I want to learn art

November 3, 2021 2:06 PM

Looking for blogs, instagram accounts, books, classes and other resources to help me learn to doodle and watercolor. iring.

I am a creative person — a writer by profession, a knitter, and during the pandemic, I got really into cross-stitch and embroidery. But I have an itch telling me to start picking up paints and pens to make art on paper.

I have always had this self-limited belief that I wasn't a good artist and I am ready to rewire that belief. I DO NOT want to create hyper-realistic art. I am more interested in the Matisse-style blobs and doodles that are popular right now. My artistic aesthetic leans towards Mondrian, Warhol, Cruz-Diez, etc. I love color play and do a lot of that already in my knitting and other needlework.

So far I have downloaded the Sketch A Day app for daily prompts and inspiration. I follow an artist I really love who does tutorials, One Tooth Moose. I am looking for more accounts like this, basic tutorials, artists who have a similar aesthetic, or even books or online classes in this vein.

Even just insta accounts of similar artists would be insp

posted by Brittanie to Media & Arts (11 answers total)

I like Art by Annamarie (on YouTube — posting via phone so I don’t have a link handy). She’s half of the couple that does the “The Narrowboat Experience” British canal boat vlog series, and she does art tutorials (and sells her own art) on the other channel. I work in digital so I’ve never tried to follow along with natural media, but she’s good at explaining the whys and hows of watercolor technique.
posted by Alterscape at 2:10 PM on November 3, 2021

I have two very talented artist friends who swear they learned everything they know from Bob Ross.
posted by The Underpants Monster at 3:48 PM on November 3, 2021

"Friend, are you paralyzed by your ironclad conviction that you can’t draw? Professor Chewbacca aka Professor Old Skull aka cartoonist Lynda Barry has had quite enough of that nonsense!"

Barry's Syllabus and Tumblr might also be of interest.
posted by MonkeyToes at 4:00 PM on November 3, 2021 [7 favorites]

I second Lynda Barry's Syllabus and her book Making Comics. They are great for getting people who think they can't draw drawing or re-introducing people back into art making.
posted by hoodrich at 4:24 PM on November 3, 2021 [2 favorites]

Jay Lee Painting, on YouTube, paints with acrylics, which are easy to blend and can be as precise or as free form as you like.

I also like Deepak's Art and Craft, who uses pastels.
posted by rakaidan at 5:40 PM on November 3, 2021

I enjoy the Let’s Make Art watercolor tutorials. They’re fun, informative, low pressure, and they make me a happy artist.
posted by ReginaHart at 7:31 PM on November 3, 2021

@britchida (IG) does a lot of process videos and is thinking about setting up virtual classes.
posted by Gymnopedist at 7:35 PM on November 3, 2021

I'm gonna 3rd Lynda Barry. Everyone can do interesting drawing and painting. Lynda Barry encourages the process.
posted by ovvl at 8:24 PM on November 3, 2021

Sketchbook Skool offers lots of classes and encouragement for beginners.
posted by MelissaSimon at 8:10 AM on November 4, 2021

I'd highly recommend Creativebug. Our local library provides free access, maybe yours does too?

There are lots of drawing and illustration and painting courses, that range from one session to 30 day challenges. I like that a lot of them are taught by fairly recognizable instructors, like Molly Hatch and Lisa Congdon. (they also have lots of embroidery classes if you want to expand in that area as well!)
posted by Sweetchrysanthemum at 8:19 AM on November 4, 2021 [2 favorites]

Josie Lewis has some nice resources if you just love to groove on color. The paint kit she sells has a terrific color palette. Typical watercolor sets are geared toward landscape tone—Josie’s are super punchy brights.
posted by Sublimity at 9:14 AM on November 4, 2021 [3 favorites]