Limitations of Creativity

[Arctica]

Hey everyone,

i wasn\'t sure if this is the right place to post this:

i\'ve been on the forums and site for a while now and occasionally i post something up but i use this place mostly for inspiration and tips. I do manage to get about 2-3 hours of painting in a day and i have the motivation to paint but i feel as im painting i keep hitting this creative block where i can seem improve my skills past a certain standard. Im completely self taught and the only way i have learnt over these 3-4 years is by practice and asking others. Im wondering what others may recommend or have ever hit a stage in their \"painting life\" where they feel they can\'t seem to get past a certain barrier. I know i have improved over the last few years compared to when i first started

I\'ve put some pics on here with some of my latest painted minis compared with my older stuff, so any helpful comments for my style of painting and where to progress next would be helpful.

My latest work

- two weeks ago

- 3weeks ago

- 6 weeks ago

- 2 months ago

- 7 months ago

- 1.5 years ago

- 2 years ago

So there is a rough breakdown of my progression, i dont know if it is just in my head that i feel im slowing down on the level i can achieve or maybe there is something i can do about my strange feeling.
:|~

 

[Ritual]

These things happen! I\'ve had several periods of \"standing still\" in my painting life. The important thing is to not let that bother you, and just enjoy your painting. After all, painting should be fun! That is why we do it! As long as you keep painting the progress will happen. You might not notice it at first, but after a while you will realize you\'ve raised your level. It can be a matter of not having problems anymore with things you used to think were tricky, for instance. The more you paint the better your brush control will get and the better control of the paint you\'ll have.

Perhaps you should try painting different things than you normally do! I know some of my most profound leaps in quality have come from painting things that give me new challenges. It might not be successful the first time, but next time... Try different types of minis, different scales, different colour schemes... something that makes you have to go outside of your comfort zone.

 

[demonherald]

Agree with everything just said... I also go through phases.. one thing I\'ve found is to look at my techniques and think about things I\'m not very good at or I don\'t do a lot then I spend a bit of time really hitting that technique as much as possible ..
so for instance flesh.. choose 2 or 3 models that are predominantly flesh and work on them trying different techniques and styles..I\'ve basically cycled through lots o different techniques like that it\'s a case of deciding a self imposed theme you want to paint to.

I always have one or two primed up practise models . These are used in between painting times to try new things out on.

also undercoats.. using different colours pushes you to adopt different approaches to painting a model..

but as said the main thing is enjoy it..eventually progression happens and you don\'t even realise.

 

[Einion]

Thanks for posting pics of your work, it\'s a huge help in this sort of thing.

Originally posted by Arctica
Im completely self taught and the only way i have learnt over these 3-4 years is by practice and asking others.

That\'s not really self-taught if you think about it

Originally posted by Arctica
So there is a rough breakdown of my progression, i dont know if it is just in my head that i feel im slowing down on the level i can achieve or maybe there is something i can do about my strange feeling.
:|~

Like Ritual lots of us have periods where we seem to be standing still in our painting progress, in fact I\'d say it happens to most of us... we have a guy in the historical field whose painting has been standing still for about five years now, doesn\'t seem to be bothering him lol But anyway, I digress.

Some people get stuck permanently at a certain point in the quality of what they produce (bear with me here). Don\'t know if you have any markets of the right type in your area but if you look at the work of amateur painters flogging their brightly-coloured landscapes on a Sunday you\'ll often see people who paint and paint but don\'t get anywhere. This is largely because they\'re working alone and won\'t, or can\'t, see the flaws in their work. Practice by itself isn\'t helping.

You\'ve already taken the first step past that kind of problem by asking for help in moving forward. That\'s often one of the hardest steps!

Anyway, from what I can tell from the latest photo your work is coming along nicely, not so much on the second one where the red looks a little unmodulated, plus a bit glossy but that might be the photo. Personally I think that mini can look its best painted in a gritty, realistic style.

Mostly I\'d suggest you just \'practice\' more (i.e. paint more minis) but it might help to try:
a mini of a type you wouldn\'t normally use, maybe a historical figure or two;
paint more slowly - quality over quantity;
pick the colours for a scheme at random;
try new techniques every now and then, try new styles (e.g. realistic & weathered instead of the brightly-coloured, more cartoony look) even those you end up not sticking with can help make your day-to-day painting better.

And last but not least, if you\'re not already using any quality brushes treat yourself to a few.

Einion

 

[airhead]

One of the best ways I\'ve managed to take a step forward in my painting was to paint with a better painter.

Not knowing what part of GB you are in, I cannot say, but there are some amazing painters over in your part of the world. If you could spend a day painting with one of them, I think you\'d find improvements that you would not get any easier.

Another way to improve is to teach someone else. (sounds odd - but it works). Find someone who is just getting started and see if you can teach them what you know about thinning, blending, etc. You\'ll find that by teaching them, you have to think through your process and may make a breakthrough yourself.

 

[MathewBaich]

also, just to add to what others have said. Try and go to some conventions where there\'s a mini painting competition. One of the best ways to learn I\'ve found is to observe other people\'s work in person as it is somewhat different than if it was a picture on the internet.

 

[Gilvan Blight]

A quick suggestion on what to work on next. Highlighting. It\'s not that your highlights aren\'t bright enough, they just aren\'t consistant as to where the light is coming from. I suggest taking time to work on where the light is coming from and highlighting to that, that should move up up to a new level.

Taking a look at your latest marine:
The backpack really shows what I mean. There is a metalic arrow pointing down that appears to be highlighted from the left (in the pic). The arrow is coming from a section of blue that looks like it\'s lighted from the bottom. Right next to this are the two arms that look to be lit from the top. At the end of these are two \'balls\' that look like they are lit from the back left. Jumping to the head it looks like it\'s lit from the front, not the back. Overall the highlighting is random.

This is still great work, not trying to bash your style or efforts, just trying to make you see somewhere where you might be able to take things to the next level.

 

[Aliengod3]

When I look at your most recent mini I still see progress. What I see when I look at your newer minis is a better understanding of light, contrast and good blending. You are doing fine so no fears. Just keep practicing your painting and see all your minis through to the end.

I am going through the same troubles that you are. After I finished painting my Vostroyan command, back in july 06, I really began to understand my style and I found my threshold which would yield me more incredible painting results. Unfortunately I took a break from painting for a few months and when I started again I changed my painting style and now I am not as happy with my results and I feel like I have regressed. So your not alone in your concern but keep working at it. The more practice you give yourself that better you will understand the paints you use, the brush you paint with, and the contours of the minis you love.

 

[Infidel Castro]

Your basis for painting seems quite sound and your stuff is actually quite sound. The next step is more contrast. Be bold dude!

 

[Arctica]

I want to thank everyone here for their support, your comments are really helpful and i think it might be time for me to try something different, maybe try something more fleshy than \"armour-y\" since that is definately one thing im not great with.

Also thanks for the helpful comments on my weaknesses in style, im determined to push past this barrier.

Oh and when i meant self taught, i think a more appropriate term might be un-tutored heh.

Maybe i\'ll even try my hand at some converting since my skills with green stuff are a bit poor. I know one thing which has been holding me back is that after a nice neat paint job im afraid to ruin it by doing some freehand work or osl etc to the model. I\'m gonna try pushing those limits too.

 

[johnboyjjb]

I was going to suggest doing something outside your norm - like flesh or buildings. There are people over on the wyrd forums looking to trade stuff or you could sign up for the Mini Exchange. Two great ways to expand your bubble of experience. Maybe even try a resin bust.

 

[Thunderhawker]

I would also recommend that you maybe take a class in something artistic but unrelated. A life drawing class or a photography class could do wonders for you.