Dear ADs, this blog is such incredible help, thank you so much! I was wondering if you could help me with one issue: all artists say to draw daily, which I fully get. But this summer I work full time in mentally-draining place, while in afternoons I help my parents with physically exhausting farm. No surprise that I'm barely alive come evening. Is it okay if I take weekdays off drawing, or should I feel guilty and try to push regardless? When is it time to slow down without loosing progress?
Ok, I’m about to blow your mind: most artists, even the pros, don’t literally draw every single day. They may have side jobs, kids to take care of, holidays to celebrate, trips to take, or - gasp - other hobbies to pursue! So when you hear artists say “draw every day,” know that it’s kind of hyperbole.
Am I saying that most artists are hypocrites? Yeah, I guess I am. Hey, what’s the fun of being in a secret consortium of anonymous advice-givers if you can’t do the occasional callout?
Anyway, the secret to reaching a professional level of skill is putting in frequent hours of practice over many years. It’s a lot more hours than most people realize, and that’s why artists say “draw every day” - they’re trying to make a point that you need to draw A LOT. If you can actually draw every day, great! If you can’t, well, that just makes you a normal person with a life!
But like I said, if you want to become a professional artist then you DO have to find a way to get those hours in, even if you can’t do it literally every day. I know you submitted this question and while ago, and it’s not summer anymore. But if the summer farm job is going to be a regular thing for your foreseeable future, you may want to think in seasons. Perhaps during spring, fall and winter, you make it a goal to draw every day and take art classes. But during the summer, you only draw on weekends, to keep your skills from getting rusty.
I know it can feel like you can never compete with those flashy artists on social media who seem to pop out a new drawing every day. At those times, remember the tortoise in Aesop’s fable. You are the tortoise. What’s important is to keep yourself healthy and drawing over the long-term.
Take care of yourself. Remember who wins the race.
-Agent Thumbnail