- 1Get educated! It is likely that even if you are someone who is blessed with some natural ability, you still have room to grow and develop these talents.
- 2Figure out your weak points, and attack them full on until you have overcome them! For example: if you are a classical portraitist who can't draw feet, then you probably need to draw as many feet as you can until you actually can draw feet.
- 3Research your subject. Even an imagined piece must be developed from observational memory and knowledge. A scientific and structural approach is key for creating a successful illusion.
- 4Research the style. Before you set out to create a piece of art, make sure you understand which elements of style are being manipulated, and how. Everything you produce must appear intentional.
- 5Start loose and gestural; so much so, that all you are doing at first is simple shapes inside compositional borders (these borders should emulate the final piece's proportions). There should be several drawings before a final, locked-down piece is created.
- 6Warm up! Before you can produce a good piece of art, you have to warm up! Your first drawing can not be as good as your last one. You have to get into the zone!
- 7Pay close attention to your composition, the rough stage is for this very purpose. Make sure the edges of your image are not distracting, and be sure that the viewers eyes are going only where you want them to go.
- 8Make the colors good. Learn about the nature of sight, and the science of light. Look at photos, but don't copy them. Understand colour temperature and shadow colouring. Study colour-theory! Never use black in a colour piece unless absolutely necessary.
- 9Pay attention to the quality of your materials. Despite the fact that a good artist can make any materials look good, you should give yourself the best and most comfortable (unfortunately, often the most expensive) art supplies. After all, you want to be a professional, right? Wouldn't a professional use the good stuff?
- 10Select and use only the details you need, the rest of added embellishment is just added distraction and wasted time. Use differentiation in detail to add emphasis to your pieces.
- 11The more preliminary pieces and roughs, the better the final piece.
- 12If it is a good piece, make sure people know who did it. If it turns out bad, throw it away. The actual amount of good art that a professional produces is quite small next to the sheer bulk of bad stuff they have to go through in the process. Never throw old or bad art away, it's good motivation for the future. Keep everything neatly stored, so you can come back later and see how much you've improved. This really helps if you're feeling down in the dumps, and if you can't pull yourself out of a depressed mood (which inevitably, all artists go through- it's a complex we all have) then you'll never become a professional.
- 13Experiment and express yourself. An artist who sells a piece of art is ultimately selling a piece of him/her self. Let the paints blend, mix, and flow, if it feels good, and trust your talents and instincts.
