I’ve been the kind of person who has expressed themself through art for as long as I can remember, in any form I gained interest in: drawing, writing poetry, and stories.
I remember starting to teach myself with instructional drawing books about animals. One that stands out to me was a book on how to draw cats. Animals and scenery are something I recommend starting with to get going on an art journey. Anatomy is, of course, still something to focus on when you’re drawing creatures, but steering away from the norm is much more forgiving when it comes to animals. If you don’t get the animal the way you want, start creating a new creature entirely! I mean, how else do we get all our amazing horror monsters?
That’s how I got started, and creativity was heavily encouraged growing up. Hobbies and other interests were all encouraged, but expressing yourself through music or other media was heavily valued, if that’s what I was so inclined to do. I was never pressured to pursue anything, but my artistic hobby was viewed as something to be proud of and was invested in as equitably as the effort I put in. Knowing how it felt to have artistic leanings and self-expression valued as I grew up – it became my way of connecting with people. So the more connected I felt, the more art I would do.
Hobbies and other interests were all encouraged,
but expressing yourself through music or
other media was heavily valued...
I started with traditional pencil or pen, paper, and colored pencils; although, my desire slowly grew to prefer greyscale/black and white. Digital art programs were around, but were still out of my price range and far too advanced for what I was able to understand. So, I had art book after art book, pencil set after pencil set gifted to me by loved ones to continuously encourage what I was doing. I was left alone to draw for hours upon hours. I would go to those I trusted and ask advice, and to show them improvements that I’ve made. Constructive criticism was a big factor in helping me learn. Anyone can say, “I love your art” or “you’re doing incredibly well”, but without any further feedback to back it up, it’s never felt helpful to me as an artist. It is definitely encouraging, but when I was looking for honest opinions, it felt empty and unfulfilling. But I can’t blame someone when they don’t understand how to critique constructively. When they don’t have that kind of experience, there’s not much they can say. Having people around you that can express genuine constructive criticism is a life force for any kind of creator.
A lot of what inspired me was older cartoons; I loved the art style, the painting, the bold colors, and the exaggerated movements. I wanted to become an animator. These days, although I still respect animation to an incredibly high degree, I’m glad I didn’t pursue animation professionally. A lot about that line of work would be overly stressful for me, and I simply do not have the spoons. I still do love to express this style through still art, and I can still animate if I so choose, just not as my job.
As I’ve gotten further into my art journey and discovery of my style, I still use inspiration from older cartoons, but also horror aspects too. I’ve created characters in the past that I’ve started to revisit and modify as my skills improve over time, and the access to much more efficient art resources like drawing programs designed for it (thank you ClipStudio!) My main focus when drawing is singular pieces telling a very literal story vs metaphorical. My art isn’t made in mind to be works that tell beautiful, deep tales the further you look into it. I have attempted metaphorical pieces, but those don’t get very far with how the concepts process for me, and so they end up bland, and just as literal as if I had done what I wanted. I just want to make art that shows my varied interests combined into a single piece.
I had art book after art book, pencil set after pencil set gifted to me by loved ones to continuously encourage what I was doing.
Unfortunately, even with such a variety of possibilities, art block is my worst enemy. My inspirations and my interests are always flowing so incredibly freely throughout my mind, at all times of day, but when I put my pen to the screen or pencil to the page… it’s gone in an instant. It’s incredibly frustrating and it’s a struggle I deal with even outside of my hobbies. Putting my ideas down on paper becomes really difficult when it comes to fully executing them, but I know I have the ideas. Sometimes it just takes doodling and putting the pen to it, or going simple and just practicing some anatomy or reference work to get some basic ideas in mind. I’m not on any time constraints so I have all the time in the world to practice, but if I don’t start in the moments I have the energy, I know I’ll never get anything done.
I try to remember that what continues to inspire me to do art today is my pure desire to create. I love working to develop new ideas and even modifying old ones to fit my expression. I love seeing the reactions of others after I’ve finalized a piece. I try to remember that I do not make the art that I do to appease an audience, and so I am under no pressure to fulfill anyone’s M.O. I have to remind myself that I create just because I can and want to. I’ve chosen the path where I get to do art for me and nobody else. Creating art is something that belongs specifically to me. It comes from my brain, my experiences, my thoughts, and my feelings. It’s only is, and will ever will be, my own.
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