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Art is uniquely cool.
12 years ago
Sit 30 random people down in one room, give them a pencil, and tell them all to draw something, anything really. An elephant, a nice day, their friends, or a scarey face. It's silly to think about, but then you look at everyone's drawings. Each is different, each picture has these little quirks about them that makes it unique to the artist. Even at very simple and beginning stages of art, you can tell some people naturally enjoy more jagged and straight lines to smooth and flowing. Some people think with boxes while others will draw in circles. It's fun to watch, but it also brings up a very interesting point.
Why are so many artists on FA clones of eachother?
To think, someone could be drawing some fantastical thing, some beautiful and creative gesture that has it's own unique style added to it. But we get more foxes drawn like disney or whatever big name artist is currently trending. Some get reasonably lost in the sea of tutorials, so they just mimic what they like. Which in some ways is okay! Over the years, even I have picked up a couple tricks that help me from other artists. But an artist needs to branch out from just tutorials and samey cartoon characters.
Now I know most of you aren't interested in getting a fine arts degree and just want to draw cute animal people. So let me give you some simple advice. Don't reference your drawings from other artists. Reference your drawings with REAL animals, and then try and add that cartoonyness. Don't worry if you don't get it right the first time. Thats fine! Don't worry if you don't create things all that well the 4th, 8th, or twentieth time. Just work on blending reality with your natural quirks and see what comes out. Many people think their style is boring because they stare at it all the time, but really it looks weird and interesting and something new! A benefit to this is also that you can never run out of references. There are THOUSANDS of pictures of every species online, and they're all distinct. Learn to see the differences between a fox and a wolf and try to make them look different. Wanna know how a bunnies ears flop against their head? Look at a bunnies ears! Really, it's that simple. Go out and make art, take a hint from the artists of old and study real life!
Why are so many artists on FA clones of eachother?
To think, someone could be drawing some fantastical thing, some beautiful and creative gesture that has it's own unique style added to it. But we get more foxes drawn like disney or whatever big name artist is currently trending. Some get reasonably lost in the sea of tutorials, so they just mimic what they like. Which in some ways is okay! Over the years, even I have picked up a couple tricks that help me from other artists. But an artist needs to branch out from just tutorials and samey cartoon characters.
Now I know most of you aren't interested in getting a fine arts degree and just want to draw cute animal people. So let me give you some simple advice. Don't reference your drawings from other artists. Reference your drawings with REAL animals, and then try and add that cartoonyness. Don't worry if you don't get it right the first time. Thats fine! Don't worry if you don't create things all that well the 4th, 8th, or twentieth time. Just work on blending reality with your natural quirks and see what comes out. Many people think their style is boring because they stare at it all the time, but really it looks weird and interesting and something new! A benefit to this is also that you can never run out of references. There are THOUSANDS of pictures of every species online, and they're all distinct. Learn to see the differences between a fox and a wolf and try to make them look different. Wanna know how a bunnies ears flop against their head? Look at a bunnies ears! Really, it's that simple. Go out and make art, take a hint from the artists of old and study real life!
I'm guilty of being an FA clone of Reva, Jade, Tavi and a few others in the past, though. Like many have. That's because without prior experience, we accept any image that we see as reality (or how it should be), so it's only natural that beginning artists accept cartoony as the correct style. This is where the originality lacks.
I'm happy you posted this. Maybe now I'll start seeing less MLP style artwork x3
But you're also still growing, you still have a lot of potential. Start now, instead of just defaulting to your style go branch out and try to draw real animals. You'll find when you return you will have gained a few things from those figures and your art will be better! Will you always have the sameish style? Maybe, but you may also grow exponentially as well.
I can tell you, the animal people I drew looking at an actual animal were way different than the anthros I got from looking at a kalida picture. Not to say kalida is bad or that it's wrong to look at her work and try to mimic aspects of it, it's just you're still closing yourself off to THIER world.
So many sketchbooks filled with animal heads... mostly deers.
Ya, it is easy to get stuck in that trying to mimic an artist that you love. You want to be just as good as them. I am guilty of this myself on so many levels. When I first started that's all I ever did. I still take little things from other style from now and then. Ahahaha