It’s not unusual for me to become confused about what I’m doing from the get-go, so I always spend time at first just trying to make sure I’ve got all the assignment details right. Fairly often, I’ve gotten some part of the instructions wrong (though even when I don't, I usually think I do). I’ve found that I get things accomplished more quickly, if I’m away from, well…everything…I do better in a solitary confinement sort of situation, because I’m very easily distracted.
I write a lot after I get an assignment…it seems to make sense to take the ideas from my head and put them into words, before I begin to draw. After I finally come up with some ideas that seem workable, I might do a little research first, maybe look at a few reference images, and probably do some reading. Then, I agonize through stick figure thumbnails for composition. (If I get much more elaborate with my thumbnails than stick figures, I get bogged down, trying to perfect them.) Sometimes I have to stop and write some more. When the thumbnails are done, I’ll eventually be able to choose a few that I like, but decisions are difficult for me. I usually try to pick at least 3-5 that I like, maybe see if I can make them better, and then eventually try to pare the selection down to one, if that’s what I need.
My process for the portraits I do outside of school doesn't include thumbnails. I usually take photographs at a client's location, then, most of the time, I put them on the computer and collage dog parts and a client-approved background together in Photoshop, to create a composition that the client likes. I then use the collage as my drawing reference for everything.
Once I’ve decided on the direction I’m going to take, composition-wise, I either make a larger, more finished sketchbook drawing, or I move directly to full-size graphite drawing on tracing paper, using reference material. If I’m really confident in the composition of the thumbnail(s), and am afraid I can’t correctly size it/them up manually, I’ll enlarge it/them via the computer to the drawing size. It seems to help a lot to have a full-size composition reference.
I usually do massive amounts of reference research. I often have a lot of trouble drawing out of my head, so I try to make sure I have as many specific photo references as possible. It's possible that I overdo it on the reference material. A few times, I’ve collaged my reference photos into the correct composition in Photoshop and used that to draw from, because I also have a hard time putting the different reference elements of a drawing together properly in my head and then transferring them to paper. A collage takes a little time (though I’ve noticed I’ve gotten faster); it adds a step or two, to the process, but it seems to work for me, because when I’ve tried this, the finished drawing always seems to be better.
Once the tracing paper drawing seems right, I transfer it to the working surface for my final piece. I’m still trying to find an easier way to do that at home. Sometimes I rig up a sort of rickety replica of a light table, but if my painting/drawing surface is too thick for that to be of any use, I either use graphite transfer paper, or I trace over the back of the tracing paper drawing, & then transfer it onto my painting surface. I’m not a huge fan of graphite paper, because the lines sometimes bleed through paint.
If I’m painting, I try to mix my colors first. I just realized it’s been so long since I’ve painted that I’ve forgotten what I usually do next. Paint, obviously, but how? I think I try to get the mid-tones down, leaving highlights if I remember to (adding ‘em back in if I don’t), and then I darken the shadows. This is usually where I manage not to go far enough with the values, or maybe this is when I usually run out of time.
My biggest problem is probably that I get bogged down with very small details when painting or drawing. I can spend an inordinate amount of time trying to fix or figure out, one tiny thing. On the previously posted Invisible Cities piece, I think I worked on one tiny cart and itty-bitty person for days, because I had such a terrible time getting the perspective right.
Describe what you think your creative process should be like.
I’m not sure there are any huge problems with the process I have, since I’m fairly sure I’m essentially following the process we’ve used in class (with a change or two to try to compensate for a couple of specific problems that I have); it just seems to take me forever. I'm open to any helpful feedback. I hate thumbnails, but that’s obviously something I just need to get over---I’d like to come up with a magic number of thumbnails that would be enough to generate good, strong ideas, but not so many that it feels like torture. It’d be great for my process to be easier and quicker, but I think that probably only comes with practice, and maybe a better-working brain. I’m reasonably sure that some of my problems are due to the brain-wonkiness I experience, that I don’t have much control over. I try to work around that dysfunction, but the severity and effects change, and I’m not always successful.
Research and describe a professional creator's creative process.
Here's James Turner's take on the creative process.
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And then there's Nate Williams' creative process. I ran across it and thought that at least parts of what he had to say were very relevant to what I'm trying to do.
He gets the specifics of a job from a client, and then (sometimes) pulls his inspiration from the environment around him. If this is his aim, he does his preliminary sketches somewhere away from home, on an aimless bus ride, on a park bench, taking a walk. He says that this kind of activity fires up his creative spark.
He also uses words. He tries to think of 2-4 words that relate to what he’s trying to create. Then, for each of those words, he thinks of other things…either words or images…associated with them, making columns of words/images under each of the original words. He then rearranges the words, one word from column A, one from column B, one from column C, etc., to create ideas. (An example of this part of the process is here. He gives an additional link for helping with the idea process, here.)
Next he creates rough pencil sketches to use when he talks to his client about his ideas. He takes digital photos of the sketches, because he says that’s quicker than scanning and the quality at this stage, isn’t important. Then the concept sketches go to the client, he gets phone or email feedback from the client, and revises the concept until he has something the client is happy with.
His next step is to begin creating the work. He says he likes “organic textures and loose free-flowing lines.” He uses a lot of different media, from acrylics to watercolors, to Sharpies to India ink, and more. He says that he’s trying to “create a library of modular pieces” that can be put into his computer and then changed and used repeatedly. He says this allows him to change things easily and turn his work around quickly. He frequently re-uses bits from other work, and says this helps speed up the creation of new compositions. He then modifies the work, and tailors it to meet the needs of the current illustration.
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