Angry Artist

Today's lesson is draw even when you do not want to! Or sometimes draw off of pure emotion good emotion and bad. Sometimes anger or grief or sadness can produce your best works. During Christmas I felt like making work specifically for making kids or anybody smile. But I remember one day in class when nobody liked my work and my teacher was disgusted with my work even though I felt that my work was top notch that's when I became angry and began to throw ink at my canvas! Next thing I know she walks in and loves my work. Oh that's really nice she says smh! Which just goes to show you sometimes your anger or your teachers disgust can produce the best crap/masterpiece lol!

Stupid Pencils!

I can say that a lot of times I get frustrated with my work usually because of the materials that I use mainly my colored pencils.  I always buy these expensive colored pencils and they always break smh!  What's the point of buying something expensive when they always fall through break, snap, crackle, and pop!  Well I'll tell you why, because in my mind the expensive things are the things that hold up.  But clearly that is not the case unless you're dealing with cheap paper which then it is always best to go up to the next dollar. Other than that buy the cheap pencils.  But now that I think about it do not I repeat do not buy cheap brushes or erasers.  So I guess what I am trying to say is just do not buy cheap artwork unless it's colored pencils because its going to break anyways.  Now when it comes to being cheap framing your work is not the area to begin to be cheap you need to always air on the expensive side in my opinion because even if your artwork is not very good it always looks great in a nice frame that is matted of course.  The matt and frame can make or break your artwork.  If you get it done halfway decent and cheap than your work will follow with that same appearance.  Sometimes a little money and a little extra time when it comes to the hardware can really pay off literally!  If its not broken don't fix it but if it is it's probably because it's a dumb cheap pencil! 

K.I.S.S.

Sometimes when I'm working on my pieces I get caught up so much in trying to make them masterpieces as if I was the Van Gogh of the new age.  I have to often remind myself that simplicity often works and over doing my work can be the downfall of what I am actually trying to accomplish.  The keep it simple method is usually my saving grace.  So the simple lesson for today is when your feeling that you need a "starry night" just KEEP.IT.SIMPLE.STUPID.!!!  If you can do this than you can always make work that can turn into something great its not always the complexity of the subject matter but most of the time just the advanced line making and the attention to little detail.  This will take you a long ways and help you when choices become your burden.  Simple lesson+simple subject matter+great techniques+patience=AMAZING ARTWORK!  I'm not a math major but I'm pretty sure a calculator or TI-83 is not needed for that equation.  I'm just sayin! K.I.S.S.

Lines of confusion

I'm working on this project for a teammate on black paper and the lines that I am making are slowly starting to confuse me.  I can't tell which is which smh!  This is often the dilemma of art itself or my art for that matter.  Often times I have accidents that end up turning out ok or nobody ever notices.  Often times this is what makes or breaks your piece the things that you can't control.  Sometimes its either too late to change what you've put down on your paper or it ends up looking like it is supposed to be there.  Either way it's always what you decide 9 times out of 10 the viewer, your audience isn't going to know one way or the other.  So basically what I am saying is "if you can dodge a wrench you can dodge a ball" hahaha or if you can explain your "accident" you can explain your masterpiece.  I don't know if that made any sense but it made me laugh.  Art is all about what you interpret and what your viewer THINKS he or she can see.  Sometimes just sit back and allow your viewer to come up with their own opinion, if you drew a dragon and he or she sees a bus than shoot its a bus whatever works in the art world.  If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck it must be a moose.  Why? because it's art and I SAY SO! ha

I can draw so can you!

The first step to drawing and art itself is to realize that you can not i repeat can not take yourself too seriously.  If Duchamp can make a toilet art you can make anything art thats all I'm saying.  Drawing is all interpretive whatever you see is art it is not up to someone else's eye shoot its your eye not theirs.  You first have to try to interpret what you see by taking what your looking at and realizing the shapes in the object or sky or landscape or persons face.  Nothing has to be perfect it just has to be yours an idea of shapes can go to a sketch and a sketch to a portrait and a portrait to instant fame.  Not everyone is Picasso but you can definitely find enjoyment and pleasure in your art.  Simple and easy!