The Most Common Art Mistakes
Art by Analise Black
Jake Parker, Lee White, and Will Terry unpack their checklist for self-critiquing and discuss the new How to Fix Your Art course.
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SHOW LINKS
How to Fix Your Art Course
Choosing Color for Storytelling Course
How to Fix Your Art Livestream
KEY TAKEAWAYS
As an illustrator, you’re not a camera; you’re a set designer. Rather than trying to include every possible detail, ask yourself which four details provide the most essential information to the viewer. Cut out as much as you can.
Even if your art isn’t perfect, being able to tell a good story visually can save you.
The more artists you study, the broader your visual vocabulary becomes. Enjoy a comprehensive sampling of artists so you’ll be equipped to solve a wide variety of visual and storytelling issues.
How to Fix Your Art began as a free, live-streamed critique session in which Jake Parker, Lee White, and Will Terry taught viewers to think like pros as they “fixed” student-submitted art. (This series still runs live on the third Thursday of every month; enter your work and learn more here.) Now, Jake, Will, and Lee have combined years of teaching with their own professional experiences in the stand-alone course, How to Fix Your Art. This course is not part of the SVSLearn subscription and includes a 200+ page PDF book, video lessons, and a checklist for evaluating your work. It’s aimed at intermediate artists who are looking to take their work to the next level.
The checklist enables you to measure the success of your images. It covers eight categories and teaches common mistakes and solutions. Let’s take a look at each category and a few common pitfalls and things to keep in mind.
Storytelling
If a verbal description of your image sounds boring, the image probably is. Avoid clichés and focus on telling a great story with your work. Storytelling skills might even be more important than artistic ability.
Character Design
Characters need to be designed, not merely drawn. Make sure your character’s shapes, gesture, and pose are cohesive with the rest of your image.
Err on the side of being too dramatic in your gestures; exaggeration is better than understating.
Perspective
Lower the point of view and learn to show distance with color saturation and size; you don’t always need a vanishing point to convey depth.
Composition
Follow the rule of thirds. Sure, you’re an artist and can do whatever you want, but the human eye is naturally more pleased by thirds than by an illustration split in halves.
Drawing
Avoid insecurely chicken-scratching or outlining too boldly; be aware of your mark-making and aim for longer, looser lines.
Save the details for the end, after all of your composition is blocked in.
Value, Light, Shadow
Avoid adding too many highlights.
Remember that local color affects the value of your subject. Start with local color and add light and shadow effects on top.
Color
Choose your colors strategically. Harmonize all of the colors in your image, and don’t use too many different shades in one image!
Rendering
Avoid over-rendering and over-thinking. Rendering can turn complicated subjects (such as hair or running water) into simple ones.
Want more help fixing your art? Check out the How to Fix Your Art class at SVSLearn.com!
LINKS
Jake Parker: mrjakeparker.com. Instagram: @jakeparker, Youtube: JakeParker44
Will Terry: willterry.com. Instagram: @willterryart, Youtube: WillTerryArt
Lee White: leewhiteillustration.com. Instagram: @leewhiteillo
Daniel Tu: danieltu.co.
Lily Camille Howell: lilycamille.com
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