"There should never be a point (...) where you are not attempting the pictures that you dream of making," handshake meme with "Skills are there to ensure that anything you make is fundamentally sound, the skills themselves are not the art," with qrbits' ATLA character design portfolio video -- both are kicking me in the ass to actually get work done and stop hiding behind studies ahaha
Good meditation with a good message. Although in my journey I never doubted that I shouldn't draw exactly what I want - because that's the reason I am on the journey in the first place (otherwise I'd quit and do something profitable for living) However I often feel almost gaslit for enjoying and wanting to improve my technical skill at the same time, people have typically said it's a bad thing to enjoy and that it will ruin the purity in my art. As a young artist the resources to get better were witheld & kept secret, local schools were always about only the creativity and learning literal tools (like how to work with different paints), nobody would teach on a technical pov how to get better at drawing itself. The view went hand in hand with the assumption that drawing is a talent some are born with and it shouldn't be "stained". The rare moments of "this is perspective" were awkward and disconnect from the actual process at best. The internet becoming a thing was a savior and now that I've had good resources to learn from I've fallen more deeply in love with drawing than ever. Realizing you can learn is empowering and the results makes drawing refreshing and more fun each time I get to use the newly learned aspects on a new project.
Nowadays I work almost exclusively in Fountain Pen, with pitch black ink in my sketchbook. theres a lovely simplicity and softness to your videos that let me cohabitate with my mean thoughts in a nice mindspace that I usually only get by taking my lightweight drawing setup outside. Its hard to be picky and make snivelling comments when youre surrounded by non human friends. More than anything, thank you as always
Thank you for this. Your talk helped me reflect and realize that I've lost a bit of my passion since I've turned my art into a means of sustaining my livelihood. I don't really sketch or draw for leisure or it's own sake anymore, I tend to turn to video games and watching videos. I can't recall the last time I've opened a canvas just for fun rather than the commitment. Though I do still express creativity for myself with other mediums, 3d work mostly, I am going to take a conscious effort to regain that with my drawn art. Everything you've expressed are lessons I may have already learned over the past 16 years or so when I started drawing more seriously, yet somehow I still forget them regularly. They fade into the background as I get caught up in modern society, always unconsciously being pushed into transforming art into fame and capital. It's good to be reminded and to reinforce what my own values actually are.
Needed that part at the end. Been day dreaming of projects but always feared of it not looking how I imagine them even though I never bother to start them in the first place
What a gift to have my question answered. Made my day. I was also wondering when in the drawing from imagination process it's good to bring up reference. How far can you go with composing shapes (placement, size, orientation) before you need to use reference. I've found that you can go pretty far with just "okay so there's going to be a fish right about here, fish look kinda like this" and just iterating with thumbnails. The process gets you excited enough that you can't help but pull up reference because you just HAVE to finish it. Thanks so much for answering my question.
❤ I would agree 21:54. I now struggle to draw from imagination because I've forced my process to be close to the original with my style. I created a wall that didn't need to be there. It's hurting me now. I still find joy in the process but know that I Iimited myself.
It's funny how I'm like "oh a drawing meditation video I will save that for when I sit to draw" but when I put it on while drawing I don't hear a word of it. These videos are too effective
A couple of years ago I´ve always felt like following my gut for art making was "the easy path". Nowadays I don´t think is as easy as I thought it was. It implies trusting myself stopping relying on external validation to feel good about myself, and really accepting that there are things I´m not interested in putting in my art. It´s a pill that it´s hard to swallow. I have a question about it. What are your thoughts about balancing between learning from others and just following your gut for your art?
Training the soul is just as important as training the mind. Im in that same camp with you. I must use religious allegory because in truth there is a barely visible mist of difference between the conscious and unconscious processes in the brain. Learning to influence, tickle, and caress the black basin from which the spring of creativity bursts is a skill that not a lot of minds are capable of. Meta knowledge, meta creativity, creating creativity, is nonetheless learnable
These meditations are really resonating. I'm one of those people who has been holding off on doing all the fun ideas I have because I don't have the skill yet to make it how I imagine it. I'm going to correct that now immediately because...yeah you're totally right. Hampering my creative thought process due to lack of skill will only just push back continuously "when I'm better I'll draw that." until one day I have great studies but no creative drive or intuition because I kept pushing it off. It makes complete sense to me when you say it, that it's a terrible idea. I can always attempt them again in the future, but just simply putting place holders on all my ideas is a shit idea. Thanks for that!
I'm pretty sure I have aphantasia (or at the most hypophantasia), so the question is very rarely about what I want to draw, and more so that I want to draw. Thanks for the meditation, Stave.
Great content. I find I readily create in silence a lot of the time. I think the level of focus goes way up for me especially when storyboarding or animating.
The way you started talking again about the silences as I go to put on a song. My answer in this current moment... a Mariah Carey is stuck in my head, and the silence really makes me wanna hear it. Okay back to the video.
How should we balance creative impulse and commitment to a single piece until it's finished? I'm aware there is no right answer for this. In my case the balance seems to be seasonal, with periods of sketching and other periods of being in fort of a piece for hours every day. It works well for my personal work but I find it really hard to fit in the professional world. Thanks for your videos.
I have zero idea what sort of art I want to make. I love drawing but not got a clue where I want to put my efforts. I am learning anatomy etc at the moment so I can draw from my head but I also enjoy working from observation. Help!!
Hi Steven I rember you talking about how the artists you trained with learned how to learn, among calling them freaks and weirdo's. I wanted to know what advice you have on doing just that, books, courses, podcast or anything else you have would also be a massive help.
Putting this as a seperate bit, I'm starting a free course that has good reviews called learning how to learn, to hopefully begin well you know leaning how to learn
Steven, I have a Question, that probably was answered by you Just as manu times as you Drew in your life. After the realization that you focused too hard on technique and external validation and the inevitable Very specific pain that doing it for decades causes... What were your First steps into mending your creativity and internal validation?
"There should never be a point (...) where you are not attempting the pictures that you dream of making," handshake meme with "Skills are there to ensure that anything you make is fundamentally sound, the skills themselves are not the art," with qrbits' ATLA character design portfolio video -- both are kicking me in the ass to actually get work done and stop hiding behind studies ahaha
Good meditation with a good message. Although in my journey I never doubted that I shouldn't draw exactly what I want - because that's the reason I am on the journey in the first place (otherwise I'd quit and do something profitable for living)
However I often feel almost gaslit for enjoying and wanting to improve my technical skill at the same time, people have typically said it's a bad thing to enjoy and that it will ruin the purity in my art. As a young artist the resources to get better were witheld & kept secret, local schools were always about only the creativity and learning literal tools (like how to work with different paints), nobody would teach on a technical pov how to get better at drawing itself. The view went hand in hand with the assumption that drawing is a talent some are born with and it shouldn't be "stained". The rare moments of "this is perspective" were awkward and disconnect from the actual process at best.
The internet becoming a thing was a savior and now that I've had good resources to learn from I've fallen more deeply in love with drawing than ever. Realizing you can learn is empowering and the results makes drawing refreshing and more fun each time I get to use the newly learned aspects on a new project.
Nowadays I work almost exclusively in Fountain Pen, with pitch black ink in my sketchbook. theres a lovely simplicity and softness to your videos that let me cohabitate with my mean thoughts in a nice mindspace that I usually only get by taking my lightweight drawing setup outside. Its hard to be picky and make snivelling comments when youre surrounded by non human friends. More than anything, thank you as always
Thank you for this. Your talk helped me reflect and realize that I've lost a bit of my passion since I've turned my art into a means of sustaining my livelihood. I don't really sketch or draw for leisure or it's own sake anymore, I tend to turn to video games and watching videos. I can't recall the last time I've opened a canvas just for fun rather than the commitment. Though I do still express creativity for myself with other mediums, 3d work mostly, I am going to take a conscious effort to regain that with my drawn art.
Everything you've expressed are lessons I may have already learned over the past 16 years or so when I started drawing more seriously, yet somehow I still forget them regularly. They fade into the background as I get caught up in modern society, always unconsciously being pushed into transforming art into fame and capital. It's good to be reminded and to reinforce what my own values actually are.
Needed that part at the end. Been day dreaming of projects but always feared of it not looking how I imagine them even though I never bother to start them in the first place
Yes, more of Steven uploading more consistently! 🙌 🙌 🙌
Aaaah, Art zen, first thing in the morning brings on bliss. Thank you.
Steven 🥲 you are the best! ✨️✨️✨️
I really missed these, thank you
This is what I’m gonna be working on - drawing what I love
This was such a nice one to listen to! Man, I’m so happy to see these meditations again.
Thank you for sharing :D!
What a gift to have my question answered. Made my day.
I was also wondering when in the drawing from imagination process it's good to bring up reference. How far can you go with composing shapes (placement, size, orientation) before you need to use reference. I've found that you can go pretty far with just "okay so there's going to be a fish right about here, fish look kinda like this" and just iterating with thumbnails. The process gets you excited enough that you can't help but pull up reference because you just HAVE to finish it.
Thanks so much for answering my question.
❤ I would agree 21:54. I now struggle to draw from imagination because I've forced my process to be close to the original with my style. I created a wall that didn't need to be there. It's hurting me now. I still find joy in the process but know that I Iimited myself.
Based Master Steven back here at the based channel and doing based things.
This is such an awe moment, a very beautiful piece of art
Hey Steven, I was going to ask you a question but as I wrote it out I realised that I already have the answer, keep up the vids man they’re awesome.
sweet message
It's funny how I'm like "oh a drawing meditation video I will save that for when I sit to draw" but when I put it on while drawing I don't hear a word of it. These videos are too effective
That’s because there are no words. You only hear the Steven if you need to hear the Steven.
A couple of years ago I´ve always felt like following my gut for art making was "the easy path". Nowadays I don´t think is as easy as I thought it was. It implies trusting myself stopping relying on external validation to feel good about myself, and really accepting that there are things I´m not interested in putting in my art. It´s a pill that it´s hard to swallow. I have a question about it. What are your thoughts about balancing between learning from others and just following your gut for your art?
Got home from therapy and ALL of this Just hits like a truck
Training the soul is just as important as training the mind. Im in that same camp with you. I must use religious allegory because in truth there is a barely visible mist of difference between the conscious and unconscious processes in the brain. Learning to influence, tickle, and caress the black basin from which the spring of creativity bursts is a skill that not a lot of minds are capable of. Meta knowledge, meta creativity, creating creativity, is nonetheless learnable
Thank you for this
based zapata as always, thank you for your work for the art community, I can do nothing but kneel
Good moments of silence
These meditations are really resonating. I'm one of those people who has been holding off on doing all the fun ideas I have because I don't have the skill yet to make it how I imagine it. I'm going to correct that now immediately because...yeah you're totally right. Hampering my creative thought process due to lack of skill will only just push back continuously "when I'm better I'll draw that." until one day I have great studies but no creative drive or intuition because I kept pushing it off. It makes complete sense to me when you say it, that it's a terrible idea. I can always attempt them again in the future, but just simply putting place holders on all my ideas is a shit idea. Thanks for that!
thanks for all your stuff its always a great help much love be well
I'm pretty sure I have aphantasia (or at the most hypophantasia), so the question is very rarely about what I want to draw, and more so that I want to draw. Thanks for the meditation, Stave.
Great content. I find I readily create in silence a lot of the time. I think the level of focus goes way up for me especially when storyboarding or animating.
awesome vid Steven :)
Wow, i feel like you haven't done a video like this in a really long while
The way you started talking again about the silences as I go to put on a song. My answer in this current moment... a Mariah Carey is stuck in my head, and the silence really makes me wanna hear it. Okay back to the video.
I still struggle of drawing a lot
Thank You
How should we balance creative impulse and commitment to a single piece until it's finished?
I'm aware there is no right answer for this.
In my case the balance seems to be seasonal, with periods of sketching and other periods of being in fort of a piece for hours every day. It works well for my personal work but I find it really hard to fit in the professional world.
Thanks for your videos.
I have zero idea what sort of art I want to make. I love drawing but not got a clue where I want to put my efforts. I am learning anatomy etc at the moment so I can draw from my head but I also enjoy working from observation. Help!!
Hi Steven I rember you talking about how the artists you trained with learned how to learn, among calling them freaks and weirdo's.
I wanted to know what advice you have on doing just that, books, courses, podcast or anything else you have would also be a massive help.
Putting this as a seperate bit, I'm starting a free course that has good reviews called learning how to learn, to hopefully begin well you know leaning how to learn
23:45 , 25:00
based 😩
shoutout earthsworld!
Steven, I have a Question, that probably was answered by you Just as manu times as you Drew in your life.
After the realization that you focused too hard on technique and external validation and the inevitable Very specific pain that doing it for decades causes...
What were your First steps into mending your creativity and internal validation?
i wish you healing and peace.
I that a black color pencil? Which one is that?
Answer in the description for other lazy people like me