Art College

you'll need to have a lot more stuff to pick from for a portfolio... but if you're going for a general arts course then you'll get a great deal of good out of it. I don't want to say it, but I've improved a great deal because of it.

 

That's a good goal - what do you want to specialize in specifically?

 

If that's your goal then do it!

~~your work will improve probably~~

 

I see lots of potential in your current art work. I think it would be a more than valid pursuit. The best thing about art school is that you get to explore so many different forms of art. It will be cool to see how your current skills grow and how they apply to different art genres.

Good luck, man. You make me jealous, my artistic skills never got past some shaky looking pottery, haha.

 

Good job, nice looking portfolio so far!

 

Hey
I looked at your work and it's cool ^^

Now, I have to say you I am a manga artist. In fact I was a manga artist. This is not a joke, I am sixteen and I had been one. I've seen you tried manga art. Being a Mangaka (manga artist) is really difficult and it doesn't pay a lot, generally. BUT, if your name is Kishimoto - Naruto's author - then you're good.

I had a manga that was working well. It was supposed to be presented at the Otakuthon festival (a Montreal festival) and we had some invitations in other places than Montreal but we refused all of them 'cause we were students and didn't really had the time to go at all of these invitations... We also had invitations to publish our work in magazines like in Japan (Shonen Jump) but anyways.... Publications every week, 8 hours of work per page (30 pages per chapter) and everything... That was really tough! I failed my maths because of this thing.... that was more my job at that age (fifteen).

And now I really wanted to go in art. Really. People looked at my work. My portfolio was FULL of mangas and proofs of publications there and ther and there and blah blah ... They finally said: Manga is not art. SO, the conclusion is: if you wanna go in art with manga, you won't get into it. Manga isn't counted as art. Just in Japan or in France. Eurasiam is a school in Paris that offers opportunities to be a manga artist and that focuses on MANGA ART.

Apart of mangas, I've done other things of course so I can give you some advices already on some of your work.

http://www.emptyclosets.com/forum/album.php?albumid=1630&pictureid=14020 :
The eye at the bottom is really nice! The important thing is to never forget eyelashes XD... Without it.... No expressions. But I'm sure you got it. This eye is perfect :O Just add a little bit of white in the iris... It will add some vitality and more important: reality.

The other thing I would have to say about the rest is: Work on your proportions and your views. That is all O.O ... This is pretty great

My last advice is: Try EVERYTHING. I mean... Painting, sculpting, charcoal .... Try new techniques. When I needed some paint and I didn't have it, I used some tea and I found out it's a GOOD thing to use. It is light and fresh Anyways... Don't be afraid of new techniques. BUT, in a way, be ready to screw up your work at anytime if you're being random ... XD I don't know how to explain but for exemple... I wasn't sure about the tea-technique and it finally worked so well I was afraid but I did it and it's finally really nice

So my advice is: Don't be afraid to use new techniques and mediums.
If you need other advices or critics (if i'm not too hard XD), tell me

Good luck with your work, and fill up your portfolio! It is SO great. What it can do is just to improve your talent even more

 

Indeed, indeed! Lookin' good so far. I quite like your skeleton + mushroom cloud picture, and the eagle nebula is gorgeous. =D And oh man, art school does wonders. I used to be pretty embarrassed about how limited my artwork was, and going to school for art has pushed me to be better and better. I highly recommend it. So long as you brace yourself for your favorite paintings to be blasted in critique, because they will, you'll be fine. =P

Question! How often do you draw from real life? Your portraits do look like you're looking at something, be it a photograph or whatnot, but might I suggest drawing some people and things around you in real life as well? Maybe sit in front of a mirror and draw your own face (I love doing this to practice drawing expressions!), draw your hand, draw a car outside, draw your room, anything and everything around you! The more you draw things you see, the more you learn how to really look at an object. There are a lot of funny little details that most people don't pay any attention to, but when they're included in your work, it makes it seem that much more believable.

I notice a lot of your work seems to be figure studies, which is great, but how often do you plan an entire composition? I think it's a good habit to get into, when you're drawing for yourself, to do thumbnails of paintings/drawings you'd like to do for fun. You'll get a better feel for composition that way, rather than it being something you have to do for class. It doesn't have to be real detailed, either.

Also, draw big. Get a huge-ass pad of newsprint or something (it's not expensive!), and some charcoal (as much as I hate it, it's so much better for drawing big than pencil*), and DRAW HUGE. I have noticed that drawing big has actually made my small drawings better! You have to incorporate details that you otherwise couldn't fit in, and it's a good exercise for your artsy brains. =P (Also, get used to it, because teachers, especially in figure drawing classes, love to make you draw big.) It's fun, too, because you get your whole arm involved. In figure drawing, I got to where I was almost dancing around that easel, listening to good music, and it's so invigorating.

Now, for general suggestions!

I'd recommend looking at lots and lots of artwork. Historical art, contemporary art, and look for artists you like. You can look on the internet, or go to the library and look at the art books. Artists have a long tradition of stealing influences from one another. And so long as you don't end up aping one artist and looking like you're trying to clone their work, it'll have a positive effect on your work. Maybe you'll see the way an artist does something, and you say, "Oh, that's awesome, I want to incorporate some of that into my work!" I think my artwork has only gotten richer for picking up little tricks that I've seen in other artists' work.

Read artist's statements, see what they're doing with their work (even if you read them and go 'That is a bunch of bullshit', figure out why you think it's bullshit and what you'd do differently). Go to art museums, go to gallery shows! The more art you expose yourself to, the better your work is going to be.

But mostly what I suggest is this: Draw every day. Something. A shoe. Your pets. Some character you made up. Anything! They don't expect you to be da Vinci when you show up (well, not where I'm at, but I'm at a public university, not a private art school), but if you've got a running start before you get there, you may find you get more out of it.

On a practical note, just from what I've heard teachers say, avoid manga in art school (I know you only have the one picture up like that, but it's just fair warning). Draw what you like on your own time, but I occasionally see manga-style work hanging in the halls and I hear teachers and students bitching about it. It's looked down upon, because you see it so much. Also, I'd avoid pet portraits, snapshot-style photos of people smiling at the camera, anything cliched like that. Unless you have a very specific goal with your artwork, and you can defend that to your teachers, they're gonna shoot you down and tell you, "This has been done to death, what else can you do with this?" This isn't meant to be discouraging, it's just that they like originality. =D

(I see someone else replied about the manga point here, too, while I was typing no less. =P It is also exceedingly difficult to get someone to take you seriously as a manga artist if you're not Japanese. Them's just the facts. It doesn't look like manga is your focus, but in case you were leaning that way, I just thought I'd tell you. Do what you like, but you may get reamed for it in art school if you do it as schoolwork.)

* Health note - I might wear a dust mask if you draw with charcoal a lot - I don't think the dust is good for you at all. At least don't blow the excess charcoal off the surface, tap it on your easel instead to get the dust off. You could probably get away without a mask in that case. =)

 

Also you should sign up at deviantArt, which is the biggest community of artists, artsy photographers and the like. You can share your work, get inspiration from others, build up your presence and start preparing your portfolio. If I'm not mistaken, schools like diversity in your work.

And the tip about drawing/painting every day is very good. Buy a small sketch book and take it everywhere with you. When you have nothing to do (like in class), just draw. Drawing all the time is fun, easy and it'll make you improve a lot.

 

Another artist! I too plan on going to an art college since art in basically everything for me

You have a very nice style, I like it
It's soooo important to create a portfolio that stands out, so you should try to use many types of mediums to show your range and style, but not only for that but to also grow as an artist
Practice!! Keep a sketch pad and practice still lives. See that remote right there? It's art- draw it! It may be a bit boring but after a while it'll start to pay off. :]

Also try to be involved in any art related groups or events, which would be great to put you ahead when applying. For example, I'm in my schools national art honor society and have been in all county art exhibits since freshman year- it's tons of fun and sounds great on your transcript!

Most important though is to practice and keep trying. Build up that portfolio and your passion will carry you through!!! Goodluck an if you wanna talk more about art, or even critique eachothers art, feel free to message me!
By the way... Love your signature, Lemony snicket rocks he's like my hero I have 3 books signed by him

 

Hey, I am in art school presently and its been a lot of fun
its also very hard work, but I know you'll love it..

ive read some of the advice that was previous my post, and they've said most of what I've wanted to, I just want to put an emphasis on real life
you do have to do real life studies, drawing from photographs limits the information that
you see, and the art work has a flatter look

an artist, sophie jodoin (amazing) explained that she takes photographs of what she wants to paint, and stages the image, but in the end, what is most useful to her and what gives her the most information is her live sketches


I've found that art is hard and its one hell of a learning process
there is no black and white, right and wrong, not ONE way to do ANYthing... its incredibly frustrating
and I continuously try to understand art, (I still don't know what art is) as far as I can tell, its a way of life

if you love it, go into art school, if you don't, art school is fun, so I encourage it anyway

ask me anything anytime, I would love to talk

 

Tips. Like the others before. Draw everyday, no joke. Every single fucking day. And real life observations. Carry a sketchbook with you everywhere you go. If you can take drawing weekend classes at your local college/art school. If you can get nude models that would be great, because once you can master drawing the human body, most things come quite naturally. If you are in a bit of money i recommend coming to lovely New York, and next summer take the SVA pre-college program. Its intensive, and amazing. Real college professors who are more or less world renowned in their field teach you, how great is that? And you get to be surrounded by other people who are just as passionate about art as you are. And it's in NYC, the mecca for arts. I also am planning on going to art school, preferably SVA or RISD. If you have any more questions please message me, and I also recommend you getting this book, the artist's guide to choosing a college. It's amazing, plus its free from the oldest art school in the U.S. http://www.mica.edu/Contact_Us/Unde...quest_Information_(prospective_students).html

Best of luck, and remember draw every day!!! Your portfolio and sketchbook will make or break you.