Top Tips: Cartooning for Beginners
At the start of the year I thought, this was going to be a good year for my art career. Obviously, you get out what you put in so I started reflecting on what I had done so far and how I had got to where I am now with regards to my skills, confidence and determination. A lot of people say they can’t draw, but I believe you just have to keep practicing!
I think the innate part about being an artist is the creativity and drive to draw or paint. So, I thought I’d share some of the ways I learnt to draw.
Tip #1:
Draw! Goes without saying really. Don’t worry about what your picture looks like. Just draw stuff. I have a ridiculous amount of rubbish pictures that will not be seeing the light of day. You can draw by hand or learn digital drawing (I advise doing both, as they both have their merits). Drawing helps you build the muscles in your hands to be able to hold a paint brush, chalk, pencil or pen in a steady way. You can do other things to support your arm and hand muscles, get into knitting or crochet, swim, climb, or play with miniature finger skateboards. What ever works for you!
Tip #2:
Don’t compare yourself to others. This is sooo hard to do. It’s great to look at other artists for inspiration and to learn techniques but it can often lead to feeling discouraged if you start comparing your work to theirs. This is not helpful in your journey!
Tip #3:
Study anatomy and start simple. The great thing about cartooning is you can make things a bit weird. But if you want to draw cartoon animals or people you need to learn anatomy. Even if you want to draw surreal art like a lot of mine is, it’s really good to have a basic understanding of bone structure and muscle shapes. Once you have the basics you can then stretch and shrink body parts all you like. Take yourself to life drawing classes and use other references to copy for practice. I used to go to a life drawing class in Sydney that was called Half-life. You had to combine the life drawing with something sci-fi. Was a great idea, if anyone wants to set this up in Bristol, I’d happily come along!
Tip #4:
Observe and analyse everything. Focus on paying attention to movement, facial expressions and mannerisms. This really helps with character design whether you want to draw robots, monsters, animals or people.
Tip #5:
Experiment with different styles. You’ll find one you like eventually. You might want to try black-and-white line work, full-flown oil paintings, watercolour or something else. Don’t feel it is a waste of time if you don’t get on with a medium. It’s all part of the process for you to enjoy!
Feel free to follow me on social media and email me with any questions you may have in your journey!
Email: victoria.anderson.art@gmail.com
