Sometimes, very rarely, I can feel when I’m growing as an artist. Now is one of those times.
It’s showing itself in small ways, like figuring out how blend colours more subtly, and an awareness of the importance of fixing a stray line I would previously have ignored.
This growth has come directly out of illustrating subject matter I haven’t worked with before. I have to be more aware of what it is I’m working with, I can’t create the same kind of image with the same little mistakes. It takes me back to the building blocks of what drawing is about – observation, reference, and really seeing something in order to interpret it freshly. And that fresh material ends up improving how I deal with everything, even things I’ve drawn thousands of times before.
The Otherwalls is presenting me with a new challenge each time I sit down to work on it. From storytelling and pacing to character design and backgrounds, I’m having to think critically about every line and colour and really know that that’s where I want it, and that it’s helping me to say what I want.
It’s a step outside my comfort zone, and it is so awesome.
So! If you’re looking for a way to become more awesome as an artist, I suggest you try drawing something different!