You're A Better Artist Than You Think 

I needed this

With time, you begin to let your ego go, and instead of comparing yourself in a negative way, you look at other artist's work and think: 'so it's possible to get at this level'. It becomes a parameter :D

'Comparison is the thief of joy'

i felt a little discouraged when I saw Steve Hustons work, but when I got to know that he spent 40yrs mastering that craft whereas I had spent just a few months. It puts things into perspective.

I’m glad my phone not only spies on me, but also read my mind. This is just what I needed to hear.

Instagram does not show you the many years the artist spent working to get that good. You are looking at the top of an iceberg of training and experience!

100% . I followed a ton of artists to be inspired but I find I actually get more overwhelmed and discouraged by being saturated with artists-my age, younger, and older-that seemed to have already accomplished so much more. Better to digest inspiration more slowly to match one’s growth

the process is the fun part honestly. If you stop feeling like you NEED to be good. When you've achieved "good" that feeling lasts 10 seconds i swear

I'm a slow learner and I get anxious when watching speed paint. Already, I'm moving the goal post, it's like shooting a moving target.

I don’t get discouraged. I get motivated. It depends on which side if the coin you look at. The negative side or positive side.

That Bob Ross plushie in the back sparks so much joy

"If you are satisfied with your skill level, you have no motivation to improve" Very true words. Dont see comparison as somthing you should have now, see it as somthing you can reach one day. Keep it steady, keep it consistent. Many artist who can draw very realistic things did not start that way, but steadily kept rising.

I once had a panic attack the day before the start of an art education program because I thought I had to be Leonardo Davinchi. Like, the website literally only said that you should have an intrest for art and all of the pictures of students works weren't astonishingly good. My brain isn't capable of looking at the bigger picture sometimes. At least I enjoy art and won't quit it because I'm "really bad" at it and totally not because I haven't invested as much time and effort into it 😃

The video : 🙂 The doll in the pelvic area in the background : 💀

This happens to me a lot where I feel discouraged because everywhere in my feed there are my peers and professional artists that are way advanced than me and doing a lot better with their art. Thank you for reminding me again and it’s a hard journey for every artist but motivation, learning and time will payoff!

Yes, indeed i'am often feel discouraged everytime i see other great art and became hopeless, but everytime i see an art that is good but easy to draw it couraged me again, motivated me make me say "This is piece a cake, i can draw it."

I am far from a beginner and I will still look at someone else's art and be like, "Wow, I suck"

yep. i improved so much after i stopped going on Instagram all the time. it allowed me to be alone with my art and I realized that "hey, I actually want to learn how to draw wtf!"

This is why instead of comparing yourself to someone you should appreciate their talents and efforts and push yourself to aim higher

What's great about this is that it can apply to so many other aspects of life, including art/media and sketching! There's a lot of messed-up areas of our lives where people can do unfair comparisons between themselves and others (how the beauty industry markets it's products being an infamous example), and it's why it's important to be mindful when we start unfairly comparing ourselves to others. Regardless of what people think of Theodore Roosevelt, his quote "Comparison is the thief of joy" fits perfectly.

I feel like it would be really good for popular artists to show failed WIPS, art they dont like, etc, once in a while. I feel like it could motivate ppl and show that even their idols aren’t perfect.

YES, THIS! I always have my mindset as “there’s no such things as talents, only how long people learn”, i personally really enjoyed my art improvement even though it’s slow. Don’t get discouraged if there’s someone better than you, get fired up and start to practice more! Don’t compare your arts with other people’s arts, compare it to your old arts and see how far you’ve come and give yourself a good job for working really hard to get to this day.

I’m always trying to better myself. I did a portrait a week in pen and ink to get better with proportions. Then I started working on inanimate objects. Now I’m about to start on landscapes and background. With the people and objects, I have started stylizing. After I feel I get some understanding with background, I will work on storytelling (plan on being there by mid summer).

Actually seeing people that draw so good encourages me

When I see some of my favorites working, I then get a boost of “I need to get up right now and paint.” It’s a nice feeling

We legit need this podcast back running.

It's encouraging to keep examples of your own artistic attempts and gauge your progress in terms of improvement in your own work as you combine what you of learned from the artists you imitate plus some original aspects of your own.

I remember the first time I got into the art classroom where I had classes and saw all those paintings so beautiful and realistic and I remember thinking "I'm never going to be able to do such things". Five years later I was painting Arnold Schwarzenegger in a 100×70 canvas 😂

This is why I try and follow artists at all skill levels. 1 - to help support smaller artists and 2 - to help remind myself that it’s a journey. And we all start off somewhere

I think it’s important for people to know that they CAN get better and they CAN match or even surpass those they look up to. We should also always remind ourselves that talent is nothing more than a head start so to speak. It doesn’t matter if you have loads of talent or none at all, you can and will get to where you want to be as long as you put in time and effort.

Sometimes I look at my old sketchbooks, it makes me realise that I’ve gotten way better, and I actually understand some of what I’m doing, it’s a good practice for me personally

i’ve had to tell myself this countless times, but hearing it from someone else makes me feel so much better 😭❤️ thank you

Honestly, looking at other people's work, sometimes inspires me. It's looking at my own work and comparing it to how I would've liked to have been that discourages me.

You don't know how much I needed to hear this today

the piller of worry was my dad. He was brilliant. I never saw anything like what came from his hand in art. But Proko's art education align with what my father's approach art where (pretty darn close) like how to sharpen a pencil, how to hold a pencil, light source (my dad sat me down for that lecture lol). This is a good time to be an Artist. Anyways you always learn something or try something but this takes time. Or you see something like a Sorolla and think oh man I gotta do that lol . 👍 short video always hits insightful!

Intellectually I’m aware that the only way to improve is to not give up and not care how bad your art is as first. But I definitely find myself getting discouraged without realizing it and avoiding trying because of that

This is why I keep old sketches and sketchbooks. I can look back years, months, even days and just see the crazy amount of progress I’ve made.

i need a circle of friends that has this kind of mindset...

I had a rough patch with my confidence for a while when I was younger. I’ve been improving gradually over time, but my younger cousin is amazing and has a steep learning curve. Even though I started seriously learning earlier than her, she zoomed by me in terms of skill and improvement. I’ve since gotten over the soreness and have been trying to rethink how I view my own goals for developing skill. I try not to look at the amazing artists I follow as ‘they’re so much better than me’ and instead think of it as ‘what about their art do I like and how can I learn to do it too?’.

The struggle is so hard, makes the toughest artists.

The good thing about me is when I see videos like those they don’t make me discourage they make me motivated

Yeah, this was pretty much how I thought for most of my life before I finally let loose just recently actually , and I looked at my art from a different angle and realized I was actually pretty good

"Those who do not doubt in their art, achive small things." - Leonardo Da Vinci

I did get discouraged , but i want to improve so im going to art classes, learning, practicing sketches

Thanks guys I needed to hear this.

That's not only our works, that's technically life.

Great advice, applies to a ton of things too.

"if you were satisfied with your skill level you would have no motivation to improve" that's the part that really matters to me bc I always get people who don't understand why I'm always so critical of my own art. I'm happy with how far I've come but I'm not happy with where I am so I'll keep going.

I feel like I was a “fast beginner” as kid where drawing just came easy to me so once it required a little more effort, I felt like I was failing and got scared and discouraged. I rmbr sitting in still life drawing classes and for two hrs beating myself up over spheres, cubes and sculptures and literally holding back tears bc I was so frustrated. I stopped going to classes bc of my crippling perfectionism and didn’t know it at the time. I had a big ego with zero self esteem, so my skill never caught up with my expectations. I rlly regret not sticking it through those classes and allowing myself to make mistakes. So now I’m gonna enjoy my slow zone although I still feel in a rush to master everything, that mindset in the end will only become overwhelming.

I always loved looking at better artists and would try to replicate the technique so I could be a better artist ☺️

I don't get discouraged when I see good artists I get motivated by it.

I think a positive outlook on this is to see those reels and videos of hella talented artists and try improving yourself, like, get inspired! And keep drawing and doodling cause thats the only way you can really get better 👊🙏🙏 i hope it helps for someone reading (:) and that you try it yourself, cause theres always gonna be someone thats quite on quote "better" 💗but theres never gonna someone as unique and special as you 🤗 so dont ever get embarrased to show your art, no doubt in my mind youre gonna be a hell of a great artist too ❤️❤️❤️ stay safe 💕

To anyone who is striving to become a better artist, whether just starting out, trying to go from intermediate to the next level, learning new styles, or perfecting your own, learn to manage your expectations. You cannot compare yourself to professional artists, and you should not, they are, professionals for a reason, but you can use them, their techniques, and ability as good steps for yourself. If you can manage your expectations they you will be proud of your progress and be left more fulfilled overall, it’s a skill that is very useful for learning, you are not born with it, it’s something you must learn, but as always keep striving to improve, you got this :)

I used to get discouraged but recently, following tons of artists motivate me to create my own work :)

As a 3d artist learning character creation I'm always in awe at the characters I see other artists make. But then I actually take a minute to think about it. They've been doing it professionally for 10+ years. I've been learning it on my own for 3 years. Just gotta keep grinding and eventually I'll get there, but not before finding someone elses work I admire.

I have a hard time sometimes because people around me don’t understand sketching in a sketchbook and think every piece of work needs to be a masterpiece. I enjoy just sketching and doodling. It’s good to develop skills and get ideas for bigger projects, but after some comments I doubt myself. Nice to see Marshall.

My friend has always been so much better than I am at art, and he learned so fast, and it made me have such a shitty outlook on my art, and now it's really bothering me to the point where it isn't healthy. I sincerely needed this.

I recommend looking at your old art and redrawing it. It made me feel a lot more proud of my art.

Also you should be analyzing and learning from those artist you enjoy, pick up tricks and techniques that you see to make your own unique spin in your art

I know im not an amazing artist but it takes time, but its nice to hear that from someone who is well, good at art

You should not be discouraged by anything. There is always going to be someone better than you doesn’t matter if you are playing sports or making art. Everyone has their own unique style.

Fine arts from painting, drawing, instruments and singing can bless you with talents but there’s such a wide variety of skills and styles it doesn’t matter how talented you are if you don’t continue to endlessly learn and practice

Tbh When I see art on Instagram and Twitter it makes me wanna work even harder and get up from what I’m doing and draw I’m like intermediate rn but I wanna get better

That last quote hit me hard

What he said at the end is like that with everything and every category of your life. Don't ever feel like u the best... there's always better

This applies to everything, art, dance, sports, singing, stripping, music, grammar, looks, etc

Draftsmen is so underrated

The no motivation to improve is so true, I get better rapidly and then I slowed down because I was satisfied but it just worked against me

I have to listen to this every once in awhile

There is so many talented people out there. And i guess anyone can get good, with practice. I guess its good that there is always someone better than you :)

Idk I see good artists on instagram and it’s more inspiring than anything. Makes me feel like “oh man I can’t wait to keep drawing and hopefully I’ll get to that level someday”.

i’ve never really been i to drawing but some weeks ago i started. it’s been a fun bht difficult start, i was so frustrated and discouraged because i couldn’t seem to get it right, but when i compare my first tries to me recent ones, i can see an improvement. i realised that like you said i was trying to compare myself to professionals or people with much more experience, and it was slowing down my progress. thanks for this!

I felt like i suck for a long time, now i just take inspiration and take notes from the people i follow to learn. And now i actually love slowly learning to get better and see my own journey

Marshall Vandruff is always so inspiring.

I’ve realised that I place other artists in one of two categories without even thinking about it. There are those who inspire me and just looking at their work instantly makes me want to draw and then there are those that make me go ‘man, what’s the point in even trying, I’ll never be that good.’ And then I realised that’s ok. Doesn’t mean what i’m doing is not good or valid. I’ve begun to trust the process and have fun learning more along the way.

Getting discouraged by viewing good art, as an artist is so true! I deleted Twitter for this very reason.

I just compliment every artist i see, beginner or pro. Believe me "jokingly hating" on someone hurts a lot more than it seems.

For me, looking at good art of people on the internet serves as inspiration for me to get better.

I've found the most inspiration in communities with supportive artists who engage and give feedback, building alongside those near my skill level, and avoiding homogeneous "it" styles. There's no need to compare yourself to others. For the most part, compete with where you've been instead of where you think your should be. The answers and abilities will come.

Learn to be inspired, I never have this issue because when I see some really good art I dont feel bad, I just feel like I want to get to that point

This isn’t telling me why I’m a good artist. It’s telling me why I feel bad about my bad art.

I started drawing when i was 4 and when i was 8 or 9 i just didnt draw jack, but now i try to keep my motivation afloat but this channel is the sole reason my motivation for art.

Well put guys!

That just really motivated me !

It used to be very discouraging to compare my art with those I look up to. It’s been 7 years since I started drawing as a hobby and now when I compare my art to how it used to look I feel disgusted with what I used to make and it makes me happy if my improvement. I think I’m good, but before I publish any of my art I’d like to reach a level at least somewhat comparable to where I’d like to be. Looking at people I follow now shows me a goal that isn’t so far anymore, I’m just going to need to get more serious about this to pull through. To any artists struggling with motivation, just draw whatever is fun to you and maybe abstain from social media for a bit, draw a lot and then draw the comparison to the start of the week. I wish you best of luck!

I actually needed this ❤

When I'm on the internet and see people create beautiful art I get inspired to strive to be as good as them, learn from them and try to improve my own art

Speed draws also massively contribute to this feeling. When you watch something gorgeous come together so quickly you tend to forget that it actually took the artist hours to create that painting. Then you try to draw for the same ten minutes, obviously get much worse results and feel disappointed in yourself.

I use other artists to understand their philosophy so I can improve my own, I have no problem whatsoever looking at work that inspires me

good luck to all beginner artists out there😊❤

Wow! I definitely needed to hear this! Thank you!

oh wow i did not realise how badly i needed to hear this lol

Per my highschool art teacher and some of my college professors "the only time you stop growing is when you stop learning. Learning never stops and is on going"

TRUE. I feel like a part of the reason I stopped drawing was that I was satisfied. Been drawing since I was 4yo and I guess I got tired of it almost

Thank you bringing this subject

I used to think and compare in a sort of negative way, but after stepping back a little bit and sort of realizing that.. these are people that have not only been in my exact situation (probably) but have overcome it to become great. It’s such a motivating factor to me and my art now. To see the beautiful and badass renders and say to myself. “Hey, that’s gonna be me someday”. Keep it up everyone. You’re doing great

i draw over 10 years, still havent found my own style and still can learn everyday something new

I definitely needed to hear this, especially since I’m usually kinda slow when it comes to new things

I didn’t know how to put it into words, but yes. At the same time though, it gives you something to match or out do.

I just picked up drawing last week at 25 years old. Something that kept me from attempting it in the past was comparing myself to established artists like this. But since picking it up, looking at these masters only motivates me to get better tbh