What inspires me and how do I stay motivated?
To what inspires me and keeps me going, I love showing my artwork at local galleries. I love seeing people reaction when they look at my artwork and say "That's a drawing?". Recently I been told local artist that my artwork was something specials and that I was on to something inspiring. It brings joy showing my artwork and giving a positive response.
What also helps keeps me motivated is the challenge. Every time I finish one drawing I think okay want can I try now. What can I show that feels new to the viewer. What story can should I tell now. Really I just love drawing. I love my artwork and I love showing for the world to see.
What is my process when I am drawing?
I'll go over what I do step by step.
Is there a specific environment or theme I like to work with?
Not exactly, because I like to challenge myself and try new subjects. Most of the time I am never familiar with what I am drawing and learning along the way. All that said I try to mostly draw narrative art. I like to have my artwork to tell a story or give a deep meaning behind it.
How do I develop my art skills?
Just one drawing at a time. I learn as I go along and take tips from critics if given. It is odd looking back at my artwork from 2014 and seeing how far I have come. Every drawing I got better and learned something new and I'm still learning today.
Do I sign my artwork?
Yes, just not in front for this reason. Sometimes I go really dark on the bottom corners so I sign everything in pin on the back of the drawings. On the back of the drawings I also add the date I completed it above my signature, as well as a fancy cursive RW for my initials, final thing I add on the back at center is the title of the drawing.
Where do I find the images to draw?
Images I drawn are primarily picture I took off my phone, I have been told I could be a photographer. But I have also saw a picture a friend took on Facebook and asked permission to draw it. In the past I did do ideas forward to me by a friend but I quit doing that on not trust if the image was theirs. In recent times I started drawing stuff from my own vision but that is more time consuming.
How do I approach new projects I am unfamiliar with?
Carefully, don't rush it, and just try to enjoy what you are doing.
What type of paper and pencils do I use?
For paper I use Canson Drawing paper, size 18x24. I found it smooth, not see through, and easy to work with. For pencils I use are General's Kimberly Graphite Drawing Pencils, using a 4H, 2H, B, 2B, 4B, 6B and sometimes 8B pencils. But I always us the B, 2B, 4B, 6B pencils on all my artwork. I believe them to work well together if done right.
How big is your standard artwork?
I like filling my paper up completely so 18x24, my second size I do most is 18x18. But sometimes I get a random size with requires a custom frame. On a 18x24 drawing adding frame and mat it will most likely be 22x26 after.
How long do it take to finish a drawing?
That actually depends. I have had a drawing that take 3 days but I had a drawing that took 9 months. It depends on how busy I am with client artwork but also depends if I can keep my state of mind in it. I of course have to stay motivated and want to keep working on it.
I would say my average drawing would take month of work because I am now quality over quantity. I wanna give the artwork to time they deserve.
What is the purpose or goal of my artwork?
My only goal is I just wanna tell and story and show something you don't typically see in art galleries. A goal for my artwork I would love to see my artwork go into a new home so there can admire and love my artwork as I do.
What is my favorite and least favorite parts of professional art?
My favorite is the joy and shock I see when people view my artwork and realize it is a drawing. Least favorite which makes me annoyingly laugh, when people think my drawing was a photograph. In fairness they don't look at it long enough to see it's a drawing in that case.
Do I have artwork I consider a failure and how do I feel about them?
I'd say I'm the biggest critic of my artwork, so yes I would say I had some failures of my artwork. However that being said that doesn't I hate them. I love all my artwork, they are my creation and I will always treasure them. All I want for my artwork is to have someone take them home and love and admire as much I do.
How do I handle criticism?
I actually love to hear criticism. I honestly prefer to hear criticism over praise. When I hear it they allow me to grow and improve my skills as an artist.
What do collectors say about my artwork?
I have only met one collector of my artwork and it was by random luck at the New Braunfels Art Gallery. He told me my drawing had a more dramatic depth to them. He also appreciated a drawing artist who made large scale artwork. Claiming he does see artwork like that in local art galleries so he loved buying my artwork and displaying them in his home.
Can I describe a time when I had to adapt my artistic vision to meet project constraints?
Yeah every time. Each new drawing feels like I'm going somewhere new and I have to learn as I go.
Who is my biggest artistic influences?
I have two artists that I admire one being M.C. Escher who was to me the man who first showed the world the beauty in graphite art. Second and who I admire most is Vincent Van Gogh. Van Gogh had no desire for fame or fortune, he just wanted to paint what he saw beauty in and to show the world his view of art. Van Gogh even changed our view of art and opened the door for new type of art.
What role do I think artists have in today's society?
Art to me hasn't change in society, we still want to create artwork to show the world. It's still important today as it was when the first cave man picked up a rock and drew theirs stories on the wall. We all just wanna tell our own stories through our artwork.
How do I define success as an artist?
I have met artist who make good money off of their artwork but aren't happy because they couldn't do what they want, I have met hungry artist who are happy with what they do because it brings them joy doing it. There may not be a way to define a successful artist. I believe even the most famous artists weren't after fame or fortune. Maybe because they created something you didn't normally see in that time, maybe they won enough awards, maybe they sold enough artwork, or maybe they just had good life story. But one thing they all have in common, they just had a desire to create something to show the world. Maybe that is the define of a successful artist, the desire for art.
What do I hope to achieve with my artwork?
I think I have been pretty clear that my deepest dire in art is to just show my artwork to the world and tell their story. Sure winning awards and selling art is nice. But I wanna just create my artwork, show them to world and give them a new home for others to love and admire them.
To what inspires me and keeps me going, I love showing my artwork at local galleries. I love seeing people reaction when they look at my artwork and say "That's a drawing?". Recently I been told local artist that my artwork was something specials and that I was on to something inspiring. It brings joy showing my artwork and giving a positive response.
What also helps keeps me motivated is the challenge. Every time I finish one drawing I think okay want can I try now. What can I show that feels new to the viewer. What story can should I tell now. Really I just love drawing. I love my artwork and I love showing for the world to see.
What is my process when I am drawing?
I'll go over what I do step by step.
- First if I'm going off a picture print it out then grid it, after I lightly grid the paper I am drawing, this helps me figure out how big it'll be.
- Second when it is grid lightly get the outline of the most important factors, if landscape get the outline of the most recognize features so you know where you are when shading. Once done to your comfort erase the grid line.
- Third now I start my drawing by working in the middle and work around to avoid smears and smudges. I go light to dark although sometimes I do get some dark outline to help guide what I need to do. As the drawing is going on I do use my index and middle finger for light shading, it helps give it look smooth look. It is important I wash my hands after every time I do that, avoid the natural oil in your hands I do not use my finger in the dark areas, that is just my 6B pencil I one motion. With the darker zone I do go over with 2 deferent pencil, example I'll do over an area with a 4B pencil then a 2B pencil and a 4B again weather light or harder on the surface.
- One of the last things I do in the drawing is apply the darkness with my 6B and sometimes 8B pencil. Wether from the top left corner to bottom right corner. Or around one object or center point.
- Finally touch ups, fixes, and review to see if I missed anything. In this process I look at it for long periods of time to see anything needs improvement. If I am happy with it I spray the drawing with fixative spray to prevent it in the future from smearing.
Is there a specific environment or theme I like to work with?
Not exactly, because I like to challenge myself and try new subjects. Most of the time I am never familiar with what I am drawing and learning along the way. All that said I try to mostly draw narrative art. I like to have my artwork to tell a story or give a deep meaning behind it.
How do I develop my art skills?
Just one drawing at a time. I learn as I go along and take tips from critics if given. It is odd looking back at my artwork from 2014 and seeing how far I have come. Every drawing I got better and learned something new and I'm still learning today.
Do I sign my artwork?
Yes, just not in front for this reason. Sometimes I go really dark on the bottom corners so I sign everything in pin on the back of the drawings. On the back of the drawings I also add the date I completed it above my signature, as well as a fancy cursive RW for my initials, final thing I add on the back at center is the title of the drawing.
Where do I find the images to draw?
Images I drawn are primarily picture I took off my phone, I have been told I could be a photographer. But I have also saw a picture a friend took on Facebook and asked permission to draw it. In the past I did do ideas forward to me by a friend but I quit doing that on not trust if the image was theirs. In recent times I started drawing stuff from my own vision but that is more time consuming.
How do I approach new projects I am unfamiliar with?
Carefully, don't rush it, and just try to enjoy what you are doing.
What type of paper and pencils do I use?
For paper I use Canson Drawing paper, size 18x24. I found it smooth, not see through, and easy to work with. For pencils I use are General's Kimberly Graphite Drawing Pencils, using a 4H, 2H, B, 2B, 4B, 6B and sometimes 8B pencils. But I always us the B, 2B, 4B, 6B pencils on all my artwork. I believe them to work well together if done right.
How big is your standard artwork?
I like filling my paper up completely so 18x24, my second size I do most is 18x18. But sometimes I get a random size with requires a custom frame. On a 18x24 drawing adding frame and mat it will most likely be 22x26 after.
How long do it take to finish a drawing?
That actually depends. I have had a drawing that take 3 days but I had a drawing that took 9 months. It depends on how busy I am with client artwork but also depends if I can keep my state of mind in it. I of course have to stay motivated and want to keep working on it.
I would say my average drawing would take month of work because I am now quality over quantity. I wanna give the artwork to time they deserve.
What is the purpose or goal of my artwork?
My only goal is I just wanna tell and story and show something you don't typically see in art galleries. A goal for my artwork I would love to see my artwork go into a new home so there can admire and love my artwork as I do.
What is my favorite and least favorite parts of professional art?
My favorite is the joy and shock I see when people view my artwork and realize it is a drawing. Least favorite which makes me annoyingly laugh, when people think my drawing was a photograph. In fairness they don't look at it long enough to see it's a drawing in that case.
Do I have artwork I consider a failure and how do I feel about them?
I'd say I'm the biggest critic of my artwork, so yes I would say I had some failures of my artwork. However that being said that doesn't I hate them. I love all my artwork, they are my creation and I will always treasure them. All I want for my artwork is to have someone take them home and love and admire as much I do.
How do I handle criticism?
I actually love to hear criticism. I honestly prefer to hear criticism over praise. When I hear it they allow me to grow and improve my skills as an artist.
What do collectors say about my artwork?
I have only met one collector of my artwork and it was by random luck at the New Braunfels Art Gallery. He told me my drawing had a more dramatic depth to them. He also appreciated a drawing artist who made large scale artwork. Claiming he does see artwork like that in local art galleries so he loved buying my artwork and displaying them in his home.
Can I describe a time when I had to adapt my artistic vision to meet project constraints?
Yeah every time. Each new drawing feels like I'm going somewhere new and I have to learn as I go.
Who is my biggest artistic influences?
I have two artists that I admire one being M.C. Escher who was to me the man who first showed the world the beauty in graphite art. Second and who I admire most is Vincent Van Gogh. Van Gogh had no desire for fame or fortune, he just wanted to paint what he saw beauty in and to show the world his view of art. Van Gogh even changed our view of art and opened the door for new type of art.
What role do I think artists have in today's society?
Art to me hasn't change in society, we still want to create artwork to show the world. It's still important today as it was when the first cave man picked up a rock and drew theirs stories on the wall. We all just wanna tell our own stories through our artwork.
How do I define success as an artist?
I have met artist who make good money off of their artwork but aren't happy because they couldn't do what they want, I have met hungry artist who are happy with what they do because it brings them joy doing it. There may not be a way to define a successful artist. I believe even the most famous artists weren't after fame or fortune. Maybe because they created something you didn't normally see in that time, maybe they won enough awards, maybe they sold enough artwork, or maybe they just had good life story. But one thing they all have in common, they just had a desire to create something to show the world. Maybe that is the define of a successful artist, the desire for art.
What do I hope to achieve with my artwork?
I think I have been pretty clear that my deepest dire in art is to just show my artwork to the world and tell their story. Sure winning awards and selling art is nice. But I wanna just create my artwork, show them to world and give them a new home for others to love and admire them.