Skill Improvement: Inking

Improvement does not come easy without hard work. I also learnt that to improve, I need a focus. In art, it was easy to forget about learning skills when you have so many new tools to try. I cannot count how many times I almost buy new markers, new brushes, new acrylics, new watercolor just because I heard good reviews about it on Youtube.

However, art is not about tools. Sure, tools helped make good art that can last long and have professional look. But there was no need to get all the tools in the world in order to create a good art. Also, buying and wanting to try so many tools can become an obstacle for real improvement.

Before I started taking art seriously, I was just drawing for the sake of drawing. It was not even making art for the sake of art. I didn't think too much about composition, color theory, anatomy, background, all of that. I just sketch, color, and upload, and hope that people would like my art. Not many thoughts went into my pieces. I got serious about it after I learned about the history properly, and also because I admired the level of discipline an artist has in order to become really good at their craft.

So, for this year, I shall be grateful for my complete collection of Micron pens and one Kuretake brush pen. Just with 8 pens I can already create full blown, complete illustrations. I will master inking with these pens and brush pen, and only focus on little bits of other tools. My main drive will be to draw as much as I can with pen.

What about you, aspiring artists? What tools are you going to be good at and what aspect of your art are you going to improve this year?