Man, these kinds of videos hit very VERY hard. Recently, I've been going through a lot, which isn't unusual for me who deals with depression and anxiety. I'm doing better, but just the guilt of not doing something I used to ADORE because of medical and other reasons really broke me. Just feeling guilty all the time for not doing it and then being hurt in the end due to outside reasons. Is it really worth all the frustration? No, of course not, it's just that it felt like and obligation that's gonna be judge by everyone and compared to my worth is a person. It hurts (╯︵╰,). Though, since I did graduate this year, I'm gonna try and spent this summer doing personal work and trying to improve at my own pace and , for once, enjoy what I'm doing and explore more stuff than constantly being burnt out by frustration ect. Thank you Michelle, these videos really do bring a big smile on my face, still looking forward for what will come next (◕ᴗ◕✿), take care folks!
Aww 🥺So glad my videos can hit hard in a somewhat helpful way?? LOL. But yeah I really hope you get the time to yourself whether if it's just for yourself or working on art. We live in a world where your career should almost be one with your personality, but no, it's just an extension of it and there's much more to you than just whether or not you chose to do art
Basically her perspective about Art has changed. She found a new reason to do Art. What made her do Art in the beginning no longer serves her TODAY. As for me, when I started drawing as child it was purely to escape my abusive upbringing & school life. Now that I'm no longer in that space that reason no longer serves me ( because I'm not being abused anymore ). Now I'm trying to get better at it as in doing anatomy studies and what not. Never been to an art school so I'm catching up in my thirties. And yes focus on something else if the need is not there, to do art.
I fell out of love with art back when I was in high school. I no longer had the burning desire to draw anymore. Then I took a loooong break and reflected on why I no longer loved art- then I figured out why. Turns out I just hated drawing realistically 😃 The perfectionist in me just hated looking at what I drew after I finished drawing. I saw all the imperfections and I hated myself for not drawing super accurately. And that’s when I figured out that I needed to change my art style and start drawing more simplified like in animation. And then I came across your channel! Your videos completely changed my mindset about art and thanks to you I also figured out that I wanted to go into animation! I changed my art style and I started to experiment with art. Then ultimately I started falling in love with art again. So I cant thank you enough Michelle! Ive been following you for years now and I will always continue supporting you 🥰🥰🥰
This is the comment I needed because I think I’m exactly in that situation but I have so much drawing ideas 😢 it’s like wanting to sneeze but not having the breath to do so 😅
There is something different from your videos and other artists. You talk about the good and the bad. The reality of art and you make it easy and relatable to listen to. Thank you r amazing. 🙂
I love how every piece of art starts rough but in the end it looks great! Trusting the process it's another discouraging thing that I face when working on my own art. I go from I got this ! This looks horrible! to This looks so good!
For me what started my struggle with art was going to college for it to try and make it into a career. I was so dead set on doing that and had so many expectations and high hopes that when the reality of art school and the industry hit, it was very, very hard for me to love it like I used to. It's so difficult to feel that freedom of when you were younger and art was just a hobby that meant so much to you when you're hanging your financially livelihood on it. Naturally a lot of us figured that it would be the perfect thing to pursue as a career--the whole idea of do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life kind of thing--but when you actually go to school for it and then try to make a living out of it, it's not the same AT ALL. In most cases you're following someone else's rules, working based on someone else's wants, and feeling that constant pressure to turn everything you make into something that can be utilized either for your portfolio or needs to please someone/lots of people to be worth making or something you can monetize. And then it's not fun anymore. It's just work. It's just pressure. It's just hanging a million expectations on each thing you create brought on by the real world and need to make a living that were never there during the ol' glory days of drawing up a storm most days in art class and after school or during lunch break. I think part of the issue that causes that vicious cycle within us is feeling like something is wrong when we're not feeling that high every time we sit down to work on something, personal or for work, like we did back when there was nothing riding on it. So it starts to snowball, and it feels like it's become a complete chore or that you want to avoid it because you keep NOT getting the satisfaction you were once so used to getting, and eventually you might accidentally train your mind to see as something to avoid doing to avoid the dissatisfaction and the pressure that's been built around the act of creating art. I know for me it's become this stressful dichotomy where I feel like I still want to make art but I have trouble getting started or going back to finish it if I need to take a break or stop working for the day. That cycle is spinning around either subconsciously or consciously in my mind and it puts up this barrier. I think for anyone else who might read this and feel the same way, it's important to try and let go of the expectation that you're going to love everything you make and/or love the process of creating everything you make. Try to go into it with no expectations and let yourself be in the moment. It can take time and practice to try and break whatever mental strain has been put on making art. I know for myself I'm still working on adjusting my perspective on it. But if it's something that no matter what, you feel like making art still needs to be apart of who you are, then let it be a part of who you are. It doesn't HAVE to define you and it doesn't HAVE to be something you're perfect at. Perfectionism I know is a huge contributor to my own struggles as well and it takes conscious effort to try and work that out of your system. Bit by bit I'm trying to let minor non-deal breaking imperfections or mistakes remain in my work to help break that cycle, because in reality no one else is going to notice the majority of what you might see as mistakes or lower quality. They're not gonna notice that ONE midtone pixel that didn't get erased or that slightly misshapen line you're seeing while you're zoomed in 238% to do detail work. Just you see that. Only you know because you KNOW it's there. But back to what I was saying and the video's message. Art doesn't have to be the only thing that defines you or something that you HAVE to completely utterly always love and always be happy doing for it to be a meaningful and in some cases a financially significant part of your life. Do your best when you must of course, but you can still be an artist if you don't live, breath, eat and sleep art love. Maybe try to think of it as being just another important part of your body, i.e. a hand or your kidney. Both do important things and both are things you need but might also be able to exist without, bu they aren't what makes you entirely you. You've also got a head and lungs, and a bunch of other parts that make up all of you but none of them strictly DEFINE you. You need all these different parts of you to make up you. Maybe you used to love art like nothing else and it was the most important thing to you. Maybe now you have trouble doing it like you used to but you still want to do it and it's still something you need to keep a part of your life even if it's not the same. But maybe you've found you have more fun playing video games or playing an instrument. Well...that's perfectly ok. We change as we grow and experience life and it's hard as hell but being willing to let go of old mindsets is crucial. Is it going to take time to do that? Sure. It can take months, years....but you can apply this to anything that used to give you supreme fulfillment and joy but doesn't anymore yet is something you can't let go of entirely for one reason or another. Let it be a part of you if you want it to be, but don't let it continue to define you or hold so much power over your life and mind that it's making you unhappy to just think about how unhappy you are with BEING unhappy while doing something. It gets messy and nuts. Do art at the pace you want to. Don't try to force yourself to do it too often and then feel bad you don't feel up to it or for not actually doing it. If you only wanna draw once a week, once a month, once a year, so be it! If you have to do it for work, just let it be work and do it for the paycheck. It's ok to just do it for the paycheck. It's important to feed yourself and keep your lights on. This got long but I hope someone else can read this and feel a little better about their own situation. I know I'm still working on it but finding ways to shift my perspective and make art a part of my life again in a way that doesn't cause me so much stress and sadness is important to me and I want to find the reasons that help me do that. So I'll keep looking. You should too.
@@Deeviiouss I happened to find this video again in search of some more guidance for myself. I'm still working through things and want to keep trying. I'm glad my previous comment resonated with you in a way that made you feel understood. It's still hard to remember other people go through the same struggles and even though I mentally know this, it's easy to feel alone. Seeing your comment makes me feel less alone, so thank you too.
I usually have episodes like this where I generally feel quite burned out or tired of drawing after continuously doing so for so long and it's hard to talk about it with other people, especially since there's this sort of expectation for artists to draw all the time because they "love" doing it but I feel like the fact that it's an act and a skill that needs to be constantly honed and can burn someone out or make them feel tired of it is generally overlooked. Even if art is a creative skill, it still is, logically, unbelievably tiring sometimes. It makes me feel guilty that I don't like to draw at these times but the truth is, I just need a long break and that generally works for me. I wish that there wasn't any guilt to it, and I am still very passionate about art but it's difficult sometimes when there's no inspiration or love momentarily at least. I really appreciate your videos and how you talk about these issues that generally don't get talked about and I resonated with this quite a lot, so thank you so much
I love the fact that you are realistic, no sugar coating on "negative" things like falling out of love with youre art, thanks for youre advice, is always so helpful
I've seen a lot of other artist touch on how much art has changed from when you were a kid going into the adult life I think it has to do with the views we had as children Vs now going into adult hood the creativity is still there I think its more well under check I remember drawing over everything in the house coming up 🤣, also yes it's possible to change majors just as long as your not going for the degree they will take the credits in apply it to another major you wanna go into if that's what you want but I'm happy for the decision I chose to take "The only shots in life you miss are the ones you don't take"-Michael Jordan. It's a big world who knows you may cross paths with one of us fellow art subbies one day be safe out there see you nxt vid
Yes so true! Childhood was a magical time, but becomes more nuanced as you become an adult :') It's still there, just different and sometimes annoying X''D But yes hope to eventually see you all some time in the near future when things open up!
I don’t think I’ve ever come across a video so accurate in my life. When you started talking about art is just your career, I realised that is literally what it is, my career path. I kept thinking of it as just a hobby when I’m literally doing it as a degree to go into a career (if that makes sense). I don’t I’ve ever done art for fun though. Yes I love it as a medium for story telling but when ever I come up for a concept and try creating it, the back of my mind says “what is this for”, “it’s not going to get marked”, etc. I know it’s a bad mindset but it’s been so set and stone in my mind that that’s how I see my art now and it’s upsetting really 😭
I have two recommendations that helped me enormously. One is the book Mastery, by George Leonard, and the other is reading up on the neurochemical benefits of doing art (knowing these benefits makes art more exciting). The gist of mastery is that you live in the moment and focus on the process as much or more than the result. Process orientation and repetition are emphasized. He teaches how to love repetition. Anyways, these methods helped me, but I realize they won't work for everyone.
This video came exactly at the right time for me!🥺 Art has been my ”thing” for so long that it’s what everyone knows me for. I used to get really vivid ideas and always find so much joy in putting them on paper. Recently though, I’ve been feeling really disconnected with my work and always have to force myself to make something. I don’t enjoy the process. Despite this, I felt like I *should* choose art as what I study in school for the coming three years, and ever since I made that decision I’ve felt so anxious about drawing and that I have to draw even if I really don’t want to. I was becoming really sad, I felt a sort of panic that I had to make sacrifices to become really good at art….even though the things I had to sacrifice were things I enjoyed much more at the time. I did end up switching subjects just this week (I am lucky that I was able to!!) so I’ll no longer study art. It’s kind of bittersweet since I’ve dedicated the last three years of my life to my craft. I know it doesn’t have to mean it’s the end of my journey as an artist, but I want to be able to study & learn, play loads of sports, pick up my social life again and just live my life a bit differently 🥺
Life is all about balance. I'm 37 I hit a creative block when I was 19 dabbled with drawing till 24, joined the Navy drew a little bit while I was in but really haven't created much till last year when I started school. I'm happy I explored early. I have always loved drawimg and great job at the water color.
I fell into a similar period of artblock where all my whimsy for art was sucked out of me. I'm barely coming out of it after over a year (with some bursts of inspiration in-between) of not drawing at all. For about 2 years I was living with other artists who were a couple of years older than me. There were 3 people in a polycule together. For anonymity's sake I'll refer to them as X, Y, and Z. X and Y were the main instigators because they are in a dependant relationship where they are dedicated to escalating eachother. X has a RUclips channel where he posts Warriors PMVs. His partners were already committed to helping him work on the videos, and I started helping as soon as I moved in. We would bust out a video monthly. I colored frames and backgrounds, was the main lineart editor while I was there, and occasionally made assets. There were plenty of times where I had spent days cramming and colored every panel alone, because someone else needed a break. But whenever I wasn't feeling like working on the projects, his partner would be aggressive towards me and they'd gaslight & intimidate me into feeling like I was lazy. I don't even have the words to explain how irrational and controlling this experience was, as they basically thought they were anime villains and one partner would attack me if I ever dared to defend myself to the other one. More than once Y told me deadass that he didn't care about my problems, because apparently my reasons for not wanting to watch Naruto weren't severe enough by his standards. Because no problem that ANYONE had was ever as valid as the problems that X would have hour long meltdowns over (meltdowns over anything, like screaming & crying because somebody wasn't working on his commission fast enough). Y had said himself he only cares about X's problems and would talk like this to Z too. One day X's younger brother that lived with us came home from having a bad day at work and Y aggressed him and told him he wasn't allowed to have a bad day today, because something had happened to X that day too. He just shut his brother down and that was the end of it. Their combined attitude towards other artists in the Warriors community drained me. I don't even read Warriors but I could analog about every layer of drama from the fandom if you held me at gunpoint and made me. They were incredibly negative and would talk down on how everyone else created art, but X's art was the gold standard and would constantly be compared to this or that person. Something that particularly hurt me was Y saying I had a Tumblr art style, and of course the irony is that Y's art style was the most Tumblr art style of everyone there. I took a lot of things to heart that I have since let go of. While I lived there I tailored my art to meet X's standards of what good art is, as he would offer his unwanted advice constantly. When I finally left this situation and was on my own again, all I could see in my art were influences from X and it made me hate everything I made. Thankfully now I am coming back into my own authentic art style and am letting go of the bad habits I developed so that I could get a crumb of my own validation from them. Before all of this I had my own art account and aspirations for taking my work further, but all these confidences slipped away during this dark period. It has taken about as long as the emotional abuse occured for me to recover from it, Jesus Christ. I would be lying if I said I have totally purged X and Y's voices in my head. Z was mild in comparison and was more just a passive observer and enabler (I was too, I know I should have defended myself a lot more than I did). I have limited resources and support and haven't been able to establish an art career, but I hope to get my shit together eventually. I will never feed into one person's standards of my art above all ever again.
Wow, just WOW! I felt this so much, I've been struggling with this for a long time. When art transforms into your work sometimes you just don't enjoy it as much as you did. I can't thank you enough for always being so real, relatable, and amazing ❤️
Wow, your videos really hit me hard lately! And it’s a good thing because it helps me get through my problem in drawing again. I used to love to draw constantly but over the years of being in college and in finding a career, it broke my heart to not be able to pursue a career I wanted (combined with family pressure) that I no longer drew anything anymore and fell into a personal depression. It felt like my wings were broken and anytime I tried to “fix” it, the pain just became too much to bear. It’s been years but I’m slowly picking up a sketchbook again and drawing again! I’m learning to let go of the past and move forward in my life and from the ones that broke my artist self. Your videos help in motivating me to face my fears in what I have been avoiding drawing for a long time! So thank you Michelle. 🖤
thanks for posting this, it kinda helped me realize why I got to a point I hate the idea of doing art anymore: Used to draw for myself when I was a kid. I loved it! Adored every minute of it, and all because it was fun yes but it also shut my mind off for a little while cause I had something enjoyable to focus on that I didn’t quite need to think about. Shut my thoughts off, (ADHD is ‘fun’) Anyway, I think as I got older, and frankly more lonelier, I used it as a way to get attention and validation, at least online. Now in my late 20s I just don’t find joy in something I’ve loved since I was 7-years old, like it’s just another chore I have to think about. And that breaks my heart because I want to draw but I just don’t care anymore. There’s no drive, no passion; it’s like the well is dried up and I’m not sure what to do with myself now. Here’s to hoping my love for something I’ve been doing 20 years will come back to me 🍀
Art isn't my job but I felt like I needed a break from it at one point. Everything art related I hated, so I took a month or 2 of not drawing. It worries me cuz I'm just now thinking about getting an art career. But I started to dive more into hobbies like jewelry, played more games, or just taking care of animals and plants. Thanks for this video.
Man I love how real you get in some of these videos instead of making me question if I enjoyed art it reminds me why I do it and how sometimes it’s ok to take a break for awhile heck recently I took a 2 week break and throughout that break I had the urge to draw but I kept on pushing it back because I got to relax and take a break but now I’m back to it with lots of ideas and motivation Thanks, Michelle Much love Baku!
How do you distinguish if something is just a hobby and more of personal thing versus an actual job? I feel like I need to take a break to try different things and meet new people. This video helped me feel less guilty about doubting art. I think for everyone through this rough period to watch blue period. It’s an anime that is about the artistic journey.
Actually, watercolour is all about strategy and extremely good hand eye control, because there are no redos. It’s also very fast and time sensitive, aka drying time. If you use cotton paper, which is by the way a luxury item, it’s super absorbant so every stroke needs to be laden with intent. I find that planning my composition in values before I start the painting and working out any issue that may come in my sketchbook so that the final result is just perfect.
Thank you for making this video, since I graduated in animation a few months ago I felt really burnt out, and just kinda lost my passion for drawing, which is a little worrying when you’ve spent the last years of your life working really hard to make it your career, glad to know I’m not the only one
I also feel like I just want to be able to draw and animate to use as a tool to further a creative ambition. And I have also been lacking in drive to draw... But for me, personally, the reason for that is not necessarily a dispassion for it, I just find myself wanting to prioritize writing right now. I mean, ya gotta write a story to be able to draw it in the first place, right? But I also find myself starting so many minor drawing-based projects that I never really follow up on... But they're there if I ever wanna do them, I guess. I've just been mainly writing, and I'm extremely out of practice with drawing now lol...
Thank you for this video. I relate to this so much. I’ve basically dedicated my whole self worth on art because I really don’t have anything else that drives me. but I’ve been really losing passion for it in the past few months. I feel like I’m at a skill level im satisfied with and now that I don’t have that intense drive to improve its like I have no idea what to do with myself 😕 guess I’ll see how things work out
For me, I love the idea of creating something but I get too overwhelmed when it comes to the actual creating. I really can't tell if it's some sort of art block or if I'm just lazy lol
Getting out of your comfort zone really forces you to accept that what you’re making isn’t going to be perfect? I don’t know how to put it, it’s hard. For me, that was trying to use pens and sharpies in my sketchbook and finding that you make it look a LOT easier than it is! I always found my comfort zone in light colors that need to be built up or in having the ability to erase, it was a useful, and terrifying, excursion for sure. 🥲 I hated it the entire way through, it’s like multiple blown veins in the hospital and I kind of realized that I didn’t like what I was doing? But I took a break for several days and came back to it when I needed to do it, and it helped to recalibrate. You gotta take a break after a workout, it probably applies here, too.
This makes me feel a whole lot better - I think I’m at the end of my 3 or so month break from art, I’ve been raising chickens in the meantime! I’m really enjoying being in the garden and building stuff and it’s been really helpful towards my outlook on art and just my life in general
Ha, that's me the whole time I was in architecture school before we used CAD softwares. Drawing buildings and landscapes and painting them with watercolor. Ha ha. Now it's okay
Thank you for talking about how you fell out of the act of drawing. I feel like I’ve been going through something similar for a long time. Somehow inbetween starting art and now, I’ve become really good at drawing and painting and rendering but I just find the process of making illustrations (researching, composing, iterating, layout, lay in paint, render) exhausting. What I really loved about art as a kid was the stories it told, not the art itself. Even though I still love pretty art, I think I’d prefer to go into storyboarding instead. Again thanks for talking about your own relationship to art and the difference between loving drawing and loving communication.
Watercolor is very hard to work with if you are not patient 😅 you can layer but you have to wait till it's completely dry or it becomes muddy 😅 I feel how you feel about watercolor with oil paints 😅
Thank you - I needed to hear this and it is like this video came in at the right time. While the Disney veteran was your validation, you are mine 😊 I am currently in the midst of just not feeling like drawing so am trying to use that time to explore other things I've always wanted to. For me it is tricky because I work full time (in vfx so a similar field, but on the tech side) so my art time is my spare time after work and sometimes I cannot find the motivation to draw or that I need to use this time effectively and make something super profound (which also discourages me cus of the pressure I put on myself!). Also, art is such an inherently isolating pursuit since we spend hours sat alone drawing - its such a drastic choice we have to make: sit and draw or go out and experience life and see friends. A balance I am constantly grappling with 😅
I get engrossed in my art, and for the most part I end up liking what I've produced however it is not a hobby or a pass time for me which is confusing.
I think i've waited months to see a video talking about this topic, so thank you very much for sharing this messegge with us 💟 I haven't been drawing for just myself in 4 months now i believe and in the past always chose art schools because i wanted to be a cartoonist/comic artist one day but after joining a Fine art academy i understood i don't really like drawing that much...it's a bit sad for me because i'm currently drawing a comic for my degree's final project but i'm thinking about persuing another career. Art has always been a part of my life but maybe now that i'm growing up (i'm 24 y.o) i might need different things to do and keep drawing just as an hobby (even tho i i used to beat up myself a lot when i get art blocks in the past) but this time i don't really feel the urge to draw at all! I want to find something new 💟 my parents still think that my career should be art so i'm kinda scared to let them down (mainly because i have no plan B at the moment lol)
this video really helped me, it saddens me how much im struggling because it feels like i cant draw, im 17 years old and i dont have many skills besides creating and sharing art online, i spent my summer break not drawing when i promised myself i would practice and draw as much as i can (as i did last summer), but i couldn't. this made me feel guilty for not drawing like i was disappointing everyone, i guess i'll just try to wait a bit more, :,)
i adore your videos so much. its all so genuine and so you, it has helped me out of countless art ruts that seemed to be unresolveable rock bottoms, just getting to know someone else's perspective on the subject. looking forward to more of your stuff!!!
I also had a major art block and hate for art beginning of 2018. I started getting more followers on instagram and felt pressure to make perfect art. It brought me so much anxiety and fear that I hated art. I stopped drawing, except for a few drawings here and there, and only started to pick back up due to quarantine boredom. I am happy to say that I AM enjoying art again and am seeing improvement despite not drawing for 2-3 years! I would say take a break (maybe not as long as me) and definitely it will be more fun. And stop putting so much pressure on yourself to make great art. Enjoy the process .
Your page came out great! I’m no watercolor expert but one thing that helped me improve was doing it layer by layer and letting the previous layer dry completely before adding shading/ other details. It helps “control” the medium in a way. I’ve only completed one year of architecture school so far so take what I said with a grain of salt! I loved this video!
I'm in a very bad place mentally right now(stress,family problems etc.) and I bought some Art supplies..now I sit infront of my watercolorbook and I have a huge artblock and I don't enjoy it anymore but I wish I could😞
Hi! I'm so identified with this message! Basically you have described what's going on with me lately about art. It's not that I hate it, but I don't love it as I used to think I did, or in another way to say it: it's less exciting regards certain topics. Or maybe I don't have the enough motivation to pursue an art career fully (translation: working for somebody else). I'm trying to start again with the focus on my own projects, but definitely I'm getting less interested in others's opinions (critiques involved) and more interested in having fun for my own sake! Of course, my eyes have opened to a more varied world (just as you described), and I'm getting less obsessed about art, so I can tell I'm enjoying life more at some degree. I think that's what many people talk about regards finding balance, but well we'll see. Have a beautiful time and lots of blessings to you!
I had a moment where I stopped drawing for about only 2 months to find if there are any other things that interest me. Turns out art is really ingrained into me because after that I was even more motivated and filled out 5 full sketchbooks in about 3 months. I'm happy I found something I truly love but that doesn't mean that I didn't find other hobbies, one I even take as seriously as drawing. And I do agree it's okay to take breaks if you feel you don't have a passion for something as you don't want to be miserable doing something that makes you feel negative
I did something similar to this and now I’m going into mortuary school and working on opening a art business on the side! This is a very useful video and your words are always so meaningful to me 🧡✨
Is it bad if I want to stay still in this field and draw for the rest of my life because 10% I like it and 90% I know I can't do anything else (i tried so many things) and I don't want to live a poor life?
Woof this is too relatable 🥺 The hobby burnout is so real sometimes, for me with cosplay ; ; Thanks for sharing it really does help to talk about it 💕🔥
It is unfortunate bcuz before quarantine happened I was doing great with my art. I was trying to draw things out of my comfort zone and drawing with different mediums but then 2020 happened and everything just went down the drain. It didnt help the fact that I have to drop out of school and my mental health just deteriorated and that really made me unmotivated to do anything at all, and the guilt and perfectionism that kept nagging just made it worst. Right now I still have trouble trying to see drawing or art in a new perspective, I'm trying my best to take care of my mental health so I can little by little, so that maybe I can go back to doing art (even though how I see and feel towards art will never be the same) . This video is very honest and comforting, something I can look back and watch again
I’ve been feeling this lately…. I think part of my problem is really just being so incredibly self critical and literally loathing myself if the smallest sketch doesn’t turn out well. Which I know, it’s ridiculous. I’ve been in therapy trying to work on it but unfortunately it’s so burned into my brain that it’s going to take time to unlearn that. The self loathing used to be separate from my art when I did it as a hobby, but eventually I decided I’d like to make a career out of it, so I started taking it much more seriously with studies and practice and I’m starting a course in September. But the thing is, now it has all that pressure on it and it’s no longer just a hobby, the self loathing has seeped through into my art and now I find it really hard to go a drawing session without beating myself up, and I feel awful for then avoiding drawing or practicing bc “if you wanna do it as a career you gotta practice all the time!!!” So yeah idk. I feel extremely frustrated and lost atm. Sorry for the long rant but if anyone does read this I really appreciate you
Ever since the pandemic happened I’ve been such in a slump with my art, I miss it, it breaks my heart to feel like I’ve lost a passion for it. But I would love to get back into it 🥺 thank you 💖
That was my first watercolor palettes 💕... I don't miss it💀 it was a good for a very beginner but after awhile the pigments started separating , and getting really chalky , and you had to dig at the some of the pans to get any color
I think I might be having a bit of this loss of enjoyment for art as well...I don't create as much anymore and while I still enjoy it, it hasn't really taken me in the direction I was hoping for. I was really hoping that I would one day be an animator and tell great stories too, but everytime I've tried applying for such a career it never pans out. I'm greatly discouraged and starting to give up hope that I'll ever be a part of that community. I don't even know where to go from here career-wise...or if a career is even possible for me in this day and age at all. Sadly, the only thing I am sure of is that my creative side will always remain just a hobby.
I think there are a few things getting in the way here with watercolors for you :D First, your paints are student grade. This is fine for learning, but lower quality paints can sometimes not work as intended/expected due to fillers and pigment quality. An upgrade that is kind of middle ground would be White Nights watercolors. Alternatively, a split primary set of 6 pro watercolor pans in any brand would be much more effective for learning the medium. Next is getting a soft size 6 or 8 round watercolor brush. Synthetic or squirrel blends are perfect (ie Silver Brush black velvet). Water brushes make it hard to control the amount of water you have on your brush / in your paint / on the page. (Having two glasses of water to keep your paints clean and reduce pigment contamination might help too!) and if all else fails, invest in the paper! I know this is a sketchbook practice and this book didn't really like the water -- but the texture of those pages once dry is fantastic anyway. (: That said, 100% Cotton paper will make for excellent results with water soluble paints like watercolor, poster colors & gouache. Anyway! Either way, I think this was an excellent idea to practice with both. This is what sketchbooks are for. And I understand that burn out feeling. I am also a writer/editor and my last job burnt me out of both skills and I felt less inspired. I do return to it because of those reasons you mentioned -- communication is important! Trying new things and reading new material has helped re-inspire. I hope that happens to you for your art. (And your videos do help inspire me, too. I was sketching before I commented. ^^)
Glad to see that I'm not the only one going through the motions like that! This really made me feel better honestly! Also FELT with the journaling tho, like for me, my journal is like a portable therapist lol (Not that I haven't had a therapist, don't get me wrong! Therapy good lol!)
I've been taking a break from my current project, an adult underground anthology graphic novel/'zine. My autism makes me kind of apathetic and I've struggled with creative block since grade school and burnout since college, resulting in abandoned characters and projects. I am making slow progress on my latest projects, which include revised older series and characters.
I really loved the voice over. Why did I never consider that it's OKAY to take a break from art? I've always felt like if I'm not constantly creating then I am a failure. (Watching you watercolor on that sketchbook which is very much not for watercolor was physically painful for me though 🤣)
It was so interesting hearing your experience with watercolor, as someone who’s favorite medium is watercolor, I can totally understand why you don’t love it LMAO, it can be pretty frustrating
My biggest tip would be to never forget drawing their faces + backgrounds to give more context of the situation, and show you can put characters in a space! If possible try to draw people in motion over still people standing still and smiling! Thank you so much!!
Sad to hear when someone doesn't enjoy doing art anymore. You don't have projects of your own you'd like see created? Do you no longer fantasize about creating new characters places and things?
This is obvious in hindsight but I feel like it's worth mentioning 'cuz this vid/a lot of ppl in the comments seem to think burnout, artblock, and falling out of love with art is something that's just innate with being an artist. like it some sort of internal thing. It's not bc you no longer love art or will never have the same drive as when you were younger. Its just the extreme pressure of having to "measure up" or create "something great" in order to make a living off of it. It's capitalism. The way capitalism pushes the idea that your work determines your value in society is exceptionally draining when you've chosen something you love as a career. Even when it's not a career, all of life's still a rat race when you live in Capitalism. Posting on social media is so exciting when you're younger and doing it for the joy of it, but once it's decided that it's going to be a career- your whole future- and the only thing keeping you out of poverty it's near impossible to find that love and excitement amidst the pressures of producing something you can capitalize on. It even takes the fun out of looking at others' art. subconsciously, I'm always thinking "how can I take this and utilize it?", "is this what ill have to measure up to in the near future to secure a job/ following?", "is this what people like/are making nowadays?". I see a lot of times people stress over the fact that their favorite artist turned out to be years or decades younger; I don't think it's a coincidence every new and exciting artist is usually a teenager. If we all had the resources, time, and freedom that being an adult in a capitalist society strips us of, being productive, excited, and in love with our artwork even as adults would not be the struggle that it is today. It's a lot easier to love your art when it's just a hobby, but we've got to constantly be better in order to make a living. Capitalism kills creativity, so pls don't think you're lacking something or that you'll never get your joy for creating back. the reason taking breaks or finding new hobbies helps is cuz it relieves pressure from the constant need to produce value, to prove you're worth something to society.
I was looking through the comments for something like this. The video touched on what I've been experiencing for the last several years but this definitely hits more home. You're completely right. It's so difficult to feel that freedom of when you were younger and art was just a hobby that meant so much to you. Naturally a lot of us figured that it would be the perfect thing to pursue as a career--the whole idea of do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life kind of thing--but when you actually go to school for it and then try to make a living out of it, it's not the same AT ALL. In most cases you're following someone else's rules, working based on someone else's wants, and feeling that constant pressure to turn everything you make into something that can be utilized either for your portfolio or needs to please someone/lots of people to be worth making or something you can monetize. And then it's not fun anymore. It's just work. It's just pressure. It's just hanging a million expectations on each thing you create brought on by the real world and need to make a living that were never there during the ol' glory days of drawing up a storm most days in art class and after school or during lunch break. So thank you for this comment from a year ago. It's something I've known in a way but seeing it written out helps it feel more tangible.
Are you sure this looks bad? In my experience with watercolors, it looks great! I'm surprised that even that the paper is not for water-type painting tools like watercolors, it turned out really awesome. And taking breaks from art from time to time is a good idea to recharge your creative batteries. Those are the best times to meditate about your artistic life or your own life.
How are you posting about topics just as I'm going through them.. it's been happening a lot lately lol. Also I respect that you can admit you don't enjoy drawing as much anymore, but still have the strength to do it for work and social media.
Ok so here is some real talk- usually the ppl showing up to these are kids to 20s; I'm in my 30s, I'm an offset layout artist very practical career Now something about me is I'm an Aspy/autistic, i do not empathize with people, Im done posting my stuff because people can't do anything for me, I can't tell if they are liars, or if they basicly feel my stuff is bad--- ( noone tells you this but in the art world silence is basicly them saying your bad, but they want to save face and not look mean) point is i feel led on.- where i stand now i have some skill but anyone would if they basicly shut everything out except work and their hobby for 20 years.earlier on i would get fustrated go harder push harder and eventually a pic would pop out that would satisfy this. i'm stuck in a hell where I can't quit because of my Fixational Aspie thing, but literally ground down to nothing. trying to convince myself to QUIT - I just wish people would confess and say how bad I AM because in my heart I feel it
Hey i need help Every time i see domeone elses art i wanna change mine, for example if i see art about characters and adopts, I immediately want to change mine to just making characters, if i see someone making realistic art i immediately want to do realism, if i see someone do bright cartoony art, I immediately want to change it to that Any tips(
so basically once you scrathced that itch of really wanting to draw it goes away forever ? 😟 is that strong desire to draw cuz its fun just a child/teen thing?..
Not drawing is very good advice. Get outside, hike, read, cook, garden! I always tell people that doing other things, is what gives you the inspiration and desire to create art more
I don’t care about art. I find it uninteresting and a waste of my time and energy. Unfortunately, I had art parents and artist grandmother who used to constantly say I should do it. After much gaslighting, I’m glad to never do art and instead learn what I found interesting which is music.
PLEASE DON’T CUSSS! I was watching art videos with my young granddaughters. Your profanity is not only offensive, but a shock. Don’t you have a vocabulary to express yourself without using profanity?
Hi. Remember, RUclips is a platform where creatives can express themselves in the way that they should. I recommend Jazza, a family friendly art RUclipsr.
Man, these kinds of videos hit very VERY hard. Recently, I've been going through a lot, which isn't unusual for me who deals with depression and anxiety. I'm doing better, but just the guilt of not doing something I used to ADORE because of medical and other reasons really broke me. Just feeling guilty all the time for not doing it and then being hurt in the end due to outside reasons. Is it really worth all the frustration? No, of course not, it's just that it felt like and obligation that's gonna be judge by everyone and compared to my worth is a person. It hurts (╯︵╰,). Though, since I did graduate this year, I'm gonna try and spent this summer doing personal work and trying to improve at my own pace and , for once, enjoy what I'm doing and explore more stuff than constantly being burnt out by frustration ect. Thank you Michelle, these videos really do bring a big smile on my face, still looking forward for what will come next (◕ᴗ◕✿), take care folks!
Aww 🥺So glad my videos can hit hard in a somewhat helpful way?? LOL. But yeah I really hope you get the time to yourself whether if it's just for yourself or working on art. We live in a world where your career should almost be one with your personality, but no, it's just an extension of it and there's much more to you than just whether or not you chose to do art
Basically her perspective about Art has changed.
She found a new reason to do Art.
What made her do Art in the beginning no longer serves her TODAY.
As for me, when I started drawing as child it was purely to escape my abusive upbringing & school life.
Now that I'm no longer in that space that reason no longer serves me ( because I'm not being abused anymore ).
Now I'm trying to get better at it as in doing anatomy studies and what not.
Never been to an art school so I'm catching up in my thirties.
And yes focus on something else if the need is not there, to do art.
I fell out of love with art back when I was in high school. I no longer had the burning desire to draw anymore. Then I took a loooong break and reflected on why I no longer loved art- then I figured out why. Turns out I just hated drawing realistically 😃 The perfectionist in me just hated looking at what I drew after I finished drawing. I saw all the imperfections and I hated myself for not drawing super accurately. And that’s when I figured out that I needed to change my art style and start drawing more simplified like in animation. And then I came across your channel! Your videos completely changed my mindset about art and thanks to you I also figured out that I wanted to go into animation! I changed my art style and I started to experiment with art. Then ultimately I started falling in love with art again. So I cant thank you enough Michelle! Ive been following you for years now and I will always continue supporting you 🥰🥰🥰
This is the comment I needed because I think I’m exactly in that situation but I have so much drawing ideas 😢 it’s like wanting to sneeze but not having the breath to do so 😅
There is something different from your videos and other artists. You talk about the good and the bad. The reality of art and you make it easy and relatable to listen to. Thank you r amazing. 🙂
Wow, thank you for saying that! I'm glad my videos can show both sides of the picture in a helpful way!
I love how every piece of art starts rough but in the end it looks great! Trusting the process it's another discouraging thing that I face when working on my own art. I go from I got this ! This looks horrible! to This looks so good!
I know right! I was just like oh god where is this going to okay this is not as terrible as i thought X'D
For me what started my struggle with art was going to college for it to try and make it into a career. I was so dead set on doing that and had so many expectations and high hopes that when the reality of art school and the industry hit, it was very, very hard for me to love it like I used to. It's so difficult to feel that freedom of when you were younger and art was just a hobby that meant so much to you when you're hanging your financially livelihood on it. Naturally a lot of us figured that it would be the perfect thing to pursue as a career--the whole idea of do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life kind of thing--but when you actually go to school for it and then try to make a living out of it, it's not the same AT ALL. In most cases you're following someone else's rules, working based on someone else's wants, and feeling that constant pressure to turn everything you make into something that can be utilized either for your portfolio or needs to please someone/lots of people to be worth making or something you can monetize. And then it's not fun anymore. It's just work. It's just pressure. It's just hanging a million expectations on each thing you create brought on by the real world and need to make a living that were never there during the ol' glory days of drawing up a storm most days in art class and after school or during lunch break.
I think part of the issue that causes that vicious cycle within us is feeling like something is wrong when we're not feeling that high every time we sit down to work on something, personal or for work, like we did back when there was nothing riding on it. So it starts to snowball, and it feels like it's become a complete chore or that you want to avoid it because you keep NOT getting the satisfaction you were once so used to getting, and eventually you might accidentally train your mind to see as something to avoid doing to avoid the dissatisfaction and the pressure that's been built around the act of creating art. I know for me it's become this stressful dichotomy where I feel like I still want to make art but I have trouble getting started or going back to finish it if I need to take a break or stop working for the day. That cycle is spinning around either subconsciously or consciously in my mind and it puts up this barrier.
I think for anyone else who might read this and feel the same way, it's important to try and let go of the expectation that you're going to love everything you make and/or love the process of creating everything you make. Try to go into it with no expectations and let yourself be in the moment. It can take time and practice to try and break whatever mental strain has been put on making art. I know for myself I'm still working on adjusting my perspective on it. But if it's something that no matter what, you feel like making art still needs to be apart of who you are, then let it be a part of who you are. It doesn't HAVE to define you and it doesn't HAVE to be something you're perfect at. Perfectionism I know is a huge contributor to my own struggles as well and it takes conscious effort to try and work that out of your system. Bit by bit I'm trying to let minor non-deal breaking imperfections or mistakes remain in my work to help break that cycle, because in reality no one else is going to notice the majority of what you might see as mistakes or lower quality. They're not gonna notice that ONE midtone pixel that didn't get erased or that slightly misshapen line you're seeing while you're zoomed in 238% to do detail work. Just you see that. Only you know because you KNOW it's there.
But back to what I was saying and the video's message. Art doesn't have to be the only thing that defines you or something that you HAVE to completely utterly always love and always be happy doing for it to be a meaningful and in some cases a financially significant part of your life. Do your best when you must of course, but you can still be an artist if you don't live, breath, eat and sleep art love.
Maybe try to think of it as being just another important part of your body, i.e. a hand or your kidney. Both do important things and both are things you need but might also be able to exist without, bu they aren't what makes you entirely you. You've also got a head and lungs, and a bunch of other parts that make up all of you but none of them strictly DEFINE you. You need all these different parts of you to make up you. Maybe you used to love art like nothing else and it was the most important thing to you. Maybe now you have trouble doing it like you used to but you still want to do it and it's still something you need to keep a part of your life even if it's not the same. But maybe you've found you have more fun playing video games or playing an instrument. Well...that's perfectly ok. We change as we grow and experience life and it's hard as hell but being willing to let go of old mindsets is crucial. Is it going to take time to do that? Sure. It can take months, years....but you can apply this to anything that used to give you supreme fulfillment and joy but doesn't anymore yet is something you can't let go of entirely for one reason or another. Let it be a part of you if you want it to be, but don't let it continue to define you or hold so much power over your life and mind that it's making you unhappy to just think about how unhappy you are with BEING unhappy while doing something. It gets messy and nuts.
Do art at the pace you want to. Don't try to force yourself to do it too often and then feel bad you don't feel up to it or for not actually doing it. If you only wanna draw once a week, once a month, once a year, so be it! If you have to do it for work, just let it be work and do it for the paycheck. It's ok to just do it for the paycheck. It's important to feed yourself and keep your lights on.
This got long but I hope someone else can read this and feel a little better about their own situation. I know I'm still working on it but finding ways to shift my perspective and make art a part of my life again in a way that doesn't cause me so much stress and sadness is important to me and I want to find the reasons that help me do that. So I'll keep looking. You should too.
This is how I'm feeling thank you
@@Deeviiouss I happened to find this video again in search of some more guidance for myself. I'm still working through things and want to keep trying. I'm glad my previous comment resonated with you in a way that made you feel understood. It's still hard to remember other people go through the same struggles and even though I mentally know this, it's easy to feel alone. Seeing your comment makes me feel less alone, so thank you too.
@@Eckertainment ♥️♥️
I usually have episodes like this where I generally feel quite burned out or tired of drawing after continuously doing so for so long and it's hard to talk about it with other people, especially since there's this sort of expectation for artists to draw all the time because they "love" doing it but I feel like the fact that it's an act and a skill that needs to be constantly honed and can burn someone out or make them feel tired of it is generally overlooked. Even if art is a creative skill, it still is, logically, unbelievably tiring sometimes. It makes me feel guilty that I don't like to draw at these times but the truth is, I just need a long break and that generally works for me. I wish that there wasn't any guilt to it, and I am still very passionate about art but it's difficult sometimes when there's no inspiration or love momentarily at least. I really appreciate your videos and how you talk about these issues that generally don't get talked about and I resonated with this quite a lot, so thank you so much
I love the fact that you are realistic, no sugar coating on "negative" things like falling out of love with youre art, thanks for youre advice, is always so helpful
I've seen a lot of other artist touch on how much art has changed from when you were a kid going into the adult life I think it has to do with the views we had as children Vs now going into adult hood the creativity is still there I think its more well under check I remember drawing over everything in the house coming up 🤣, also yes it's possible to change majors just as long as your not going for the degree they will take the credits in apply it to another major you wanna go into if that's what you want but I'm happy for the decision I chose to take "The only shots in life you miss are the ones you don't take"-Michael Jordan.
It's a big world who knows you may cross paths with one of us fellow art subbies one day be safe out there see you nxt vid
Yes so true! Childhood was a magical time, but becomes more nuanced as you become an adult :') It's still there, just different and sometimes annoying X''D But yes hope to eventually see you all some time in the near future when things open up!
I don’t think I’ve ever come across a video so accurate in my life. When you started talking about art is just your career, I realised that is literally what it is, my career path. I kept thinking of it as just a hobby when I’m literally doing it as a degree to go into a career (if that makes sense). I don’t I’ve ever done art for fun though. Yes I love it as a medium for story telling but when ever I come up for a concept and try creating it, the back of my mind says “what is this for”, “it’s not going to get marked”, etc. I know it’s a bad mindset but it’s been so set and stone in my mind that that’s how I see my art now and it’s upsetting really 😭
I have two recommendations that helped me enormously. One is the book Mastery, by George Leonard, and the other is reading up on the neurochemical benefits of doing art (knowing these benefits makes art more exciting).
The gist of mastery is that you live in the moment and focus on the process as much or more than the result. Process orientation and repetition are emphasized. He teaches how to love repetition. Anyways, these methods helped me, but I realize they won't work for everyone.
The last page looks great for going out of your comfort zone! Can't wait for the next completed sketchbook!
Thanks so much! it was truly a challenge! xD
This video came exactly at the right time for me!🥺 Art has been my ”thing” for so long that it’s what everyone knows me for. I used to get really vivid ideas and always find so much joy in putting them on paper. Recently though, I’ve been feeling really disconnected with my work and always have to force myself to make something. I don’t enjoy the process. Despite this, I felt like I *should* choose art as what I study in school for the coming three years, and ever since I made that decision I’ve felt so anxious about drawing and that I have to draw even if I really don’t want to. I was becoming really sad, I felt a sort of panic that I had to make sacrifices to become really good at art….even though the things I had to sacrifice were things I enjoyed much more at the time. I did end up switching subjects just this week (I am lucky that I was able to!!) so I’ll no longer study art. It’s kind of bittersweet since I’ve dedicated the last three years of my life to my craft. I know it doesn’t have to mean it’s the end of my journey as an artist, but I want to be able to study & learn, play loads of sports, pick up my social life again and just live my life a bit differently 🥺
Why do your videos come out at the right time✨😩
idk why it must be my inner infj psychic 😂
@@mewTripled omg I'm INFJ too!!! 🥺🥺
Life is all about balance. I'm 37 I hit a creative block when I was 19 dabbled with drawing till 24, joined the Navy drew a little bit while I was in but really haven't created much till last year when I started school. I'm happy I explored early. I have always loved drawimg and great job at the water color.
just as i was wondering what to watch while doing my art homework you came to the rescue!! your videos are one my fav painting companions✨
Ahhh thank you! I need to get better at painting LOLL
I fell into a similar period of artblock where all my whimsy for art was sucked out of me. I'm barely coming out of it after over a year (with some bursts of inspiration in-between) of not drawing at all.
For about 2 years I was living with other artists who were a couple of years older than me. There were 3 people in a polycule together. For anonymity's sake I'll refer to them as X, Y, and Z. X and Y were the main instigators because they are in a dependant relationship where they are dedicated to escalating eachother.
X has a RUclips channel where he posts Warriors PMVs. His partners were already committed to helping him work on the videos, and I started helping as soon as I moved in.
We would bust out a video monthly. I colored frames and backgrounds, was the main lineart editor while I was there, and occasionally made assets.
There were plenty of times where I had spent days cramming and colored every panel alone, because someone else needed a break. But whenever I wasn't feeling like working on the projects, his partner would be aggressive towards me and they'd gaslight & intimidate me into feeling like I was lazy.
I don't even have the words to explain how irrational and controlling this experience was, as they basically thought they were anime villains and one partner would attack me if I ever dared to defend myself to the other one. More than once Y told me deadass that he didn't care about my problems, because apparently my reasons for not wanting to watch Naruto weren't severe enough by his standards.
Because no problem that ANYONE had was ever as valid as the problems that X would have hour long meltdowns over (meltdowns over anything, like screaming & crying because somebody wasn't working on his commission fast enough). Y had said himself he only cares about X's problems and would talk like this to Z too. One day X's younger brother that lived with us came home from having a bad day at work and Y aggressed him and told him he wasn't allowed to have a bad day today, because something had happened to X that day too. He just shut his brother down and that was the end of it.
Their combined attitude towards other artists in the Warriors community drained me. I don't even read Warriors but I could analog about every layer of drama from the fandom if you held me at gunpoint and made me. They were incredibly negative and would talk down on how everyone else created art, but X's art was the gold standard and would constantly be compared to this or that person. Something that particularly hurt me was Y saying I had a Tumblr art style, and of course the irony is that Y's art style was the most Tumblr art style of everyone there.
I took a lot of things to heart that I have since let go of. While I lived there I tailored my art to meet X's standards of what good art is, as he would offer his unwanted advice constantly. When I finally left this situation and was on my own again, all I could see in my art were influences from X and it made me hate everything I made. Thankfully now I am coming back into my own authentic art style and am letting go of the bad habits I developed so that I could get a crumb of my own validation from them.
Before all of this I had my own art account and aspirations for taking my work further, but all these confidences slipped away during this dark period. It has taken about as long as the emotional abuse occured for me to recover from it, Jesus Christ. I would be lying if I said I have totally purged X and Y's voices in my head. Z was mild in comparison and was more just a passive observer and enabler (I was too, I know I should have defended myself a lot more than I did).
I have limited resources and support and haven't been able to establish an art career, but I hope to get my shit together eventually. I will never feed into one person's standards of my art above all ever again.
Wow, just WOW! I felt this so much, I've been struggling with this for a long time. When art transforms into your work sometimes you just don't enjoy it as much as you did. I can't thank you enough for always being so real, relatable, and amazing ❤️
Wow, your videos really hit me hard lately! And it’s a good thing because it helps me get through my problem in drawing again. I used to love to draw constantly but over the years of being in college and in finding a career, it broke my heart to not be able to pursue a career I wanted (combined with family pressure) that I no longer drew anything anymore and fell into a personal depression. It felt like my wings were broken and anytime I tried to “fix” it, the pain just became too much to bear.
It’s been years but I’m slowly picking up a sketchbook again and drawing again! I’m learning to let go of the past and move forward in my life and from the ones that broke my artist self. Your videos help in motivating me to face my fears in what I have been avoiding drawing for a long time! So thank you Michelle. 🖤
Almost like you made this video for me . Thankyou
aww glad to resonate with you in any way! Thanks!!
thanks for posting this, it kinda helped me realize why I got to a point I hate the idea of doing art anymore:
Used to draw for myself when I was a kid. I loved it! Adored every minute of it, and all because it was fun yes but it also shut my mind off for a little while cause I had something enjoyable to focus on that I didn’t quite need to think about. Shut my thoughts off, (ADHD is ‘fun’)
Anyway, I think as I got older, and frankly more lonelier, I used it as a way to get attention and validation, at least online. Now in my late 20s I just don’t find joy in something I’ve loved since I was 7-years old, like it’s just another chore I have to think about.
And that breaks my heart because I want to draw but I just don’t care anymore. There’s no drive, no passion; it’s like the well is dried up and I’m not sure what to do with myself now.
Here’s to hoping my love for something I’ve been doing 20 years will come back to me 🍀
Art isn't my job but I felt like I needed a break from it at one point. Everything art related I hated, so I took a month or 2 of not drawing. It worries me cuz I'm just now thinking about getting an art career. But I started to dive more into hobbies like jewelry, played more games, or just taking care of animals and plants. Thanks for this video.
Man I love how real you get in some of these videos instead of making me question if I enjoyed art it reminds me why I do it and how sometimes it’s ok to take a break for awhile heck recently I took a 2 week break and throughout that break I had the urge to draw but I kept on pushing it back because I got to relax and take a break but now I’m back to it with lots of ideas and motivation
Thanks, Michelle
Much love Baku!
How do you distinguish if something is just a hobby and more of personal thing versus an actual job? I feel like I need to take a break to try different things and meet new people. This video helped me feel less guilty about doubting art. I think for everyone through this rough period to watch blue period. It’s an anime that is about the artistic journey.
Actually, watercolour is all about strategy and extremely good hand eye control, because there are no redos. It’s also very fast and time sensitive, aka drying time. If you use cotton paper, which is by the way a luxury item, it’s super absorbant so every stroke needs to be laden with intent. I find that planning my composition in values before I start the painting and working out any issue that may come in my sketchbook so that the final result is just perfect.
Thank you for making this video, since I graduated in animation a few months ago I felt really burnt out, and just kinda lost my passion for drawing, which is a little worrying when you’ve spent the last years of your life working really hard to make it your career, glad to know I’m not the only one
I also feel like I just want to be able to draw and animate to use as a tool to further a creative ambition. And I have also been lacking in drive to draw... But for me, personally, the reason for that is not necessarily a dispassion for it, I just find myself wanting to prioritize writing right now. I mean, ya gotta write a story to be able to draw it in the first place, right?
But I also find myself starting so many minor drawing-based projects that I never really follow up on... But they're there if I ever wanna do them, I guess. I've just been mainly writing, and I'm extremely out of practice with drawing now lol...
Wow..I swear you've been reading my mind. I've been suffering with this feeling for so long now and it hurts me.
Thank you for this video. I relate to this so much. I’ve basically dedicated my whole self worth on art because I really don’t have anything else that drives me. but I’ve been really losing passion for it in the past few months. I feel like I’m at a skill level im satisfied with and now that I don’t have that intense drive to improve its like I have no idea what to do with myself 😕 guess I’ll see how things work out
I love how she dosent censor herself she's real she presents herself on RUclips how she is in real life. You earned a subscriber
For me, I love the idea of creating something but I get too overwhelmed when it comes to the actual creating. I really can't tell if it's some sort of art block or if I'm just lazy lol
I've been working with watercolors for years and it's still one of my weakest mediums. I think that's why I continue to use it.
I needed this today ty for the motivation !
Np and thanks for watching!
Getting out of your comfort zone really forces you to accept that what you’re making isn’t going to be perfect? I don’t know how to put it, it’s hard.
For me, that was trying to use pens and sharpies in my sketchbook and finding that you make it look a LOT easier than it is! I always found my comfort zone in light colors that need to be built up or in having the ability to erase, it was a useful, and terrifying, excursion for sure. 🥲 I hated it the entire way through, it’s like multiple blown veins in the hospital and I kind of realized that I didn’t like what I was doing? But I took a break for several days and came back to it when I needed to do it, and it helped to recalibrate. You gotta take a break after a workout, it probably applies here, too.
Ahaha yeah any paint mediums are my weakness T_T !! But yes the workout analogy is super true
This makes me feel a whole lot better - I think I’m at the end of my 3 or so month break from art, I’ve been raising chickens in the meantime! I’m really enjoying being in the garden and building stuff and it’s been really helpful towards my outlook on art and just my life in general
Ha, that's me the whole time I was in architecture school before we used CAD softwares. Drawing buildings and landscapes and painting them with watercolor. Ha ha. Now it's okay
structural formations in a loose medium are super challenging 😭
Thank you for talking about how you fell out of the act of drawing. I feel like I’ve been going through something similar for a long time. Somehow inbetween starting art and now, I’ve become really good at drawing and painting and rendering but I just find the process of making illustrations (researching, composing, iterating, layout, lay in paint, render) exhausting. What I really loved about art as a kid was the stories it told, not the art itself. Even though I still love pretty art, I think I’d prefer to go into storyboarding instead. Again thanks for talking about your own relationship to art and the difference between loving drawing and loving communication.
Watercolor is very hard to work with if you are not patient 😅 you can layer but you have to wait till it's completely dry or it becomes muddy 😅 I feel how you feel about watercolor with oil paints 😅
Currently going through the same thing, but with photography ! I love hearing you hit these topics, it's honestly so healing for me personally
Thank you - I needed to hear this and it is like this video came in at the right time. While the Disney veteran was your validation, you are mine 😊 I am currently in the midst of just not feeling like drawing so am trying to use that time to explore other things I've always wanted to. For me it is tricky because I work full time (in vfx so a similar field, but on the tech side) so my art time is my spare time after work and sometimes I cannot find the motivation to draw or that I need to use this time effectively and make something super profound (which also discourages me cus of the pressure I put on myself!). Also, art is such an inherently isolating pursuit since we spend hours sat alone drawing - its such a drastic choice we have to make: sit and draw or go out and experience life and see friends. A balance I am constantly grappling with 😅
I get engrossed in my art, and for the most part I end up liking what I've produced however it is not a hobby or a pass time for me which is confusing.
I think i've waited months to see a video talking about this topic, so thank you very much for sharing this messegge with us 💟
I haven't been drawing for just myself in 4 months now i believe and in the past always chose art schools because i wanted to be a cartoonist/comic artist one day but after joining a Fine art academy i understood i don't really like drawing that much...it's a bit sad for me because i'm currently drawing a comic for my degree's final project but i'm thinking about persuing another career. Art has always been a part of my life but maybe now that i'm growing up (i'm 24 y.o) i might need different things to do and keep drawing just as an hobby (even tho i i used to beat up myself a lot when i get art blocks in the past) but this time i don't really feel the urge to draw at all! I want to find something new 💟 my parents still think that my career should be art so i'm kinda scared to let them down (mainly because i have no plan B at the moment lol)
this video really helped me, it saddens me how much im struggling because it feels like i cant draw, im 17 years old and i dont have many skills besides creating and sharing art online, i spent my summer break not drawing when i promised myself i would practice and draw as much as i can (as i did last summer), but i couldn't.
this made me feel guilty for not drawing like i was disappointing everyone,
i guess i'll just try to wait a bit more, :,)
i adore your videos so much. its all so genuine and so you, it has helped me out of countless art ruts that seemed to be unresolveable rock bottoms, just getting to know someone else's perspective on the subject. looking forward to more of your stuff!!!
lol there is some really nice furniture out there so thats actually a great thing to go and look at and technically still creative.
i feel like im back at level one again and i was stressing out. i can only draw without the guidlines so i guess i will take a break
I also had a major art block and hate for art beginning of 2018. I started getting more followers on instagram and felt pressure to make perfect art. It brought me so much anxiety and fear that I hated art. I stopped drawing, except for a few drawings here and there, and only started to pick back up due to quarantine boredom. I am happy to say that I AM enjoying art again and am seeing improvement despite not drawing for 2-3 years! I would say take a break (maybe not as long as me) and definitely it will be more fun. And stop putting so much pressure on yourself to make great art. Enjoy the process .
Your page came out great! I’m no watercolor expert but one thing that helped me improve was doing it layer by layer and letting the previous layer dry completely before adding shading/ other details. It helps “control” the medium in a way. I’ve only completed one year of architecture school so far so take what I said with a grain of salt! I loved this video!
I couldn't stop drawing if I wanted to. My art is the best thing i have
Honestly.. great advice, thank you! 💛
I'm in a very bad place mentally right now(stress,family problems etc.) and I bought some Art supplies..now I sit infront of my watercolorbook and I have a huge artblock and I don't enjoy it anymore but I wish I could😞
Hi! I'm so identified with this message! Basically you have described what's going on with me lately about art. It's not that I hate it, but I don't love it as I used to think I did, or in another way to say it: it's less exciting regards certain topics. Or maybe I don't have the enough motivation to pursue an art career fully (translation: working for somebody else). I'm trying to start again with the focus on my own projects, but definitely I'm getting less interested in others's opinions (critiques involved) and more interested in having fun for my own sake! Of course, my eyes have opened to a more varied world (just as you described), and I'm getting less obsessed about art, so I can tell I'm enjoying life more at some degree. I think that's what many people talk about regards finding balance, but well we'll see. Have a beautiful time and lots of blessings to you!
Oh god, thank you so much for this advice. It definitely came just right when I desperately needed it! :')
I had a moment where I stopped drawing for about only 2 months to find if there are any other things that interest me. Turns out art is really ingrained into me because after that I was even more motivated and filled out 5 full sketchbooks in about 3 months. I'm happy I found something I truly love but that doesn't mean that I didn't find other hobbies, one I even take as seriously as drawing. And I do agree it's okay to take breaks if you feel you don't have a passion for something as you don't want to be miserable doing something that makes you feel negative
I did something similar to this and now I’m going into mortuary school and working on opening a art business on the side! This is a very useful video and your words are always so meaningful to me 🧡✨
Is it bad if I want to stay still in this field and draw for the rest of my life because 10% I like it and 90% I know I can't do anything else (i tried so many things) and I don't want to live a poor life?
I needed this video ❤
Woof this is too relatable 🥺 The hobby burnout is so real sometimes, for me with cosplay ; ; Thanks for sharing it really does help to talk about it 💕🔥
Literally right on time, queen.
It is unfortunate bcuz before quarantine happened I was doing great with my art. I was trying to draw things out of my comfort zone and drawing with different mediums but then 2020 happened and everything just went down the drain. It didnt help the fact that I have to drop out of school and my mental health just deteriorated and that really made me unmotivated to do anything at all, and the guilt and perfectionism that kept nagging just made it worst. Right now I still have trouble trying to see drawing or art in a new perspective, I'm trying my best to take care of my mental health so I can little by little, so that maybe I can go back to doing art (even though how I see and feel towards art will never be the same) . This video is very honest and comforting, something I can look back and watch again
Thank you.
I’ve been feeling this lately…. I think part of my problem is really just being so incredibly self critical and literally loathing myself if the smallest sketch doesn’t turn out well. Which I know, it’s ridiculous. I’ve been in therapy trying to work on it but unfortunately it’s so burned into my brain that it’s going to take time to unlearn that. The self loathing used to be separate from my art when I did it as a hobby, but eventually I decided I’d like to make a career out of it, so I started taking it much more seriously with studies and practice and I’m starting a course in September. But the thing is, now it has all that pressure on it and it’s no longer just a hobby, the self loathing has seeped through into my art and now I find it really hard to go a drawing session without beating myself up, and I feel awful for then avoiding drawing or practicing bc “if you wanna do it as a career you gotta practice all the time!!!” So yeah idk. I feel extremely frustrated and lost atm. Sorry for the long rant but if anyone does read this I really appreciate you
Ever since the pandemic happened I’ve been such in a slump with my art, I miss it, it breaks my heart to feel like I’ve lost a passion for it. But I would love to get back into it 🥺 thank you 💖
That was my first watercolor palettes 💕... I don't miss it💀 it was a good for a very beginner but after awhile the pigments started separating , and getting really chalky , and you had to dig at the some of the pans to get any color
I think I might be having a bit of this loss of enjoyment for art as well...I don't create as much anymore and while I still enjoy it, it hasn't really taken me in the direction I was hoping for. I was really hoping that I would one day be an animator and tell great stories too, but everytime I've tried applying for such a career it never pans out. I'm greatly discouraged and starting to give up hope that I'll ever be a part of that community. I don't even know where to go from here career-wise...or if a career is even possible for me in this day and age at all. Sadly, the only thing I am sure of is that my creative side will always remain just a hobby.
Thank you for those words 💕
Oooh!
Keep paper towel or napkin nearby and blot it if the watercolor does something you don’t like on the paper. Quick/Easy fix
I think there are a few things getting in the way here with watercolors for you :D First, your paints are student grade. This is fine for learning, but lower quality paints can sometimes not work as intended/expected due to fillers and pigment quality. An upgrade that is kind of middle ground would be White Nights watercolors. Alternatively, a split primary set of 6 pro watercolor pans in any brand would be much more effective for learning the medium. Next is getting a soft size 6 or 8 round watercolor brush. Synthetic or squirrel blends are perfect (ie Silver Brush black velvet). Water brushes make it hard to control the amount of water you have on your brush / in your paint / on the page. (Having two glasses of water to keep your paints clean and reduce pigment contamination might help too!) and if all else fails, invest in the paper! I know this is a sketchbook practice and this book didn't really like the water -- but the texture of those pages once dry is fantastic anyway. (: That said, 100% Cotton paper will make for excellent results with water soluble paints like watercolor, poster colors & gouache.
Anyway! Either way, I think this was an excellent idea to practice with both. This is what sketchbooks are for. And I understand that burn out feeling. I am also a writer/editor and my last job burnt me out of both skills and I felt less inspired. I do return to it because of those reasons you mentioned -- communication is important! Trying new things and reading new material has helped re-inspire. I hope that happens to you for your art. (And your videos do help inspire me, too. I was sketching before I commented. ^^)
Glad to see that I'm not the only one going through the motions like that! This really made me feel better honestly! Also FELT with the journaling tho, like for me, my journal is like a portable therapist lol (Not that I haven't had a therapist, don't get me wrong! Therapy good lol!)
i love your videos so much , thankk you for ur service mwa
I've been taking a break from my current project, an adult underground anthology graphic novel/'zine. My autism makes me kind of apathetic and I've struggled with creative block since grade school and burnout since college, resulting in abandoned characters and projects. I am making slow progress on my latest projects, which include revised older series and characters.
I really loved the voice over. Why did I never consider that it's OKAY to take a break from art? I've always felt like if I'm not constantly creating then I am a failure. (Watching you watercolor on that sketchbook which is very much not for watercolor was physically painful for me though 🤣)
It was so interesting hearing your experience with watercolor, as someone who’s favorite medium is watercolor, I can totally understand why you don’t love it LMAO, it can be pretty frustrating
You are My biggest inspiration mewtripled! Any tips on drawing people from observation? I want to get into CalArts just as you did!
My biggest tip would be to never forget drawing their faces + backgrounds to give more context of the situation, and show you can put characters in a space! If possible try to draw people in motion over still people standing still and smiling! Thank you so much!!
Hi Michelle! I hope ur safe & doing great girl
Thanks Ramsés~! I hope you and your loves ones are safe and well too :D
Sad to hear when someone doesn't enjoy doing art anymore. You don't have projects of your own you'd like see created? Do you no longer fantasize about creating new characters places and things?
This is obvious in hindsight but I feel like it's worth mentioning 'cuz this vid/a lot of ppl in the comments seem to think burnout, artblock, and falling out of love with art is something that's just innate with being an artist. like it some sort of internal thing. It's not bc you no longer love art or will never have the same drive as when you were younger. Its just the extreme pressure of having to "measure up" or create "something great" in order to make a living off of it. It's capitalism.
The way capitalism pushes the idea that your work determines your value in society is exceptionally draining when you've chosen something you love as a career. Even when it's not a career, all of life's still a rat race when you live in Capitalism.
Posting on social media is so exciting when you're younger and doing it for the joy of it, but once it's decided that it's going to be a career- your whole future- and the only thing keeping you out of poverty it's near impossible to find that love and excitement amidst the pressures of producing something you can capitalize on. It even takes the fun out of looking at others' art. subconsciously, I'm always thinking "how can I take this and utilize it?", "is this what ill have to measure up to in the near future to secure a job/ following?", "is this what people like/are making nowadays?".
I see a lot of times people stress over the fact that their favorite artist turned out to be years or decades younger; I don't think it's a coincidence every new and exciting artist is usually a teenager. If we all had the resources, time, and freedom that being an adult in a capitalist society strips us of, being productive, excited, and in love with our artwork even as adults would not be the struggle that it is today.
It's a lot easier to love your art when it's just a hobby, but we've got to constantly be better in order to make a living. Capitalism kills creativity, so pls don't think you're lacking something or that you'll never get your joy for creating back. the reason taking breaks or finding new hobbies helps is cuz it relieves pressure from the constant need to produce value, to prove you're worth something to society.
I was looking through the comments for something like this. The video touched on what I've been experiencing for the last several years but this definitely hits more home. You're completely right. It's so difficult to feel that freedom of when you were younger and art was just a hobby that meant so much to you. Naturally a lot of us figured that it would be the perfect thing to pursue as a career--the whole idea of do what you love and you'll never work a day in your life kind of thing--but when you actually go to school for it and then try to make a living out of it, it's not the same AT ALL. In most cases you're following someone else's rules, working based on someone else's wants, and feeling that constant pressure to turn everything you make into something that can be utilized either for your portfolio or needs to please someone/lots of people to be worth making or something you can monetize. And then it's not fun anymore. It's just work. It's just pressure. It's just hanging a million expectations on each thing you create brought on by the real world and need to make a living that were never there during the ol' glory days of drawing up a storm most days in art class and after school or during lunch break. So thank you for this comment from a year ago. It's something I've known in a way but seeing it written out helps it feel more tangible.
you inspire me a lot!
Are you sure this looks bad? In my experience with watercolors, it looks great! I'm surprised that even that the paper is not for water-type painting tools like watercolors, it turned out really awesome.
And taking breaks from art from time to time is a good idea to recharge your creative batteries. Those are the best times to meditate about your artistic life or your own life.
When you hate drawing cars but you worked on trash truck:
He shall be the only exception 😌
How are you posting about topics just as I'm going through them.. it's been happening a lot lately lol. Also I respect that you can admit you don't enjoy drawing as much anymore, but still have the strength to do it for work and social media.
🥰🙏
Ok so here is some real talk- usually the ppl showing up to these are kids to 20s; I'm in my 30s, I'm an offset layout artist very practical career
Now something about me is I'm an Aspy/autistic, i do not empathize with people,
Im done posting my stuff because people can't do anything for me, I can't tell if they are liars, or if they basicly feel my stuff is bad---
( noone tells you this but in the art world silence is basicly them saying your bad, but they want to save face and not look mean)
point is i feel led on.- where i stand now i have some skill but anyone would if they basicly shut everything out except work and their hobby for 20 years.earlier on i would get fustrated go harder push harder and eventually a pic would pop out that would satisfy this.
i'm stuck in a hell where I can't quit because of my Fixational Aspie thing, but literally ground down to nothing. trying to convince myself to QUIT - I just wish people would confess and say how bad I AM because in my heart I feel it
Hey i need help
Every time i see domeone elses art i wanna change mine, for example if i see art about characters and adopts, I immediately want to change mine to just making characters, if i see someone making realistic art i immediately want to do realism, if i see someone do bright cartoony art, I immediately want to change it to that
Any tips(
Do all of them if you wanna, there's no problem in that depending on what your goal is
so basically once you scrathced that itch of really wanting to draw it goes away forever ? 😟 is that strong desire to draw cuz its fun just a child/teen thing?..
VESPA!!
Hello bishes
hellur bishez~
Hello
hi!
Not drawing is very good advice. Get outside, hike, read, cook, garden! I always tell people that doing other things, is what gives you the inspiration and desire to create art more
what watercolor brush do you use art master
"I just ***FUCKING***** hate watercolor"
This made me realize I need to draw men more often.
burnout sucks
I don’t care about art. I find it uninteresting and a waste of my time and energy. Unfortunately, I had art parents and artist grandmother who used to constantly say I should do it. After much gaslighting, I’m glad to never do art and instead learn what I found interesting which is music.
PLEASE DON’T CUSSS! I was watching art videos with my young granddaughters. Your profanity is not only offensive, but a shock. Don’t you have a vocabulary to express yourself without using profanity?
Hi. Remember, RUclips is a platform where creatives can express themselves in the way that they should. I recommend Jazza, a family friendly art RUclipsr.