does anybody draw here?

[Tiger King]

does anybody draw/paint here or know of any good art communities on the web?

I've always enjoyed drawing but I had to set it aside for the past year as I juggled work and school.
happily I have completed my course now and would like to take it up again.
I think it would help if I found some people that also like being creative as it may help galvanise and inspire/push me.

thanks for your help!

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

snip

The Escapist does have an art community, but we aren't really grouped together as a whole, we're just a bunch of users running around who the general community recognizes as being able to draw, write, play music, ext. Topics about art become very popular. One of the longest running topics [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.72805-The-artist-in-thee#773584] in Escapist history is an art topic.




There is a user group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/User-made-content] dedicated to user created work, but it has activity issues.

I would love to talk to you about art and inspiration. That sounds pretty cool.

 

[Tiger King]

snip

The Escapist does have an art community, but we aren't really grouped together as a whole, we're just a bunch of users running around who the general community recognizes as being able to draw, write, play music, ext. Topics about art become very popular. One of the longest running topics [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.72805-The-artist-in-thee#773584] in Escapist history is an art topic.




There is a user group [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/User-made-content] dedicated to user created work, but it has activity issues.

I would love to talk to you about art and inspiration. That sounds pretty cool.

hey thanks for your reply, there are some great artists around here judging by the quality posted in that thread.
i checked out your website, your work is really good how long does it usually take you to finish something?
and your employed as an artist? that must be a great job.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

hey thanks for your reply, there are some great artists around here judging by the quality posted in that thread.

Yeah there are some really awesome artists hanging around here, but they like to hide.

i checked out your website, your work is really good how long does it usually take you to finish something?

Thanks but I still have a long way to go, and I need to kick myself into drawing more often.
How long it takes depends on how much detail, for most things it usually takes less than eight hours.

and your employed as an artist? that must be a great job.

It's fun, I have a job that gives me a nice variety, so I'm not stuck drawing the same thing over and over again.

-------------------
How about yourself, what do you like to draw?
It is hard juggling school and work.

 

[Tiger King]

hey thanks for your reply, there are some great artists around here judging by the quality posted in that thread.

Yeah there are some really awesome artists hanging around here, but they like to hide.

i checked out your website, your work is really good how long does it usually take you to finish something?

Thanks but I still have a long way to go, and I need to kick myself into drawing more often.
How long it takes depends on how much detail, for most things it usually takes less than eight hours.

and your employed as an artist? that must be a great job.

It's fun, I have a job that gives me a nice variety, so I'm not stuck drawing the same thing over and over again.

-------------------
How about yourself, what do you like to draw?
It is hard juggling school and work.

for a time i was drawing subjects that would improve or force me to learn certain techniques. not always the best of ideas as its such a drag drawing something your not too intrested in but i want to improve so i get on with it.
the last proper drawing i did was a portrait of a girl with blonde hair, the idea was to improve my hair technique as hair can be tricky.

i prefer to use my imagination and draw fantasy or sci fi stuff. perhaps i should post some stuff in that art group?
it was hard juggling school and work, if i wasnt tired from work and overtime i was angry and frustrated at the college i was attending (they really botched up my course and i had to really get on their backs to sort it out).
however its sorted now and i finished the course last month. work has also calmd down a bit so i can crack on with something i enjoy.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

for a time i was drawing subjects that would improve or force me to learn certain techniques. not always the best of ideas as its such a drag drawing something your not too intrested in but i want to improve so i get on with it.
the last proper drawing i did was a portrait of a girl with blonde hair, the idea was to improve my hair technique as hair can be tricky.

i prefer to use my imagination and draw fantasy or sci fi stuff. perhaps i should post some stuff in that art group?
it was hard juggling school and work, if i wasnt tired from work and overtime i was angry and frustrated at the college i was attending (they really botched up my course and i had to really get on their backs to sort it out).
however its sorted now and i finished the course last month. work has also calmd down a bit so i can crack on with something i enjoy.

If you want to draw just for the sake of improving this is a pretty handy tool. [http://artists.pixelovely.com/practice-tools/] It offers gesture drawing for humans and animals as well as some art help videos and links. I did have one specifically for faces and hands, but that site seems to have gone down.

 

[gazumped]

snip

The Escapist does have an art community, but we aren't really grouped together as a whole, we're just a bunch of users running around who the general community recognizes as being able to draw, write, play music, ext. Topics about art become very popular. One of the longest running topics [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.72805-The-artist-in-thee#773584] in Escapist history is an art topic.

That's bleedin' amazing, I started looking at people's profiles to see if I could follow them on Tumblr/Twitter (as I just did with you, Eclipse Dragon, hope that's okay) and some of the earliest posters haven't even been active on the Escapist for five years. Might have to add some of my own stuff to that one soon.

OP: Yeah, I'm just finishing a degree in illustration at the moment and I'm hoping to make a career out of it. I should really try to be more active in online art communities, I find Tumblr good for inspiration and advice if you follow artists (if you post art on your own blog they'll often follow back as well) but that's a blog site, not a forum site. I have one Tumblr blog where I post my own stuff and one where I reblog other people's stuff just for the sake of having somewhere to keep all the coolest things I find for inspiration.

 

[Tiger King]

snip

The Escapist does have an art community, but we aren't really grouped together as a whole, we're just a bunch of users running around who the general community recognizes as being able to draw, write, play music, ext. Topics about art become very popular. One of the longest running topics [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.72805-The-artist-in-thee#773584] in Escapist history is an art topic.

That's bleedin' amazing, I started looking at people's profiles to see if I could follow them on Tumblr/Twitter (as I just did with you, Eclipse Dragon, hope that's okay) and some of the earliest posters haven't even been active on the Escapist for five years. Might have to add some of my own stuff to that one soon.

OP: Yeah, I'm just finishing a degree in illustration at the moment and I'm hoping to make a career out of it. I should really try to be more active in online art communities, I find Tumblr good for inspiration and advice if you follow artists (if you post art on your own blog they'll often follow back as well) but that's a blog site, not a forum site. I have one Tumblr blog where I post my own stuff and one where I reblog other people's stuff just for the sake of having somewhere to keep all the coolest things I find for inspiration.

hey thanks for posting, i had actually forgotabout this thread/given up on it.
i had a quick look at your profile and saw your website, thats really cool you do illustration. that would be a dream project for me, adding images to a story.

 

[gazumped]

hey thanks for posting, i had actually forgotabout this thread/given up on it.
i had a quick look at your profile and saw your website, thats really cool you do illustration. that would be a dream project for me, adding images to a story.

Ah, haha, yeah, hadn't realised you put this up about a week ago. Thing about the Advice Forum is that because people don't make threads very often they can stay on the front page for a while.

You've got me interested now, though, and I'm asking around my fellow students and stuff to see if they've got some good places to go to. I'll get back to you if I find anything (if!)

 

[Tiger King]

hey thanks for posting, i had actually forgotabout this thread/given up on it.
i had a quick look at your profile and saw your website, thats really cool you do illustration. that would be a dream project for me, adding images to a story.

Ah, haha, yeah, hadn't realised you put this up about a week ago. Thing about the Advice Forum is that because people don't make threads very often they can stay on the front page for a while.

You've got me interested now, though, and I'm asking around my fellow students and stuff to see if they've got some good places to go to. I'll get back to you if I find anything (if!)

that'll be great thanks!

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

snip

The Escapist does have an art community, but we aren't really grouped together as a whole, we're just a bunch of users running around who the general community recognizes as being able to draw, write, play music, ext. Topics about art become very popular. One of the longest running topics [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/read/18.72805-The-artist-in-thee#773584] in Escapist history is an art topic.

That's bleedin' amazing, I started looking at people's profiles to see if I could follow them on Tumblr/Twitter (as I just did with you, Eclipse Dragon, hope that's okay) and some of the earliest posters haven't even been active on the Escapist for five years. Might have to add some of my own stuff to that one soon.

That's fine, It would be a lie if I said I didn't like followers...
I'm following you back.

i had actually forgotabout this thread/given up on it.

Don't give up on it just yet. It can take people a while to reply in advice.

 

[Batou667]

It's fun, I have a job that gives me a nice variety, so I'm not stuck drawing the same thing over and over again.

Colour me impressed/interested. I'm looking for a career change and I always idly fantasised about doing art for a living. Would you mind giving any tips or examples from your own line of work? Like:

What kind of art do you do?

Contracted or freelance?

What kind of demographic buys your stuff?

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

What kind of art do you do?

Contracted or freelance?

What kind of demographic buys your stuff?

I work in house for a largish small screen printing company. Sometimes I freelance, but I wouldn't ever consider doing that full time, it's too hard to find work that way. I mostly do t-shirt designs but also a fair bit of advertising and logos. Heh I make it sound so boring, graphic design eww, I actually majored in 3D animation, but decided to go with this instead. The hours are better, the pay is better and I was afraid I'd get burnt out on my love for animation if I were to do it for a living. This way at least I have a job that I somewhat enjoy and I can do my own stuff on the side.

I mostly do stuff for businesses and sports, I've had to draw quite a few cars.


What about yourself, are you sure you want to do art, or is this just something you're considering?

 

[Batou667]

What about yourself, are you sure you want to do art, or is this just something you're considering?

I'm the polar opposite of sure! It's an idea I'm throwing around. I was thinking of something freelance, like commissioned portraits, army painting, stuff like that. The real question is whether there's enough job security, let alone money, in it to make it viable.

It'd be great to make a hobby a profession, but like you said, sometimes when you mix work and pleasure the result is that both suffer.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

What about yourself, are you sure you want to do art, or is this just something you're considering?

The real question is whether there's enough job security, let alone money, in it to make it viable.

No. Freelance is nice to do on the side for some extra cash and I've heard of people who do it for a living, but it's not a steady paycheck. To do freelance, you either need a lot of connections or really be able to sell yourself to people looking for artists. If you want to make money on art, I would suggest working for a company, and even then it's usually not a lot of money, you're not starving but you're not rolling in cash either. If you're not absolutely sure, don't do it, especially if you have a more viable option in front of you. You could try freelance first, and if you find you enjoy it a lot more than your regular job, then you could try looking for a more permanent art position. The main point is to have a steady paycheck, regardless of what you choose. I know people can do without it, but knowing you'll have money when it counts can really go a long way.

 

[Batou667]

No. Freelance is nice to do on the side for some extra cash and I've heard of people who do it for a living, but it's not a steady paycheck. To do freelance, you either need a lot of connections or really be able to sell yourself to people looking for artists. If you want to make money on art, I would suggest working for a company, and even then it's usually not a lot of money, you're not starving but you're not rolling in cash either. If you're not absolutely sure, don't do it, especially if you have a more viable option in front of you. You could try freelance first, and if you find you enjoy it a lot more than your regular job, then you could try looking for a more permanent art position. The main point is to have a steady paycheck, regardless of what you choose. I know people can do without it, but knowing you'll have money when it counts can really go a long way.

Sound like solid advice. Yeah, if I ever do get into art it'll definitely be "on the side" first before I march into my manager's office and slap my resignation letter across their forehead. Thanks

 

[Vagabond26]

I draw a little, glad to find someone else interested in this. I'm not a professional, though, and I lack skill, but oh well if anyone is curious, here are links to my drawings

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.341164022656951.66740.100002900673637&type=1&l=1bde4aca80

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.355376641235689.1073741826.100002900673637&type=1&l=3194bff8e1

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.303752439731443.59933.100002900673637&type=1&l=91924a6c2c

 

[gazumped]

I draw a little, glad to find someone else interested in this. I'm not a professional, though, and I lack skill, but oh well if anyone is curious, here are links to my drawings

Well, your actual drawing skill is dang good, I think. You have a better knack for expressions and perspective of faces than I do, that's for sure. I guess for you the next step (if you're particularly wanting to improve) would be to practice colouring and shading more, to give a good finish to your good drawings.

Don't forget, if you've doodled on a scrappy piece of paper and the doodle's actually come out looking pretty awesome, it's not cheating to trace the image onto better paper if you want to polish it into something really nice.

 

[Eclipse Dragon]

snip

I like you're animals, they have a cute Disney-like style, but for the humans, I would either go for something that is more Disney-like (to compliment the style seen in the animals) or something more realistic. Just a friendly suggestion.

 

[Batou667]

snip

I like you're animals, they have a cute Disney-like style, but for the humans, I would either go for something that is more Disney-like (to compliment the style seen in the animals) or something more realistic. Just a friendly suggestion.

I respectfully disagree, I think Vagabond's anime style is great! She's really nailed the style and captured the authentic spirit behind it (a lot of Western-drawn manga is painfully obvious).