How would YOU design the perfect drawing/painting curriculum?
polycounter lvl 6
I need Polycounts help for good curriculums youve thought of or heard about to learn drawing and digital painting for games.
At my college I got an independent study class with one of my professors for a drawing credit. I've been doing graphic design and 3D work for games for a while, but I'd really like to improve my drawing skills and creativity.
I kind of have an idea of what Id like to learn, but Im less sure how to organize my time, what kind of exercises to do, what to do first, etc. I was wondering if you guys had ever thought about what would make a really good drawing curriculum for games, or if you know of any good ideas I could borrow from specialized programs, online or otherwise.
Ive taken your basic state-college foundational drawing classes, and Ive watched most of Matt Kohrs videos on www.ctrlpaint.com, so Im familiar with the mechanics of digital drawing and painting and feel plenty comfortable using a tablet. (Although Ill work in traditional drawing as well)
Here are some goals Ive been considering:
Thanks guys!
P.S. - My art department has maybe one Wacom that nobody uses and generally seems to avoid technology if they can get away with it. I have my own gear, but Id like to produce some really good work in this course to maybe help catalyze some change.
At my college I got an independent study class with one of my professors for a drawing credit. I've been doing graphic design and 3D work for games for a while, but I'd really like to improve my drawing skills and creativity.
I kind of have an idea of what Id like to learn, but Im less sure how to organize my time, what kind of exercises to do, what to do first, etc. I was wondering if you guys had ever thought about what would make a really good drawing curriculum for games, or if you know of any good ideas I could borrow from specialized programs, online or otherwise.
Ive taken your basic state-college foundational drawing classes, and Ive watched most of Matt Kohrs videos on www.ctrlpaint.com, so Im familiar with the mechanics of digital drawing and painting and feel plenty comfortable using a tablet. (Although Ill work in traditional drawing as well)
Here are some goals Ive been considering:
1. Develop skills for form and perspective
2. Become confident with making marks / getting things down the page the first time
- Ive always been pretty bad about having thousands of messy lines, Id like to fix this.
3. Drawing from life around campus -> scanning and refining -> turning those observations into creative concepts?
4. Build my visual library so I can better create from scratch. (Whats most important?)
- Insects
- Animals, birds
- Hard surfaces / structures
- Fashion and clothes
- What else?
- Animals, birds
- Hard surfaces / structures
- Fashion and clothes
- What else?
5. Drawing people in dynamic poses. Not much opportunity to practice this in figure drawing, Matt Kohr recommends drawing from stills of action movies. Any other ideas?
5. Learn how to use color, light and texture together. Ive drawn my whole life with only a pencil, so my work has only the most basic grasp of how to paint / use color.
Basically any input you could offer would be tremendously appreciated, especially in regards to specific exercises or ways to structure my time over a semester period. Ill be talking with my professor this week, but Im sure hell be open to good ideas, especially if I have a solid plan.5. Learn how to use color, light and texture together. Ive drawn my whole life with only a pencil, so my work has only the most basic grasp of how to paint / use color.
Thanks guys!
P.S. - My art department has maybe one Wacom that nobody uses and generally seems to avoid technology if they can get away with it. I have my own gear, but Id like to produce some really good work in this course to maybe help catalyze some change.
Replies
2) Practice drawings straight lines, curved lines, ellipses etc...
5) http://pose-emporium.deviantart.com/gallery/
http://artists.pixelovely.com/practice-tools/figure-drawing/
6) http://www.schoolism.com/school.php?id=22
For everything:
http://www.thegnomonworkshop.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/FZDSCHOOL/videos
http://www.cgma2dacademy.com/
http://www.schoolism.com/school.php
http://www.youtube.com/user/scottrobertsondesign
http://www.youtube.com/user/LakierosJordy/videos
http://cgcookie.com/concept/cgc-courses/
http://www.digitaltutors.com/subject/
http://idrawgirls.com/
I don't agree, like Feng Zhu said in design cinema episodes that speed will come with experience and practice. You should take your time doing what you are doing while learning fundamentals.
I hope it helps. I am in the same situation as you
Painting faster is easy, painting better is not
2- draw with others if possible -- it's a lonely road and it's difficult to stay on.
Lol, I'm actually glad people don't agree. Somehow that's what I've read in other artists' sites, and it saddened me a little when I learned that. Because I've always been a slow person, and it sounded like if you're slow you'll never make it anywhere.
I've seen some of Peter Han's free videos on Youtube and I really would like to see more of what he as to say, but his course is pretty expensive on top of other school costs, which is the same for most similar programs. He seems to emphasize confidence and usage of simple materials (pens; a couple markers) in sketching, which I do appreciate.
As to the quality/speed issue: Yeah. I think it's something that you need to have in the back of your mind, and something that will obviously come up in any job, but the benefit of school and learning is taking the time to figure things out, how to do good work.
I'm sure there are all sorts of good and bad habits that accumulate to make you faster or slower, but I sure don't know what they are. Something to be conscious of, I guess.