Learning to draw

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I'm a programmer. I write programs. I also used to be pretty good at maths. And not bad at physics. Basically, I'm a scientist.
While I did some drawing when I was little, I was never really good at it. I also didn't practice it much, most of my artistic endeavors consisting of playing the piano.

On the other hand, I like seeing and watching things. I love cartoons (well, good cartoons). I was never a great fan of comics, but after discovering web comics, and especially in the last year or two, I started liking them more and more. I think they provide a ~~great~~ marvelous way to make a joke, comment on a situation, or deliver a message. In some cases even take the readers through a long and captivating story. And some of those comics are pretty damn nicely drawn! If only I could draw like that... if only... but how can I learn?

Convinced that just trying on my own won't get me very far, I decided that I needed somebody to help me. But who can I find? Well, incidentally, my wife happens to be a Visual Arts teacher :) And if that didn't give it away, she can draw and paint really well. So I started bugging her about it, but we never quite found time to spend on it...

...until today, when we had a discussion, and concluded that I could actually do pretty well if I just practice (a lot) on my own, but she can also comment on my scribbles. And that I should start drawing something simple, or copying things that I like and want to draw. Well, that was pretty much a no-brainer - I decided to copy some cartoon characters for now :) And I'm going to publish my drawings, partly to follow my own progress, and partly to inspire others (in case I actually manage to improve)

About that last bit, I stumbled upon a picture that gave me a boost:

Right now I think I can draw like the left side. If that guy was able to make that kind of progress, then maybe there's a chance for me too. I just hope it won't really take 17 years :)

Without further ado, here are my drawings. I'm still waiting for somebody to recognize any of the characters I drew...

3. The master	22 Jun 2009
2. Two other characters	09 May 2009
1. A couple of characters	02 May 2009

James	P.S. ...	16 May 2009
	Oh and the drawings you've posted thus far are great, if you're happy with them then don't change a thing... but one thing I've got stuck in my head since I started trying to learn to draw is that our brains are wired to see faces, so when we look at someone we hardly pay attention to the rest of their heads. Eyes fall only about halfway in the head so theres a whole lot more skull there than we realize until we try to draw it and can't figure out why things look so awful (again there's nothing wrong with what you've drawn, the way you're doing it works fine for the style you're persuing, but if you've ever seen any of my feeble attempts.......). Albeit, you know all this already I'm certain, but if nothing else it might be a little help to others just getting started as well. Cheers, best of luck, and keep up the great work! pps: The reason I mention this at all is because when I started taking that into account, my ability to draw went from a 2nd grade level to something that almost approaches a beginning art student immediately. That's saying alot! Oh, and I'm not at all saying your art is on a 2nd grade level, far from it... oh man I'm really digging this hole deep, I think I'm just going to leave it as "constructive criticism for those interested, but I assume you already know it and reject it based on the style you're persuing". It's the one tip that's helped me more than anything else so I thought I'd share it regardless. Cheers
	Reply

James	Some potential help?...	16 May 2009
	I must say, sir, that I am in almost exactly the same boat, except for the being married to an art teacher part anyway. I'm certainly no artist myself but something that may be of assistance to you, being a logical person such as myself, is the book "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain". It explains things in simple, logical steps that are imminently pertinent and readily understandable by those of us lacking artistic skills but wishing to gain them. Best of luck, and keep us posted on your progress!
	Reply


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Learning to draw

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