# Can you "learn" to enjoy drawing?



## Shiroka (Jun 18, 2012)

I know it will sound silly, but I'd like to be able to like drawing. Because I don't exactly do. While many of you will go "just find another hobby", I don't want to give up that easily. There's so much potential and opportunities that come with being an artist, just for instance, being able to make your own illustrations for your projects (I make a living developing online games so that would definitely come in handy), or simply concretely externalize your emotions through mere lines on paper and sharing it with the world. This sounds like an awesome hobby, and I want to pick it up for real!

So then, why don't I actually _want _to draw? There's always something else I'd rather do, such as playing video games, which is admittedly way less constructive, but that's just reiterating the problem. I also rarely have any paper or pens handy, but that's easy to fix. I suppose my main problem is that drawing is, at my current state, a very time consuming and frustrating job to do, and it's a real pain to see how bad I suck at it. A simple pose can take hours to look even decently good and by that time, I lost all will to keep it up. Should I just learn to enjoy sucking at drawing? How can that be achieved to begin with anyway? I see some people who draw like they're eight years old, but they never give up. I really wish I had that kind of motivation.

Also, I suffer from chronic depression. That probably doesn't help get me in the mood. But that can't just be it.

TL;DR: I want to draw, but I don't want to draw. The fuck do I do?!


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## Thaily (Jun 18, 2012)

If you don't feel like drawing, draw anyway.
As for your depression, exercise might help you feel better, and when you feel better you'll automatically feel like doing things and enjoy them more.


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## Arshes Nei (Jun 18, 2012)

If you have chronic depression, yes it can very well affect your attitude towards drawing. You may want to take care of that, because it's an additional problem on top of feeling already frustrated if your drawings don't come out right. 

I'd also recommend reading the book Art & Fear. http://www.amazon.com/Art-Fear-Observations-Rewards-Artmaking/dp/0961454733 along with reading Loomis's fireside chats in his books (instead of just copying the pictures).

Yes drawing can take time, but that's something you can learn to enjoy. I've had pulled all nighters on drawings before because I didn't even think about the time. I've also learned to take breaks because of certain RSI injuries that can occur. 

Most artists aren't dreaming of making art they dream of art they haven't made yet. - Makes sense after reading Art & Fear. We're thinking about how we made this piece, get this vision in our minds how everyone reacts and so forth. 

Basically you kinda have to fall in love with the process of making art and not the end result. The latter is the love of the idea of being an artist - the former is actually well...being one. Like you can dream of being an NBA player, but actual NBA players still have to practice so they do what it takes to be one.

http://www.marcscheff.com/the-truth-about-art-part-1-it-just-takes-time

http://www.marcscheff.com/the-truth-about-artpart-2-how-to-make-one-great-painting


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## m0rla (Jun 18, 2012)

As said... you need to practice. And it won't always be satisfying. 
BUT you need to get rid of constant negative thoughts. Be happy about every little step you're taking forward.
And if you feel like drawing but don't er... maybe do some chaotic warm ups. Do LOTS of scribble lines, straight lines, circles. 
Specially circles. None of this has to look neat. It's just to help you step into the next level: Concentration.

And if you need time for simple poses, it is so. Maybe work on those. Repetition. 
It really helps. Grab your weak points and work on them by doing this.

stuff i find very constructive and inspirational
http://www.ctrlpaint.com/archive/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtNSjNGx8GA&feature=plcp
http://imaginism.deviantart.com/journal/
http://www.noahbradley.com/blog/2012/love-the-process/


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## Judge Spear (Jun 18, 2012)

Arshes Nei said:


> I've also learned to take breaks because of certain RSI injuries that can occur.



I think I need to stop then... Lately, I've been pulling 8 hour nightly drawing sessions usually 4-6 days straight trying to finish at least one piece a week. As a result, I now get this tightening in the back of my neck and a sharp crack occurs when I finally get up from my desk. ^-^;
Strangely, it never happens no matter how long I play video games or take part in other activities of a sedentary lifestyle. Only drawing


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## Zydala (Jun 18, 2012)

http://www.ctrlpaint.com/home/2012/5/1/the-drawing-habit.html

http://www.ctrlpaint.com/home/2012/2/2/making-progress.html

Draw everyday. Make it a part of your routine, and it'll be engrained enough in you that you'll find you miss it a lot. I suffer from 'not wanting to draw' a lot too, but I find I always sort of float back to it, there's an itch I wanna scratch, despite my frustrations. If it's something you ACTUALLY wanna do, find the time and make yourself. If it gives you too much heartache, then find something else that's engaging and works your mind creatively. I try not to worry about it so much, personally.


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## Arshes Nei (Jun 18, 2012)

Pachi-O said:


> I think I need to stop then... Lately, I've been pulling 8 hour nightly drawing sessions usually 4-6 days straight trying to finish at least one piece a week. As a result, I now get this tightening in the back of my neck and a sharp crack occurs when I finally get up from my desk. ^-^;
> Strangely, it never happens no matter how long I play video games or take part in other activities of a sedentary lifestyle. Only drawing



http://enliighten.com/blog/category/rsi-2/ Might be useful.


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## I Am That Is (Jun 18, 2012)

I feel your pain, as I to really want to get into drawing, yet I dont really enjoy it. I try and draw at any time I dont have something more important/relevant to do. I think I have improved, but its honestly hard to tell. All my family are great artists, and I am the only one that doesnt have that natural talent. Just draw I guess, and dont limit yourself to one topic or subject. Draw anything and everything, and try to make them bigger rather than small doodles. I find it easier to be accurate that way.

Good luck.


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## FireFeathers (Jun 19, 2012)

It's not something your born with, everyone here struggled with getting off the ground, or producing something we're happy with. If you have the resolve to draw anyways and try to get past it, then good. But maybe drawing just isn't your thing. For something comparable, if I could produce comics, then i could market them and probably do okay. But I can't do comics. The way of VERY SLOWLY telling a story is like pulling teeth for me, so while that skill would be awesome to have, It's not going to happen. So i'll have to take that into account and skirt around it if I still want to tell a story, just in a different way.   If you want to do art, drawing might not be your medium. Explore other options, maybe something else will stick more. There's more then one way to get your emotions and feelings out


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## MythRat (Jun 22, 2012)

Step 1. Take care of that depression somehow (exercise, clean house, something else constructive that makes you work physically). I have ongoing depression issues myself, those will bog you down more than anything else so do what you can to get that as squared away as possible with what means you have available be it back yard work outs or prescription meds, whatever you need that will work for you. Figure it out, do it, keep doing it, keep your depression in check.

Step 2. Draw every day whether you feel like it or not. Don't worry about how good or bad it is; there are and always will be a hundred thousand people that are both better and worse than you, no matter how good you get. If you draw a lot, you will automatically improve, trying to improve on purpose by reading tutorials, how-tos, and taking classes makes that process go even faster but it will happen whether you make it happen or not. Draw every day for a month or two or six and then look at your latest drawing as compared to your earliest; the improvement may be small but I guarantee you will see some progress.

Step 3. Repeat step 2 ad infinitum.

Step 4. Start seeing drastic improvements and really start enjoying the work you turn out which will encourage you to do more and enjoy the process as well as the outcome.

Pro tip:
*Only compare your art to you own previous work*
There will always be a bazillion artists better than you no matter how good you get, however, art is not really a pursuit that has any kind of end goal. One does not become an artist in order to be "the best artist ever of all time" but rather to achieve a level of skill and a style that the artist finds pleasing personally. This is something that will always change and evolve as you do so you never really reach a point where you're "done" but you will keep seeing improvements in comparison to your previous art that fills your 'feeling successful' meter quite nicely.
I have artists that I admire but that doesn't mean I compare my art to theirs and don't consider myself "good" until I reach their level, that's not going to happen. So it's generally good to have artist to look up to for things like style or technique but when assessing quality, only compare against yuor own work because that's the only steady benchmark you've got.
You're always going to start at "Oh god my eyes, the goggles they do nothing!" but you get better as long as you keep drawing consistantly. After several years, you'll probably get to a point where you hit the "omg, looking at this is like having pure joy injected into my brain" stage and after that, the improvements are small and usually more intentional but you'll still keep changing and improving.

In short, art can be a long-suffering and at times tedious pursuit but it ends up being totally freaking worth it as long as you keep at it.


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## Shiroka (Jun 24, 2012)

MythRat said:


> One does not become an artist in order to be "the best artist ever of all time" but rather to achieve a level of skill and a style that the artist finds pleasing personally. This is something that will always change and evolve as you do so you never really reach a point where you're "done" but you will keep seeing improvements in comparison to your previous art that fills your 'feeling successful' meter quite nicely.



Amen to that. There are so many people who downright rage when you tell them that you don't care about improvement as much as getting to a level where you like what you draw, that it makes it hard to live by this quote... especially if you're not that great but still have a large fan base.

I'll definitely have to work on that depression thing though, drawing or not. This affects my professional and love life as well so that's no trivial matter. I'll try to get my hands on that "Art & Fear" book, too. This might help me enjoy my skills rather than bring me down for it. Thanks for the tips by the way!


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## Fallowfox (Jun 24, 2012)

On the contrary to some people here I'm going to say wanting to draw _is_ something you're born with, that we're all born with, the fascination of putting lines on paper and walls is something every single child who can appreciates. [which is why my art teachers have repeatedly said never to put 'I liked to draw since I was a kid' on your application statements] I'm sure this was the case with you as well- it's innate.

It's a task of discovering that again, in the words of picasso 'it took me a few years to learn to paint like the masters but a life time to learn to paint like a child,'. 

If you don't expect an immediate masterpiece, you might find that infantile fascination with drawing.


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## FubidoKlaws (Jun 25, 2012)

I'm not so sure about learning, but I'm sure you can acquire a liking for it.
Kind of like me doing 8-bit drawings and realizing how much fun I was having. =p


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## GaFruff (Jul 10, 2012)

You can learn to get better at drawing which makes it more enjoyable. Every piece is a serious challenge.. there are times when I just feel like banging my head on the table and giving up and there are times when things are actually turning out the way I imagine them. It's always stressful but in the end I can do something (create scenes from imagination with a degree of accuracy) that not very many people can do. The process can be fun and it can be painful. But it never gets as painful as giving up.


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## Harbinger (Jul 17, 2012)

TBH i started to hate drawing when everything i drew looked like a pile of crap. But i stuck through it as much as i hated it, then i started to get better and i felt happy about it, and now i enjoy it a hell of a lot more.


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