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Is drawing a natural talent or learned?

We tend to believe that to do something we have to be talented or be born with given talent. However, any Olympic athlete or renowned musician will tell you that there is no such thing as becoming successful purely because you are talented. Talent can only get you started, but true skill is built over time.

If you want to learn how to draw but you’ve told yourself that you are not good enough, you are wrong! You’ve been lying to yourself maybe because you are scared of failure or because you’re feeling lazy and you don’t want to put in the hard hours of work to learn a new skill. The truth is, we could all be talented and skilled at anything if we would only get going. We could put in a few hours every week and after a couple of years, we would be highly skilled at whatever we’ve been practicing. Our only problem is that we tend to be lazy and we self-sabotage when we think that only people with a talent for something should be doing it. Even if you suck at first, it doesn't matter! Keep practicing and enjoying the journey. Life is not about perfection and you will never achieve anything if you don’t break out of your shell.

What are the 7 elements of art?

We probably all had an art teacher who kept listing the 7 elements of art but, sadly, we never listened. If you already forgot what these elements are continue reading and find out.

1. Line
2. Shape
3. Form
4. Space
5. Texture
6. Color
7. Value

You might be wondering why the elements of art are relevant or why it is important to know what they are before you start learning how to draw. Well, first, the elements matter because every artist in the world will use several to create any form of art. Without elements, we wouldn’t have art. Knowing what are the elements will allow us to analyze any particular piece of art, describe the intentions of the artist, and communicate our thoughts and feelings about the piece of art. Some experts tend to compare the elements of art with the elements in chemistry, in the sense that they both serve to build “blocks” to create something. So, the next time you draw something, we recommend you think of the elements you are using to create your piece.

What is the first thing to do when learning to draw?

If you want to learn how to draw we recommend you first define what it is that you want to draw. At first, you will be learning general things but keep in mind that classes are not the same for students who want to draw landscapes to students who want to draw portraits. However, art students usually first learn how to draw geometrical shapes. Your art tutor will give you lessons on how to draw spheres, cones, and cubes as you learn about shapes and forms. As you learn how to draw forms, you will also learn about shadows and light. Understanding light is as important as understanding any of the other elements of art. Learning to draw is challenging because it’s about creating on a piece of paper a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional object. So, you will learn to create the illusion of depth, space, and distance. As you start to progress and move into advanced levels you will learn about curves, ellipses, cross contour lines, and then you will learn how to draw a little more complicated things like a house, a donut, a tree, and more. Once you go into harder levels you will learn to draw a hand, a face, textures, and all kinds of objects.