Do you want to draw or paint but you're unsure about how to start? Or maybe you're stuck in a rut and could use something new to spice up your creative life?
Online courses are a great way to start, but there are literally thousands of them - so which one should you give your time, energy, and (probably) money? I have a few suggestions for you!
Carla Sonheim's 365: Daily Creative Practice
First off, I should let you know that I seriously love Carla. I have an artist crush on her and her work. When I first started pursuing art as an adult, I bought her book
Drawing Lab
for Mixed Media Artists: 52 Creative Exercises to Make Drawing Fun. I loved it, so when I found out that she taught online courses I didn't hesitate, and I've never looked back.
Carla is amazing at helping people let loose and have fun. In fact, I don't think she believes at all that a lack of skill should keep anyone from creating art. Yet all of her exercises do actually improve drawing, composition, and color theory skills. Her secret is the same as early elementary school teachers' - we learn through play without even noticing.
This is a course for professional and aspiring artists and designers and it is intense. It runs for five months. On the first Monday of each month, we get a warm-up exercise to get us thinking about a specific subject matter. The following Monday we are given the actual assignment - based on real-life requests we might get from an art director or client.
The talent of the participants is through the roof and can be intimidating, but the group is incredibly supportive and encouraging. The picture at the top of this blog page is actually my first assignment from MATS and I knew immediately that I had to up my game.
It's a great course to take to motivate you, push your limits, and build up your portfolio with.
Graham Smith's Sketchbook Fury
This course is a lot of fun! It's quick and entertaining to watch and Graham makes a blank sketchbook approachable. Then he walks us through a project from sketchbook ideas to finished project. Although I never did the project (it became background noise at that point), I still use a lot of his ideas and philosophies when it comes to my own sketchbook.
This four-part series was developed by Graham for Strathmore Artist Papers and is offered free.
What am I missing? Do you have any other suggestions for me? You know I'm addicted...