Best Drawing Workouts For Artists - Improve Drawing Skills
Finding time to practice drawing can be tough, especially when you're starting. But making a habit of it is essential if you want to improve your skills. The best way to do that is by engaging in some quick, daily drawing exercises. Here are a few of our favorites to get you started. Give them a try and see how they help you improve your drawings!
What are the best Drawing Workouts for artists?
Whether you're a beginner or an experienced artist, these exercises will help strengthen your skills and provide valuable practice in both traditional and digital art.
1) Observation
Observation is critical when it comes to drawing. By observing your subject, you can understand its form, proportions, and details. This understanding is essential for creating a realistic drawing. The next time you sit down, take a moment to examine your surroundings. What primitive shapes make up the objects in this space? Are there any cubes, spheres, or cylinders, or are they a combination of these shapes? Remember, we are training our brains to identify objects. It is more effective to name the shapes that make up the object rather than the actual object itself. Make observation a daily practice.
2) Circles
Circles are some of the most basic shapes in drawing, but they can also be some of the most difficult to draw accurately. When drawing a circle freehand, it's essential to start with the right mindset. Rather than thinking of the circle as a perfect geometric shape, try to think of it as an organic shape that flows and ebbs. The best way to achieve this is to draw from the shoulder rather than the wrist. This will give your circles a more fluid quality. Another helpful tip is to use a light touch when first starting. You can always go back and darken your lines later if needed. With a bit of practice, drawing freehand circles will become second nature.
3) Straight lines
Drawing straight lines is something that many people struggle with, including me. The trick that finally worked for me was drawing from the shoulder, rather than the wrist. Instead of moving my wrist back and forth, I keep my arm relatively still and just move my whole shoulder. This gives me much more control and produces a straighter line. Give it a try next time you struggle to draw a free-hand straight line! It can also be helpful to draw points on your paper and then connect the dots with a straight line.
4) Triangles
Drawing Triangles is a variation of the line exercise that forces you to give more thought to how you're laying down your lines. It also forces you to vary the directions of your lines so that you're not just drawing vertical and horizontal lines.
5) Eggs
Drawing egg shapes is a great way to practice drawing curves and getting a feel for drawing freehand. The egg is a bit more challenging than the circle exercise, but it will be beneficial in the long run. The egg shape is very commonly used in anatomy and head drawings. With a bit of practice, you'll be drawing perfect egg shapes in no time!
6) Organic shapes
Drawing organic shapes is a good warm-up exercise. Next time you find yourself struggling to come up with ideas for your sketchbook, draw organic shapes. Once you've mastered them, you'll be able to apply them to drawing anything from flowers to trees.
7) C curves
Drawing curves is a variation of the straight-line exercise. Whether you're sketching a portrait or painting a landscape, knowing how to draw smooth, flowing lines is essential.
The first step is to decide what size and shape you want your curve to be. Once you have an idea in mind, use a pencil to create your curved line in one fluid motion, lightly. As you move along the curve, you can vary the pressure on your pencil to create different thicknesses. For a more organic look, try to avoid making your lines too perfect or symmetrical.
8) S curves
It's essential to become comfortable with drawing S-curves. Have fun with this warmup by adding variation to the shapes and sizes of each bend. Ensure that you draw your curves with confidence, maintaining a continuous and flowing motion. Avoid using a series of small lines to form the S shape.
9) Squares
Squares and rectangles are constructed using four straight lines. Start by drawing two parallel lines. Then, draw another two lines connecting the first set of lines at the opposite end. You can pull through the lines. You do not need to stop your lines perfectly at each corner.
10) Ovals
Drawing ovals is more challenging than drawing circles, but the technique is similar. Ensure that you draw from your shoulder, not your wrist. Hover your pencil over your paper and make the motion of an oval. Visualize what it will look like on the page. After a few passes, lightly place your pencil on the paper and make your mark. You can go around the oval two or three times to help improve accuracy.
11) Ribbons
To draw a ribbon, start by drawing a curved line. Then, add another curved line that mirrors the first. Next, draw a series of lines connecting the two curves. Don't worry about any lines that intersect. This exercise will come in handy when you start to draw drapery.
12) Value Scale
A value scale is a gradation of values from dark to light. It is used to produce a range of tones within a drawing. A value scale can be created using any medium, but a pencil is often preferred as it is easy to create a range of tones with subtle variations. To create a value scale, start by drawing 5 boxes. Then, using a pencil, fill in the five boxes with increasingly light values. Start with the darkest value at one end, and gradually lighten the value as you move along each box.
13) Emotional lines
This is a fun one! Think of an emotion. It can be happiness, anger, love, or anything you want. Consider what that emotion would look like if you could draw it as a line or series of lines. Then, draw it. This exercise is excellent for adding line variation to your drawings. You'll be surprised how much emotion can be conveyed with a simple line or two!
14) Light lines
This technique can add variation to most exercises on this list. For example, draw one page of light circles. Focus on drawing light lines. We want to get into the habit of working from light to dark, and it's very important to be able to default to a light line.
15) Dark lines
Similar to the light lines technique, we can apply this technique to some of the exercises on this list. Focus on drawing all your lines using more pressure to create a darker line.
16) Big to small
This is another technique we can use to modify the exercises on this list. It is a good habit to draw big shapes from small shapes, from general to specific. Next time you draw a page of squares or cylinders, start with some of them big at first, then make them smaller and smaller as you fill the page.
17) Cubes
Drawing cubes may seem daunting, but it is essential to understand how volumetric shapes work. Start by drawing a square. Then, draw the front face and the back face of the cube. Finally, connect the two sides, and you have your cube. As you advance in your practice, you will need to understand volumetric shapes to understand how forms are constructed.
What are drawing exercises?
Drawing exercises are an excellent way to enhance your skills and acquire new techniques. Whether you're a beginner or an experienced artist, there's no better way to practice than by putting pencil to paper and getting those creative juices flowing. But what exactly are drawing exercises, and how can you make the most of them?
Drawing exercises are designed to help you improve your drawing ability. They can range from simple doodles to more complex compositions, but the aim is always the same: to help you enhance your techniques and become a better artist. And the best part is that anyone can do them! Whether you're just starting or you've been drawing for years, these exercises will help you hone your skills and take your art to the next level.
So what are you waiting for? Get out your pencil and paper and start practicing! You'll be surprised at how much your skills will improve with a bit of time and effort.
Why do artists need to exercise?
Drawing exercises are an excellent way to develop good habits and hone your craft. By doing simple exercises daily, you can build your muscle memory, which will help you gain control of your lines. This muscle memory will aid you in creating more complex drawings. In addition, drawing exercises can help build your confidence. The more you practice, the more confident you will become in your abilities.
Conclusion
Drawing exercises are essential to any artist's practice, regardless of ability. From basic warm-up exercises to more complex compositions, we can hone our skills and become better artists. By investing a bit of time in daily drawing exercises, we can help ourselves understand shapes, build muscle memory, and increase our line confidence.