Learning to Observe Before Drawing

My Struggles with Slowing Down

Hello Everyone! 👋

"Observe, Process & Apply" is a concept I recently came across in the book "Figure Drawing for Concept Artists" by Kan Muffic.

And let me tell you, I'm really struggling with it! Slowing down, observing the subject, and then applying what I've seen, it sounds simple enough, right? But for me, it's like trying to rein in a speeding train.

Instead of taking my time, I find myself rushing through, going from observation to application in the blink of an eye. I skip over the big shapes and dive straight into the tiny details, all in one breath.

But here's the thing, my brain doesn't operate like yours might. And I never learned how to hit the brakes. So, slowing down feels like trying to halt a runaway train with a toothpick.

Nevertheless, I'm giving it my all. Because when I rush, that's when everything goes haywire. The strokes end up all wrong, and suddenly, I'm convinced I've forgotten everything I ever knew about drawing.

The key, it seems, is to hit that brake pedal and give myself the time I need to do things right.

Now, I'm not saying every drawing should be treated like a lightning-fast 30-second gesture sketch. Personally, I find even the thought of timed gestures, whether it's 2 minutes or 5, enough to send me into a panic.

No, I'd much rather take as long as it takes. And you know what? It's starting to pay off. Sure, I've got a long road ahead of me, but with each deliberate stroke, I can feel myself getting a little closer to where I want to be.

And you know what else? It's not just about the final result. It's about enjoying the process, embracing the journey of improvement. There's a certain satisfaction in seeing the lines gradually come together, forming something that wasn't there before. It's like watching a masterpiece unfold before your eyes, stroke by stroke. And that, my friends, is what keeps me going, even when the going gets tough.

Megumi Fusiguro Manga page study in Grey paper sketchbook.

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🌻My Art Journey

Apple's event was this week, all about their operating systems and Apple Intelligence. There was so much info flying around that I totally zoned out.
But you know what I did pay attention to? ChatGPT. I've been using it more to clean up my own writing. We'll see if it helps in the long run.

I get that a lot of people are nervous about AI, and I get why. But I'm all for it, as long as it's done right! Someday we'll get there, right?
We'll find out more once it's out in the wild.

Here's the thing, if it can help me with my daily routines and stuff, then sign me up. But I'd never use it to create something from scratch and call it mine. NEVER!

When I use AI, it's always based on my own work, never anyone else's!
Oh, and by the way, it's all opt-in, so no need to freak out about that.

Besides that, I'm super excited about what they're doing with Notes and all the home screen customization! YEAY! 😁

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What else happened this week? Well, I watched the new Digimon movie! And it was AMAZING. After 20 years, I still know the name of every evolution. HAHA! 😜

I also had a meeting with the boss where I live. Mixed feelings. I don't want to talk about it either. Before that meeting, some bad stuff happened! Because of that, I was unable to draw. But once the meeting was over, I created this cool little badge that everyone’s been doing on Substack.

I liked the badge so much that I'm going to clean it up even more and turn it into merch. Haha. I used Procreate for the sketch and Affinity Designer for the vector work.

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I just got a new art book: Anatomy in Motion by 3Dtotal Publishing. I wasn’t planning on getting it right now, but after watching Josh Black’s live stream on the Proko YouTube channel, I felt a surge of inspiration to dive into more anatomy studies.

A video review will come, so keep an eye out! 😊

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