[Discussion] increasing creativity in art?

[u/MetalSilverSerpent]

As title says.

I personally feel im not being as creative as i could be, at least lately. So that makes me think about this, how i can improve, or how you guys approach it

So I'm curious, what helps you fuel or improve your quality and range of ideas for art?

Thanks!

[u/No-Meaning-4090]

Creativity is born out of a healthy and insatiable curiosity. Here's how I like to think of it;

Imagine a Connect-the-Dots picture. Every time you learn, experience, consume, or absorb something new, you give yourself a new dot to use to create said Connect-The-Dots picture. The less diverse your curiosity is, the fewer dots you're giving yourself, and this, your work will be simpler, uninspired and your usage of those dots would be easier to compare to other people who have the same dots as you. The goal is then to give yourself as many dots as you possibly can. Not only does that provide more complexity or specificity to your overall picture, but the more dots you have the more you increase your chances of connecting those dots in a way only you can.

This analogy is still a work in progress for me, but my point is, if you're feeling uninspired or unimaginative, go look for new things in order to give yourself more dots to play with.

[u/MetalSilverSerpent → u/No-Meaning-4090]

makes sense. never thought of it that way, but I really like it and I feel it can help. thank you for sharing! I’ll try to implement this :)

[u/Precursor777]

Ime creativity comes best when you're just fucking around or bored. Avoiding the constant stream of stimulation from the internet might help because when you're entertained all the time you can't think of stuff to entertain yourself.

[u/Mindless_Fan3604 → u/Precursor777]

I agree. I also think trying new things is great. And remember that you should always be ok with sucking at something and trying it anyway. It helps break you out of monotony.

[u/mongdej]

I think part of the reason might be that these days there's so much pressure to push art out. More and faster. All the time.

Sometimes you just get lucky and a cool unique idea pops into your head. But most of the time creativity is about thinking through a problem from different angles, and iterating on the solutions that came to mind. The initial concept is probably going to be rather obvious, and only as you consider it from other directions, and look through references, the more interesting connections will start forming.

And nowadays I feel like this is becoming increasingly more difficult to do, as the deadlines keep piling on, or when you need to feed the social media algoritms.

[u/Tofei_]

I feel nobody ever talks about this but expanding your visual library is as important as any other art study. I too have been noticing a decline in creativity within my art but it’s not something to feel bad about. It’s just means that you might wanna stop studying whatever you were studying and focus on making art that feels like you. Try out new color schemes. Draw clothing you’ve never drawn before. Make fanarts of multiple characters from different medias. Use brushes you’ve never used before. Try out new shading techniques. Also try stepping out of your comfort zone every once in a while. this might be kinda specific but if you find yourself drawing characters with the same pose and gender maybe try switching that up a little.

[u/upslice]

Aim to draw inspiration from anything and everything and collect it all in one place (for me it’s a notion page). Screenshots from movies, words whose meaning you like, song lyrics, book quotes, colour palettes, other artworks, whatever lights that fire when you see it. Then when you’re feeling uninspired you can go back and make connections and investigate different inspirations. Good luck and ride the flow of creativity 〰️

[u/notthatkindofmagic]

When you decide to 'be creative' as opposed to just going about your day, it takes a minute to switch gears. That looks different for everyone. Find your way.

When it comes down to it, creativity at it's core is a combination of knowing what you already know, and choosing to be inclusive concerning everything you don't know. (Keeping in mind that whatever you include, you'll have to justify later. If you want to be taken seriously).

Don't think about what is and the limitations that are imposed on what is. Think about what could be if those limitations were not there.

If there's one thing I learned in school, it's that limited experience leads to limited creativity.

All the unfortunate meatheads who took art class because they thought it was going to be easy made that very clear.

So, read. A LOT. But, don't read crap. Search for the big names in whatever genre you're interested in. I was all about science fiction, but don't limit yourself.

Don't take shortcuts. Movies are for entertainment only. They are produced with limitations in mind e.g. - your average human's attention span.

Depending on your background, your goal, and the differences between them, you may have a lot to learn.

Don't be discouraged. You'll get there, and the journey is worth the time and effort in and of itself. Not to mention the huge benefit to your imagination/creativity.

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[u/FoolishDancer]

More quiet time just thinking and day dreaming.

[u/Whyte_Dynamyte]

You get your best ideas when working. Put the studio time in, and the ideas will rollin. It’s also important to remember that how one does something is generally more important than the subject of the image.