Getting looser as time goes on?

Deathstick

No pun on the topic intended :O

I was just wondering if anyone else finds with their paintings and drawings, whether traditional or digital, becoming looser and looser over time.

Not sure if it's just my hand being lazy or what (I usually paint to relax and have fun / get better at drawing / hopefully be a plus on getting into a studio XD) but I've noticed a definite decline in focusing on making everything detailed/legible and an increase in the amount of suggestive brush strokes I've been leaving and becoming more gestural. Although I've never been one to draw in exact straight lines, usually I preferred the quicker hand movements in drawing classes when I was in college.

It's kind of funny how it seems almost like the opposite for me when I'm painting a texture versus just painting to relax.


Thoughts/Own stories of art styles developing and changing over time? Not necessarily looser or tighter, just changing!

theStoff

That's an interesting thought. For me I just find it is the overall way that you draw over time that changes. I start noticing hints of other people's style in my own work.

Being looser with your drawings isn't a bad thing though. There are plenty of talented artists who only paint in a loose manner. It's simply another way of drawing. If you're concerned about it though you could always try going over your loose line work with more solid lines afterwards.

garcellano

Whenever I do sketches to concept out ideas, the approach in doing it is different than the way I would do it years ago. I just think it's probably at a pace or method I feel comfortable with.

I don't think being loose in your drawings is bad. I'm pretty sure every artist has their own way of drawing/painting that they feel comfortable with.

Lazerus Reborn

You're more confident with the work you are doing. Don't like that it's too loose? Be very mindful/aware of the line work you are doing. Think twice then draw, easier said than done but being more conscious of the decisions you make in style & design should/could help.

Another way would be half a dozen small loose sketches followed by an in depth tightly drawn version. You can experiment in the loose style and tighten it up for the last piece.

Just general suggestions here really.

Shiniku

I do find that I've gotten looser with some things, but that's an improvement really. Like Lazerus Reborn said, it's more confidence.

I've known for a long time that i prefer working looser/quicker though, especially with drawing and painting. Ideally I would put the bare minimum down to get an idea across. When I was younger, it was my dream to be a comic illustrator, but when going through school I quickly realized I don't have the patience for that. If I draw one arm on a symmetrical character, I barely have the patience to mirror it to the other said, let alone draw it over and over in meticulous detail page after page. When it comes to 3d work I get into a different kind of groove though, and become far more patient.

Isaiah Sherman

There is a world of difference between how I work now and how I did when I was a teen.

When I was first learning digital painting, I would zoom in 300% and do hundreds of tiny brushstrokes trying to get something to look "right."

Over time you learn that is not necessary. You learn how to make larger shapes in less time resulting in a superior, more confident end product.