# Art blocks



## Ansitru (Jan 6, 2013)

This thread's topic, as you may have guessed is "art blocks".
More specifically: do you get them and if yes, how do you work your way through them? 

The reason for this thread? I've been trying to finish a sketch I've had lying around for days now and while the pose looks okay-ish, I just can't seem to come up with a decent character-design at all. I've looked at reference-images, looked up specific clothing from several culture in hopes of a spark of creativity, but my brain just keeps going "_pffrrt_".

I do not like this. o n o 

So: do you power through your art blocks and make them go away by sketching all day, even if you're not happy with those sketches?
Or do you stop drawing for a while and hope it goes away? 


Any and all (creative) solutions are definitely worth sharing, seeing as I can't be the only one who gets in a slump every now and then.


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## Avlenna (Jan 6, 2013)

I sometimes just put it aside for a while just to take a break from what I'm doing.  Sometimes it helps, though sometimes it doesn't.  It usually depends on what exactly I'm drawing and what the picture needs.  Sometimes, I start sketching some things on separate sheets of paper until I come up with something good.  I find that if I sketch a bit, the creativity just flows out.


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## Tiamat (Jan 6, 2013)

I do life studies, read my Frazetta books and watch his Painting with Fire documentary.


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## Taralack (Jan 6, 2013)

Depends on my mood. It's either keep truckin' until something finally clicks and it goes away, or do something else for a few days and come back to it with a fresh eye.


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## Ansitru (Jan 6, 2013)

Silvaris said:


> I sometimes just put it aside for a while just to take a break from what I'm doing.  Sometimes it helps, though sometimes it doesn't.  It usually depends on what exactly I'm drawing and what the picture needs.  Sometimes, I start sketching some things on separate sheets of paper until I come up with something good.  I find that if I sketch a bit, the creativity just flows out.



That's what I've been trying, but every character-concept just ends up looking the same with the same face and same hair and same-ish clothing.
Bleh. I'm trying to push out of my comfort-zone, but it just ends up looking bland and same-as-always. .__.



Tiamat said:


> I do life studies, read my Frazetta books and watch his Painting with Fire documentary.



I just looked up this painter and now I really want to get my hands on his books.
His work is fantastic!



Toraneko said:


> Depends on my mood. It's either keep truckin' until something finally clicks and it goes away, or do something else for a few days and come back to it with a fresh eye.



I think I'm currently just going to let it sit for a few days and do some sketches in hopes of nailing a design.
I just wish it'd click as soon as I started sketching, though. D:


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## Arshes Nei (Jan 6, 2013)

I really don't get art blocks. 

Mainly because sometimes work is just meant to be unfinished. The ratio of finished to unfinished sorts itself out eventually but that's why I don't sweat it so much anymore. 
I guess people have too much of an expectation that every piece has to be finished and come out the way he/she wants. It doesn't work that way for a long time - and even as a pro, be prepared to throw away a lot more than you keep. 

There are times though you may not want to work on art, and sometimes it has to do with stress and other issues - it's ok to take a break and take care of those issues.

PS. Read the book Art & Fear.


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## Ansitru (Jan 7, 2013)

Arshes Nei said:


> I really don't get art blocks.
> 
> Mainly because sometimes work is just meant to be unfinished. The ratio of finished to unfinished sorts itself out eventually but that's why I don't sweat it so much anymore.
> I guess people have too much of an expectation that every piece has to be finished and come out the way he/she wants. It doesn't work that way for a long time - and even as a pro, be prepared to throw away a lot more than you keep.
> ...



Hrm, perhaps I should step away from this way of thinking that every piece I make needs to be finished. 
The book looks interesting, too. I'm going to check the art-shop later to see if they may have it there, as the bookshops here don't seem to carry a lot of specific books in English.


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## Eimell (Jan 8, 2013)

I take a break and play games. I've tried doodling when I'm stuck, but it doesn't much help. That or I use my lunch break while I'm at work. For some reason, stress relief drawings usually break me out of whatever slump I'm in.



Arshes Nei said:


> Mainly because sometimes work is just meant to be unfinished. The ratio of finished to unfinished sorts itself out eventually but that's why I don't sweat it so much anymore.
> I guess people have too much of an expectation that every piece has to be finished and come out the way he/she wants. It doesn't work that way for a long time - and even as a pro, be prepared to throw away a lot more than you keep.
> 
> PS. Read the book Art & Fear.


Thank you Arshes for saying this. This makes me feel a lot better about all of the unfinished crap I have lying around and all of the unfinished crap I have tossed out.


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## Aleu (Jan 16, 2013)

Fanart usually helps me get going. A book I enjoy, video game character, etc.


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## Schwimmwagen (Jan 16, 2013)

The biggest problem for me and artblocks is that it feels like I've _forgotten_ how to draw.

But I think the best thing to do to get out of it is to do loads of dumb doodles. Maybe make them funny or silly. Gradually I get back to "how I should be".


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## Nataku (Jan 17, 2013)

I agree with Gibby in that sometimes, some of my art blocks just make me feel like I've forgotten whatever the hell I knew. Oh legs? With feet that have toes attached to them? No you've never drawn those before, just make random crap bubbles on a page because that's all you can really do. >.>;

I generally get through art blocks by moving on to other things. One piece you're working on doesn't seem to want to work out right, or you've hit a wall? Fine. Put it aside and go draw something else. Often times, something vastly different. Was I drawing a bird? Go draw a cat. Was it an anthro? Go draw a quad. Or better yet, bust out a blank canvas and start throwing stuff down to try and make a background. I find that I think differently about how to compose a background/scenescape than I do a character. 
It may never get finished. But that's okay, because by doing it I forced my mind to keep moving and keep doing art, as opposed to just letting the art block win. Because I know if I do that and just stop drawing in frustration, I may not pick up a pencil again for a month or two. And that's even worse. If I keep drawing things though, I will generally go back to the original problem sketch in a day or three and things just tend to click and I can work on it again.

Another thing I do when I can't think of any one specific thing I want to draw is just to do figure/pose sketches. Poses don't always have to have a character to go along with them, but practicing dynamic figures is never a bad thing. Sometimes as I'm drawing it, my brain will just go 'hey, this is perfect for ~insert character here~!' and so then I'll take that figure sketch and redefine it as needed into said character. If nothing strikes me at the moment, no big deal, I just move on to the next figure. In this way I also tend to have created a selection of different poses that I can go back to later when I'm in a rut of wanting to draw a specific character, but don't know what pose to put them in. I can go look back through some of my blank figure sketches, and find one that I think would be suitable for said character.

Bottom line: don't give up and stop drawing. Just go draw something else. Brain gets tired of staring at the same thing all the time. Something new is refreshing.


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## Fallowfox (Jan 17, 2013)

I stop drawing or look at other artists for inspiration. I can easily not draw for a month or more when I'm not feeling up to it. 

I realised a little while ago that my happiness is directly proportional to the frequency of favourites and watches I get, so I think detatching from online worlds for a little while usually relaxes the feeling of stagnation or being expected to produce something.


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## Arshes Nei (Jan 17, 2013)

I find that while sites for posting art can be a boost, it has to be taken in moderation because of issues with self esteem. Artists of course are human and have an emotional attachment to the art they present to the world. However, I feel it is important for the artist to build a relationship with their art on their own. Learning when to let go for example, learning how to continue a piece and other ways of developing inspiration.

The dependence upon the community can be as much as a deterrent as it can be a boost. That's why I stress learning to love to draw on your own vs drawing for others as the primary goal.

Watching youtube videos or listening to podcasts help too. Like Bobby Chiu I listened to for a long time.


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## Tigercougar (Jan 17, 2013)

Arshes Nei said:


> I find that while sites for posting art can be a boost, it has to be taken in moderation because of issues with self esteem. Artists of course are human and have an emotional attachment to the art they present to the world. However, I feel it is important for the artist to build a relationship with their art on their own. Learning when to let go for example, learning how to continue a piece and other ways of developing inspiration.
> 
> The dependence upon the community can be as much as a deterrent as it can be a boost. That's why I stress learning to love to draw on your own vs drawing for others as the primary goal.
> 
> Watching youtube videos or listening to podcasts help too. Like Bobby Chiu I listened to for a long time.



I find that listening to podcasts whilst I'm drawing is a good motivator and actually keeps me focused on the task at hand. Do a Youtube search for 'crimson conversations' and you'll find several extremely funny concept art related podcasts (warning: salty language).


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## Fallowfox (Jan 17, 2013)

Arshes Nei said:


> I find that while sites for posting art can be a boost, it has to be taken in moderation because of issues with self esteem. Artists of course are human and have an emotional attachment to the art they present to the world. However, I feel it is important for the artist to build a relationship with their art on their own. Learning when to let go for example, learning how to continue a piece and other ways of developing inspiration.
> 
> The dependence upon the community can be as much as a deterrent as it can be a boost. That's why I stress learning to love to draw on your own vs drawing for others as the primary goal.
> 
> Watching youtube videos or listening to podcasts help too. Like Bobby Chiu I listened to for a long time.



I go to life drawing classes once a week, I've used up the alotted lessons the college gave me but you can still go voluntarily if there is room in the class, and it's the one lesson I have in which I can produce several drawings and be glad to make mistakes so that I can learn from them.

In the rest of my art course that atmosphere isn't as strong, being polarised between working to specific briefs for illustration projects or trying to be conceptual [one fine art student brought in a heart today to cut up in the art room, should give you an idea of the sense I am using conceptual in], which is a recipe for stagnation because students are working primarily to impress, rather than to develop, because if you make mistakes you fear your grade will suffer. 

Life drawing is the only lesson which is focussed on the craft of drawing alone.


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## drpickelle (Jan 17, 2013)

I get an art block once every year. Usually around New years, when I look back at the years worth of progress and what I've done/how much I progressed. This is usually when the feelings of 'everything is shit' and 'I'm not good' come hurling at me, and I get really down for week or so. I'm coming out of this feeling/block right now, actually.

What I usually do, is stay away from paid work, (if I feel it's not up to snuff/I'm doing poorly, I don't want that to translate into the art). Instead, I mostly do personal stuff, doodles and a lot of sketchbook sketches. Doing fun things, other than art helps too. Been playing a lot of WiiU with the roomies, and going for walks in the snow, late at night when no one else is awake in the city. 

Good luck on your block! Beat it into submission!


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## Schwimmwagen (Jan 17, 2013)

drpickelle said:


> I get an art block once every year. Usually around New years, when I look back at the years worth of progress and what I've done/how much I progressed. This is usually when the feelings of 'everything is shit' and 'I'm not good' come hurling at me, and I get really down for week or so. I'm coming out of this feeling/block right now, actually.



Once a year is pretty lucky, I normally find myself feeling that way every time I try to practise something. In terms of improvement I either go nowhere truly forward, or I just do worse than the last one.


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## AxM (Jan 22, 2013)

I just step away for awhile. Maybe work on something else or just browse for inspiration, which could be anything and in any form. 
Sometimes I truck through it though and those days can either result in amazing art or a potential piece of crap I poured my soul into xD


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## Tigercougar (Jan 22, 2013)

I had a brief block just last night. I was thinking of ideas for what to draw next when I thought of a scenario but initially dismissed it cause I thought it wouldnt attract an audience. I was gonna scrap it and do something I knew would get a lot of favs but well...I didnt find that idea compelling at the moment. So I plowed into my original idea and if the final piece is buried, thats a risk Im willing to accept.


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## Ansitru (Jan 22, 2013)

Tigercougar said:


> I had a brief block just last night. I was thinking of ideas for what to draw next when I thought of a scenario but initially dismissed it cause I thought it wouldnt attract an audience. I was gonna scrap it and do something I knew would get a lot of favs but well...I didnt find that idea compelling at the moment. So I plowed into my original idea and if the final piece is buried, thats a risk Im willing to accept.



Why would you scrap a good idea simply because it may not get many views? 
I could easily draw tits and ass if I wanted to get views, but I'd rather draw what I want to draw.


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## Rheumatism (Jan 22, 2013)

Yes I get art blocks.  I got one right now and it's not going away. >8(


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## lenoirvrai (Jan 28, 2013)

I've never met an artist (of any variety) who does not experience blocks from time to time, and I am no exception. This is how I get through them, as well as some of my own advice. Maybe it will help you. 

1. If I am in a block, and even the thought of drawing/writing/sculpting/whatever sounds unbearable, then I will not force myself to create. For some people, making themselves do _something_ is beneficial, but I am not one of those people. It depends on the individual. I put whatever it is I am working on away for awhile and I don't give myself any grief about it, which brings me to... 

2. Don't beat yourself up about it. Again, this is what works for _me_, and what I would recommend. If you're having a block, then you're having a block. Yeah, they suck, but just know that the block _will_ go away eventually. Just let it be. I've learned that if I don't fight the block, it leaves sooner. If I fight it, then it sticks around longer because I am focused on it the fact that I _have _a block. Do something else until then. My longest block lasted over a year. It happens. 

3. I have noticed that whenever I have an art block, it is comparable to my laptop going non-responsive for a moment while it downloads an important update. My brain is like my laptop. The artsy part of my brain goes non-responsive while it downloads new artsy upgrades that I didn't realize I picked up over time. Once the upgrade is installed, my brain starts working again and it is suddenly better than it was before! Whenever I get an art block, I end up doing something _better _than I did previously. 

4. If I am wanting to continue with the piece regardless of the block, I may skip ahead to a different step in the creation process. If the sketch and inking are already done, and I'm having a hard time working out the colors and designs and whatnot, sometimes I skip to the shadow layer and work on that until I figure something out. Or maybe I'll work on the little details, which I always enjoy, ahead of time. Also, sometimes I find that flipping the image horizontally helps me see the piece from a whole new angle... no pun intended. I also can spot anatomical errors when the image is flipped and fix it. If it is traditional media, then I look at the piece in a mirror to see the image flipped. I always try to see the piece in different ways... again, no pun intended. 

Hope you can gain something from all of that. Good luck!


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