When I started drawing daily I noticed so many positive changes within myself. I found that my concentration was better, Drawing helped process my feelings and emotions and I was more cheerful. When I started to draw more regular I also started to improve.
The first few weeks the leaps where significant, then it slowed down a little. That happens when you learn a new skill. When you learn Spanish for example, your first few worlds open up a world of communitcation possibilities, but when you reach the point where you speak proficient, every new world you learn is only a small addition to your vocabulary.
It works the same when you learn how to draw. When you first start practicing every new skill you learn is a huge leap and after a while the leaps become smaller. It that stage it's important not to get discouraged, growth is still happening!
I big tip is to focus on the joy of drawing rather than the final result.
In this blog I share my tips on how to get started. If you want to get better at drawing and looking for a creative community in which to do so, consider checking out my Creative Community Membership. We draw and paint together every week and it is a fun, inclusive and global creative place to be!
Unlocking Your Creative Potential: Daily Drawing Exercises for Beginners
Get ready to dive into an exciting adventure of artistic exploration and self-expression! Daily drawing exercises are here to provide beginners with a thrilling and easy way to enhance their drawing abilities, boost confidence, and unlock their creative genius! This guide is packed with a range of engaging and powerful drawing exercises to kickstart your artistic journey. Let's unleash your creativity together!
1. Warm-Up Exercises:
Start each drawing session with a series of warm-up exercises to loosen up your hand and prepare your mind for creative exploration. These exercises can include doodling, scribbling, and making random marks on the page to free up your imagination and overcome any initial resistance or self-doubt.
why: Drawing is like sports, you need to warm up! Really! Even professional artists need to warm up before diving into their master pieces!
2. Contour Drawing:
Practice contour drawing by carefully observing the outline or contour of an object and drawing it slowly and deliberately without lifting your pencil from the paper. Focus on capturing the curves, angles, and proportions of the object with accuracy and precision. Contour drawing helps improve hand-eye coordination, observational skills, and spatial awareness.
Why: Contour drawing helps with your hand eye coordination
3. Gesture Drawing:
Gesture drawing involves capturing the essence and movement of a subject in a quick and spontaneous manner. Set a timer for 1-2 minutes and sketch the basic gesture or action of a figure or object using loose, fluid lines. Gesture drawing encourages you to work quickly and intuitively, focusing on capturing the energy and dynamism of your subject rather than getting caught up in details.
Why: This is perfect to let go of perfectionism and build a habit of drawing lots! when you start it's all about quantity not quality!
4. Shape and Form Studies:
Explore the fundamental elements of shape and form through simple still life studies. Arrange objects with distinct shapes, such as fruit, household items, or geometric objects, and sketch them from different angles and perspectives. Pay attention to the relationships between positive and negative space, light and shadow, and volume and depth as you render the forms on paper.
Why: Every drawing is build up out of basic shapes, the more you practice this the easier it will be to tackle more complicated subjects later!
5. Value Studies:
Experiment with value by creating simple grayscale studies of objects or scenes. Use a range of pencil grades or charcoal to explore the full spectrum of light and shadow, from highlights to mid-tones to shadows. Practice observing and replicating the subtle variations in value to create a sense of three-dimensionality and depth in your drawings.
Why: The values of a picture are more important for creating realism than the colour you use. Really! When you change the colour of a photo you can still see what the subject is clearly but when you change the values you can change the shapes we see. (as we do in contouring in make-up)
6. Texture Exploration:
Explore different textures and surfaces by sketching a variety of objects with distinct textures, such as fabric, wood, glass, or foliage. Pay attention to the unique patterns, lines, and shapes that define each texture, and experiment with different mark-making techniques to capture them convincingly on paper. Texture exploration adds visual interest and realism to your drawings, enhancing their tactile quality and sensory appeal.
why: This is super fun to do and adds a lot of extra details to your drawings!
7. Negative Space Drawing:
Focus on the spaces between objects rather than the objects themselves in negative space drawing exercises. Use the shapes and forms of the negative space to guide your drawing, paying close attention to the relationships and proportions between the negative and positive spaces. Negative space drawing trains your eye to see shapes and compositions more accurately, leading to more dynamic and balanced drawings.
Why: Negative paces are just as important as the actual shapes. It helps you sketch accurately.
8. Continuous Line Drawing:
Try your hand at continuous line drawing by drawing your subject without lifting your pencil from the paper. This exercise encourages you to observe your subject closely and commit to your lines with confidence and fluidity. Continuous line drawing promotes spontaneity, expressiveness, and a sense of immediacy in your artwork.
Why: This is a great hand-eye coordination practice, its quick and fun to do and it's ok to be a little messy.
9. Still Life Studies:
Set up simple still life arrangements of objects with varying shapes, sizes, and textures, and sketch them from life. Experiment with different lighting conditions and viewpoints to create dramatic compositions and evoke mood and atmosphere in your drawings. Still life studies provide valuable practice in observation, composition, and rendering, laying the foundation for more complex artworks.
Why: Still lives are such a classic tool for learning drawing skills, especially from life! Pick objects that catch your interest and play!
10. Reflection and Review:
Take time to reflect on your daily drawing exercises and review your progress regularly. Keep a sketchbook or journal to document your thoughts, observations, and discoveries along the way. Celebrate your successes and learn from your mistakes, using each drawing as an opportunity for growth and improvement. By embracing the process of daily drawing, you'll unlock your creative potential and embark on a rewarding journey of self-discovery and artistic expression.