Art process
Lately, I’ve been struggling to find inspiration for what to draw next.
So I figured maybe if I talked through my process, the inspiration might find me somewhere along the way.
When I draw, I usually work in 3 layers.
The background layer is basically my safety net. It’s just a blank canvas with a square in the middle. I don’t know why, but having that square there helps my mind not spiral when I’m staring at an empty page. A completely blank canvas can feel way too loud sometimes.
The main layer is where I start putting down the idea. Nothing serious yet. Just quick sketches, basic shapes, and whatever my brain is trying to figure out. I usually use the needle point pen in light grey for this part because it feels less permanent. This layer eventually gets deleted, so it gives me room to be messy without overthinking it.
The final layer is where the drawing starts to become real. This is where I work on the details, outlines, and shading. I toggle between needle point dark grey, black, and white. I usually go over some of the shaded areas with the marker in light grey to soften things up. Once I’m happy with the overall outline, I delete the main sketch layer, and the final layer becomes the actual drawing.
Then comes the shading, which is usually where I either fall in love with the piece or question every decision I’ve ever made.
I still don’t really know what I want this drawing to become yet. But maybe that’s part of the process too.