Art by Matt Oberdier
How did Lee excel in art school without a background in it? How can you avoid wasting time and procrastinating? And if you’re brand new to art, should you learn to draw first or launch into painting right away? This week, Jake Parker, Lee White, and Will Terry discuss these questions and give you their answers.
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SHOW LINKS
QUESTIONS
Carol asks- What is Lee’s patented pathway to spectacular success? She is asking Lee to retell (she heard it in an earlier episode of the podcast) the story of when he was in art school--the one about how he really pushed himself and listened to feedback.
Lee tells the audience that he entered art school when he was thirty and that up til that point he had never taken an art class. He says that because he was so new to the field and hadn’t picked up any previous habits he was able to really listen and absorb what his teachers were saying.
He really tried to see how the principles taught in his more foundational classes overlapped, using the things he was learning in one class to help him get through another. This combination of techniques helped him learn and develop as an artist.
Jake asks him why 30? What happened in his 20’s that made him drop everything and pursue art school?
Lee answered that he doesn’t really know what started it but, he got enough of a positive response when he was just trying it out that he decided there was something here.
His school was very project-based once you got past the foundations, and Lee’s approach to his art was Marie-Kondo-esque; He would try to direct his art in ways that made him happy.
He would study the responses of his classmates to the pieces that were made for class and try to work out what made a certain piece popular with the other students. His goal was to be near the top of every class he took--in the top 5 of his more general classes and in the top 3 of the classes that were more geared toward what he wanted to do.
(Funnily enough, he never actually took a class on illustrating children’s books.)
His school was a pretty intense place (and it still is). It was for people who knew that art was what they wanted. It was a school that got results--that’s why he went there.
In this section, they also talk about making your work stand out. It not only has to be technically solid art but has to pop and be memorable.
Lee tells a story about how he went to a portfolio drop-off once and saw that all of the portfolio cases were the same black, zippered case, and that made him decide to do something different. He talks about these big glass shadow box cases that he modified to hold a little book of his art (and then he goes and gets them to show to Jake and WIll, so if you’re watching on the youtube channel you’re in for a real treat).
Will also shares a story here about how he used to keep his portfolio pieces in a plastic binder because it was easy to ship. He changed it when someone told him that that isn’t very professional.
Krish asks- is it too dangerous to watch tv for inspiration?
I remember Jake discussing using films and video games as a mode of study and inspiration but I often find myself getting distracted and forgetting that what I’m doing is work and not play? Is there a way I can use films, video games, and tv shows to gain inspiration for story, color schemes, and design or is it just not worth it?
If there’s time, maybe even a comparison of art books to entertainment media would be great.
Jake’s advice for this is to set aside time for each (‘study entertainment’ and ‘fun entertainment’). Keep a notebook and pen around when you’re studying so you can write down thoughts and impressions. And, if you find yourself getting distracted or sucked into whatever you’re watching, write that down too! It’ll help you see what gives a story it’s compellingness or lack thereof.
He compares getting inspiration to breathing. Collecting inspiration is like inhaling and creating is like exhaling. You need to find the balance between the two in order to be productive.
Will throws out that there’s a reason we procrastinate and when you find yourself doing so it’s because you don’t actually want to be doing the work.
He adds that when you’re passionate about something you’ll carve out the time to do it because you’re excited.
Lee agrees with Jake’s advice, saying that we live in a world where distractions are often right next to work. It’s easy to take the path of least resistance because it’s right there, so he advises that you be specific about what you want/need to get done. Your goals will help guide your consumption of media.
Jake adds that you might want to try watching the director’s commentary. It will help you out to know why the director made the choices they did.
He also mentions that if you find yourself getting too distracted to try just using the Art Book to see the character designs and color schemes.
Mike (from the youtube channel) asks- As a beginner, should I attempt to start learning painting skills at the same time or wait until I get to a certain level of proficiency in drawing? If so, what level of drawing should I wait to get to before embarking on learning the fundamentals of painting?
Will asks if you were building a house, would you paint each individual piece of drywall before actually constructing anything? No, you wouldn’t. Painting is fun, he says, but an illustrator needs to learn to draw.
Lee, on the other hand, thinks that because they are different yet complementary skill sets they should be approached simultaneously.
He recommends the book “Drawing With the Broad Side of a Pencil”, calling it a game changer when it comes to drawing and comparing the pencil drawings to watercolor paintings.
Will talks about how when he’s teaching painting, he’ll make his students use a much bigger brush than they would like/feel comfortable with, and they hate it.
He says that you should always try to figure out why a teacher is making you do something that makes you uncomfortable because learning should never be comfortable.
“Learn the thing[s] you [have] to learn to make the thing you love to do the best it can be.” - Jake Parker.
Also, Jake has a second domain name. Now, he can also be found at jakeparkerart.com
Please look into children’sbookpro.com and sign up for/take a look at Lee’s tarot deck project at leewhiteillustration.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.
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