Exercises to Improve in Art

Exercises to Improve in Art

Everyone wants to improve at art, but not everyone has the time to practice. In this article, I’ll discuss 5 simple daily exercises—ordered from the easiest to most difficult—that take just 10 to 15 minutes and will truly help you grow the skills that you need to improve your art.

For the first exercise, we’re going back to the basics: shapes and values using Notan studies. Notan studies look at how the light and dark elements of a piece interact, focusing on the shapes and design elements of an image.

To begin, find any reference which interests you. I use Film Grab for my references, since you can find noir film stills there. Make sure the reference you choose has a strong contrast in light and dark values.

If you like the values in an image with color, you can make it black and white by applying the grayscale filter in photos.

Alternatively, you can put a “color” layer and fill it to black in your drawing software.

Next, choose two values: a lighter one and a darker one.

Now, to begin the study, set a timer for 10 minutes, and block out the shapes and shadows of your reference using only the lasso tool and the two values you chose before. When doing the study, try not to zoom in too much and focus on the bigger picture, since working on smaller details can take up a lot of time and lead to proportional inaccuracies.

Through this, you’ll be able to improve your shape language and perception skills. The focal points of each reference will become clearer, and your brain will be forced to think in terms of simple shapes and values rather than lines or details. When you’ve gained some more experience with these studies, you can add on a third value, or a midtone, as you can see in the image below.

Below are my results after doing this study daily. I was able to make my forms clearer and improve my efficiency, overall leading to a more visually appealing piece.

Note: The process of doing artist studies is only briefly described in this section. To learn more specifics about how to do in-depth studies, check out this article!

For the next exercise, we’re going to learn from the works of our favorite artists. Think about what you want to improve on, and then think of some of your favorite artists who are good at that particular skill or who inspire you a certain way.

When you’ve decided on your artist of choice, pick some of their artworks that clearly demonstrate the technique you want to improve on. Here, I chose Redum’s pieces to study, since I wanted to improve on rendering and value. You can see the references I used below.

Set a timer for 10 minutes, and do a study of their piece using only hard brushes and the lasso tool. I also recommend not color picking from the reference when doing these studies so that you can train your eyes to choose the right colors.

Block in the larger shadows first, and work on the details after that. You can also utilize layer modes, such as “Add” or “Multiply”, to make the process quicker and the piece more cohesive in its shading. By studying the styles of your favorite artists, you can not only draw inspiration, but also learn new techniques, and later, apply these techniques to your own art!

Below are some of my artist studies.

Now that we’ve improved on our basic shapes, let’s work on lighting.

First, draw a character and fill in the base colors. Next, choose a background reference. You can find references from Pinterest, Unsplash, or photos you took yourself. Make sure the reference you choose is in the same angle and perspective as your character to keep the piece cohesive. If it helps, find the background first and then draw the character according to its perspective.

Then, import the reference in the same canvas as your character. Resize your character and reference image to your liking, and then set your timer for 10 minutes.

Now, light your character based on the background. When carving out shadows, be mindful of the shapes they’d create on your character, and take into account the various light sources surrounding the character. For more information on lighting, check out Lighting 1 or Lighting 2.

I recommend using lasso and airbrush to save time and paint both hard and soft edges, as well as use various layer modes. Use Multiply to block in shadows, Add for light, and Overlay to adjust the colors and create more cohesion.

If you struggle with lighting the face or different forms, check out Shading Reference (learn more about this tool here).

These studies will help you to create more depth by improving your lighting skills, and the characters will feel more fitting in the piece. Here are some of my studies!

For the fourth exercise, we’re going to focus on technique once again. Search for a master painting (ideally, artwork created before the 19th or 20th century) to use as a reference. The subject can be anything of your choice: portraits, environments, or still lifes. However, portraits or pieces with one object are great as a starting point, since they only focus on one subject. In my studies, I referenced the artist Sargent’s paintings.

Before you begin, check if your drawing software has a “draw and hold” function for straight lines and shapes. If it does, be sure to turn this function off for the exercise (how to do so in Procreate is demonstrated in the video above)!

Now, start your 10 minute timer and recreate the artwork to the best of your ability within 30 to 40 brush strokes.

Here, the eraser does not count as a brush stroke, and undoing is allowed. However, it may be confusing to count the brush strokes if you undo a lot, so I recommend limiting your use of this feature.

Start with broader shapes and refine if you have the time. Along with this, make sure your brush size isn’t too large or small, so that one brush size can work for several areas. When applying brush strokes, maximize the area you can cover (for instance, I used one big brush stroke to paint the hair instead of multiple small ones to save time).

Limit zooming in while painting. Look at the bigger picture, not the small details. To make the exercise more challenging, refrain from color picking from the reference.

Below is my progression; as I got more familiar with the exercise, I was able to convey the shapes and details of the reference in fewer brush strokes.

Last but not least, we will be combining everything we’ve learned so far into this final exercise.

Choose any reference you’d like to begin. The same constraints from before apply; 10 minute time limit, hard brushes and lasso tool only, and no color picking from the reference. Don’t focus on making your study realistic–– train your eyes to see how light changes color, how value creates contrast, and how atmosphere affects both.

For each study, choose a reference a little more challenging than the last. If you become familiar with drawing nature backgrounds, for instance, attempt a cityscape background in your next study. Try out different backgrounds, portraits, still lifes. The more variety of subjects you study, the more experience you’ll gain; allowing you to learn and become familiar with lots of subjects. Feel free to deviate from the reference and experiment––add fun colors, play around with different tools, and use different brushes and textures.

Here are some of my studies:

Below, you can see how my art changed after doing these studies consistently. I was able to improve on my forms and values, making the focal points and story more clear in my compositions.

These exercises take only 10 minutes out of your day, but if you do them consistently, you’ll be able to see amazing growth. Try them out––you might be surprised at how much progress you’ll make!