as trying to challenge myself to.

[Plume 922]

Here. I know this is on tumblr, and wow tumblr can be a dick sometimes, but I feel like this will help you.

 

It helps me when I get into a self-criticising rut, and can't stop comparing my art to other peoples. 

http://tryingmomentarily.tumblr.com/post/140560683554

 

From personal experience, I'd say just keep drawing what you love - that tends to be more inspirtational. Whenever I feel down, I try to still draw at least once a day - eventually it becomes habit, and even if I don't end up liking what I drew, I just leave it and then draw something different tomorrow. Don't kick yourself for making mistakes, or drawing a bad drawing. Take advantages of the days you really feel like drawing - you'll often be able to create something really cool. Also, look back on your past drawings, good and bad - the good ones often make you go "Oh sick look at this I made this!" and the bad ones? "Oh I remember when I drew this. Jeez, that wasn't all that good. But hey, compare it to this! Look at how much I've grown!"

Every artist has a different way of coping with art ruts, or crazy self-criticism. It happens to the best of people - you just gotta keep going, and work out ways around it.

 

Good luck! c:

[Kiri 7,289]

I can definitely relate to feelings of doubt and extreme self-criticism. I struggle with it too all the time. One thing that made me feel more comfortable though is looking back at an old sketchbook from years ago and seeing how much I improved personally. I think it's important to remember that it doesn't matter how you compare to other artists. Each artist has a unique developmental journey, so it's impossible to say that your own trajectory should be the same as theirs. It can take the joy out of artwork if you feel that kind of pressure, like you said in your original post.

 

As scary as it may seem, I think it is important to try and break down those barriers by stepping out of your comfort zone. There was a time when I was afraid to even join the forums and post my art publicly because it didn't look like the work of the other artists I look up to. But then I realized how much I was holding myself back. My work has a lot of flaws and I am always criticizing my own work, but the more I am stepping out of my comfort zone, the more comfortable I am starting to become. I think the harshest critic is ourselves. Think positively instead. With each drawing, you got in more practice, no matter how little time you might have spent on it. Each minute you spend is another minute of experience. It's ok not to be perfect. As long as we try to do our best and have fun, nothing else matters. As an artist, you have a talent and by drawing, you are fulfilling that talent. There's no such thing as terrible art, only negative thinking. Be proud of your work! You are that much better than you were years ago, even if it doesn't feel right now like you've improved. You have.

 

Remember why you started doing art in the first place. You do it because you love it and you have a creative mind. Don't forget the gifts that you have!

Edited March 7, 2016 by Quartzy

[Ziggy + Angel + Rain 11,302]

Draw something you love.

[Odyssey 5,717]

My advice is to realise that it's okay to make mistakes. As frustrating as it is to constantly make them, you should still push yourself to be your personal best. You can probably learn something from a drawing you may not like. Nobody needs to feel like that they must be the next Leonardo da Vinci.

 

Another piece of advice I recommend is that you should try out different art styles and see what you're best at. If you feel that you're not good at drawing one thing, then it's best to see if you're better at another. For example, I tried realism a while back, but it was not my cup of tea. So I instead focused on what I love drawing more, and that is cartoons and anime. When you find out what you're best at, you would feel a whole lot better about yourself.

Edited March 7, 2016 by Odyssey

[MDLineArt 93]

Wanted to say Thank You all for your responses.  I do consider art a competition, way too frequently.  It's especially hard on these forums, where show-accurate and heavy pastels are what garner the best response, but that's never been 'me'.  I've always enjoyed horror, high contrast, and I know I am not capable of doing very clean lines and beautiful painterly styles.  Mine has always been very aggressive, and my art has always shown that.  I think I consider that a point of shame, but I am going to try to give the best I can to this forum and it's community.

@@MiniKirby123
I think the link you sent was exactly what I was thinking about.  It has always been compare and contrast, but in doing so I always realized I never measured up.  It seemed like what I do doesn't really have a market, and so putting myself 'out there' has only been in small bursts, and when it inevitably fails (Probably because I struggle to keep going without outside influence), it just makes it worse. 

I will try to take your message to heart, and I only hope what I do post is received well, and that I am capable of taking the criticisms in a light that allows me to grow rather than retract from my work.  Thank you so much for that link.  ((((((MiniKirby))))))


@
Hey Veiled.  I think I may try exactly that, and make an art-dump/deviant art account, just throw whatever at the wall and hope whatever I do is good enough for myself.  I appreciate the response and sharing your own journey.  I would consider you very fortunate that you do not have a hyper-critical mind and just enjoy creating as you do.  Keep that aspect, and I look forward to seeing how far you will develop with it.

 

@
Thanks for sharing my sentiments.  It's worth something to at least know I am not the only one in this situation or who has gone through it.  Yes it's obvious, but it's something to think it, another to hear it.  I've somewhat broken out of my comfort zone, trying to work with more pastel colours, as I am usually a black-and-white comic-artist for the most part, primarily inspired by works like Sin City, so jumping to MLP is a risk unto itself for me.  Also putting work out there also means I gotta start drawing again, which is what is making me self-conscious in the first place.  I will take alot of the comments made and try to integrate them, hopefully it will be a worth while experience.

 

@
I couldn't do that on this forum, it tends to get very dark and NSFW   Like mentioned to Quartzy, I am trying to break away from my default style, and hopefully learn something new.

 

@@Odyssey
Yeah, I am definitely the hardest person on myself, and quite frankly I am my own worst enemy when it comes to creating. I am trying to figure out how to be more kind to myself, and try to draw attention to some of the things that are a good illustration, concept, or just generally something awesome that I dont see too often.  It's hard to be conscientiously kind to myself, it's not exactly what I would call a habit (That's more the negative stuff).

As mentioned before, my 'natural' art-style isn't exactly what I would call beautiful.  I've never worked well in those themes of beauty and cute, as I very much lean towards the macabre (Which has little place on this forum)




Wanted to say thanks again to everyone for their kindness, understanding, and help.  Figure I'd show you guys the progress I am making on a piece before I make a thread dedicated to WIP.  Consider this another thank you, as it wouldn't have made it this far without you all.




 

[Starlet Harmony 128]

As artists, we all have that lack of creativity and motivation at some point in our careers. You just need to find something that interests you and sparks that motivation again! MLP is a great way to do that! Create an original character! Use your writing skills to write their backstory, and of course your art talent to make some art of them! I've noticed that you Do have an OC (a pretty cool one too) Make a new one! And don't stop positing your art around the forums and on other art sharing sites. WE can help you get inspired! Good luck!