Tips to Improve Your Drawing Skills

Many designers, painters, and illustrators must constantly work to hone their drawing and sketching abilities, whether novices or professionals. If you want to develop your artistic abilities, find your unique design style, or improve your drawing skills, the best thing to do is to practice sketching more often.

Whatever your objective, remember that frequent drawing and sketching are necessary for your artistic improvement. Here are five tips you can try to improve your drawing skills each day:

1. Attempt a drawing challenge regularly

Try a daily drawing exercise for a week, a month, or even longer to get things started. Get a sketchbook to carry around with you at all times in case you unexpectedly become inspired by your surroundings. Having fresh materials on hand may also help you get into a decent drawing routine.

While keeping your objectives in mind, practise drawing ordinary everyday items. Try drawing a toothbrush or sketching your favourite coffee mug with incredibly realistic details. Your abilities will advance daily, and you can start drawing more challenging subjects soon.

2. Go back to basics with shapes drawing

In your early art courses, you may have learned how to draw shapes, and as your skills improve, you will move on from this simple exercise. But believe it or not, you can draw almost everything you plan to sketch using the fundamentals of shape drawings. Shapes can be drawn to make distinctive patterns, accurate and consistent designs, and efficiently utilise space.

Professional athletes frequently examine a movement’s components to understand better how they should perform it. Musicians divide challenging progressions into individual pieces and then piece them back together to practice. The same idea holds true for sketching. Practice drawing the fundamental shapes first, then concentrate on the final product.

3. Look for inspiration every day

Stepping outside your comfort zone is always a good idea, whether you're in an art class, learning a subject you don't typically draw or in any other of these situations. Always look to think and draw outside the box to challenge yourself!

If going outside for inspiration doesn’t excite you, you can always get inspired by watching a YouTube tutorial, watching an art film, or listening to new music. Nonetheless, if you want to improve at drawing, you must put in the time and work. Look for inspiration but don’t forget to practice! 

4. Catalog your art and revisit them regularly

An excellent method to monitor your progress is by cataloguing your old drawings and artwork and reviewing them monthly. If you draw daily, you may notice a significant improvement in your artistry in just a couple of weeks.

When reviewing your earlier work, you can also take note of the improvements you notice, any emerging stylistic tendencies, and areas that have the potential for development. Additionally, reviewing your previous work can be a great way to rediscover old styles or find a project you feel excited to work on.

5. Design repeating patterns

Designing repeating patterns like icons, symbols, or other combinations of shapes can be a great exercise to hone your drawing skills in addition to beginning with the fundamentals of shapes. Try making a pattern with only circles or with a range of shapes in your next drawing exercise.

Fine motor skills and pen or brush control are developed by repeating a pattern across a sheet or all over it. Although it's challenging to perform without getting tired, you'll be equipped the next time you need to draw a complex pattern, shape, or subject.

Additionally, this talent has practical uses in wallpaper and textiles drawing, so while you're at it, you could create something inspiring! Start by looking for recurring patterns around your house or the natural world, then attempt to recreate them in your sketchbook.

Conclusion

When honing your drawing skill, understanding the value of art or the reasons behind your desire to progress can be a powerful motivator. Whether it supports your job or provides relaxation in your free time, you will only enjoy drawing even more if you devote time to improving your skills.

If you’re new to drawing and just discovering your artistic self, signing up for an art class can give you the head start you need. Get in touch with us to learn more about our art classes, and book a class today!