Draw your Character

[Gramul]

Your original sentiment was that no one is innately born with the ability to create.
[...].

And I will stand by the statement. No one pops out of the womb with the ability to craft masterpieces any more than they have the ability to dance Swan Lake.
Some people will have an easier road than others due to a wide variety of reasons, but we all start at level 1, and it's a wasted effort to compare your rate and direction of growth to others. And I seriously can not emphisize that enough so I'll say it again.

IT IS A WASTED EFFORT TO COMPARE YOUR RATE AND DIRECTION OF GROWTH TO OTHERS.

Even the handicapped can still grow and learn. They can find alternate routes. Strengthen their weaknesses while pruning their strengths.

Yes. Only the one in first will win the metal, but that doesn't invalidate everything below it. Especially in something as subjective as art. Not being 'the best' is a down right terrible excuse to not work.
I'm not saying that you will be the next Rembrandt van Rijn, or Johannes Vermeer. But you mustn't forget artists like Picasso and Dali are also renowned.

Find your imperfections and acknowledge what make them beautiful. Make them strong while developing the techniques, knowledge and methods to clearly and boldly relate your concepts.
There is no one route. No one single objective goal.
There are no rules. Only tools.

I don't think I'm totally clear on what you're trying to challenge or assert, but I hope I'm being clear enough on my meaning.
Your artistic development isn't a competition.

[Luua]

Make them strong while developing the techniques, knowledge and methods to clearly and boldly relate your concepts.

I don't focus much on techniques or stuff, I know how anatomie works and when it looks right it's okay.
You make art sound like it's science but to me it's just fun and I think having fun is more important,
even improvment is coming faster when you love what you do ^^

[Luua]

As someone who's been told time after time that she's talented when it comes to drawing, I can vouch that you definitely need to concentrate on "techniques, knowledge and methods" in order to improve and become a more well-rounded artist. This is on top of drawing a lot, oftentimes drawing things that look like absolute crap just in order to get that image out on paper and move on with your life. Someone with talent who never strives to improve is still going to wind up worse than someone who dedicates their time to improving themselves, whether it takes months or years for that time to come.

Think the tortoise and the hare.

Seems like I do art wrong then..
I wonder how I managed to improve without trying to do so :/

[Calami]

Seems like I do art wrong then..
I wonder how I managed to improve without trying to do so :/

I'd be willing to bet you've drawn a lot in your life, but if your art started out looking just like that from the first drawing you ever created then congratulations, you are talented! Must have been nice never having to work for it.

[Luua]

I'd be willing to bet you've drawn a lot in your life, but if your art started out looking just like that from the first drawing you ever created then congratulations, you are talented! Must have been nice never having to work for it.

No I never worked for it, you know why? Because I love to draw and it's not work if you do what you love ^^
I don't see art as science or work, it's relaxing for me and my way to express myself.

I bet if you compare your art now to when you started (whenever that was), you'll see a great difference.

Of course I have improved, this happens when you draw and keep drawing.
Still I never focused so much on some techniques I just did my thing.
If it looked right for me I continued and if not I tried to fix somehow ^^

Aaaah btw just finished a new commission

[TessaJalloh]

Seems like I do art wrong then..
I wonder how I managed to improve without trying to do so :/

This is how i am as well, i'll improve significantly for no specific reason. but then i'll also have times where i lapse.

The truth is that if you look at a lot of artwork, you subconsciously analyse it. This improves your understanding of the subject and you'll become better at it simply because you're a human being. An artist with an art block will still find they improve once they're out of their rut, because the brain continues to work on problems in the background.

If you enjoy drawing, it doesn't matter if you're a natural or not, you'll get better because we are a learning based species and improvement is our bread and butter.

[Luua]

Tell that to Shiva's chiropractor.

It's good to love what you do, but you didn't really need to tell us any of that, especially not in a context that makes it seem like you're trying to place yourself on a pedestal above others.

I told him but he said she'll be alright xD
Since ppl speak about their opinions and viewpoints I just added mine personal too,
if you think I'm trying to 'place myself on a pedestal above others' just by telling that I see
art as fun and not work you have a strange understanding Ô.o
seems more like you see this whole thing as competion...

[Fenral]

snip

And now you're judging me. Kudos. If you don't see a problem with responding to a "hard work pays off" post with "I never had to work for any of it," then there really is no point in me saying anything further. Your coy "oh, then I must be doing something wrong," was a little grating, I'll admit, but I suspect you knew that already and are now going to try to get back at me for pointing it out. If it's really not a contest to you, and not about making yourself look better than other people, don't quote or respond to this post. You've said what you need to already, right?

Hard work is not the opposite of enjoyment, just a different way of looking at it. I worked my ass off to get where I am today as an artist, but I enjoyed it, and that's why I stuck with it. By many metrics my growth could be considered explosive and far beyond the norm, but I know exactly what I did to get there, and thus refuse to call it talent.

[Luua]

And now you're judging me.

I'm sorry if I made you upset with my comment that was not my intention, but after all this talking about how much
work it is to improve and this technical stuff I just thought to share my thought on this-
If ppl feel offended by this I'm very sorry! I'm the last person who want to discourage someone or
tell them how to do their thing :/