By Leila Talbot, staff writer
In an attempt to be actually fast at sketching, unlike how I normally am, I set aside a piece with a deadline to try to do seven unique sketches for a week in a row. I decided to do this challenge because I’ve been getting pressure to open commissions, despite saying I’m not really interested. This helped me realize doing quick art is not for me.
I learned something about myself and art in that week: no need to rush, I’m not doing commissions, I should have fun unless there’s a deadline, only then should I suffer by drawing quickly. My drawing hours, depending on availability, normally fall between 10pm-12am.
Day 1
I wanted to call with friends while working on the sketch, we fooled around so quite a bit of quality was lost. The subject got a lenny face, and I had to rush before midnight so the anatomy suffered.
Day 2
I really wanted to do a time crunch to make up for my crimes of the previous day. I did a colored sketch in 30 minutes, so much of the potential quality was lost. I was beginning to think this challenge was a mistake.
Day 3
After the dissatisfaction I felt yesterday, I decided to put more time into it. The result wasn’t as bad as the previous day, but I knew if I had time to get feedback, it would have looked a lot better.
Day 4
At this point I was emotionally resigned. I did a 30 minute half body sketch and just… left my computer that night.
Days 5-7
I worked on projects I’d been doing for a while. I realized I did not want to draw quickly. I draw slowly, and that’s totally fine. I’m still working on improving a lot, so there’s nothing wrong with taking a few days sketching. Speed is not a virtue in my case, I felt I gained nothing during this challenge.
As long as I understand how I want to work on my art, I do not believe pace matters. To others, it may matter to them more, but there are many others like me who take a while to work, and that is also valid. Art is entirely subjective after all.
