Introduction#
I've been calling the name CG Art Lab for so long, yet rarely discussed the creative experiences and insights in CG art. I decided to start a series of articles, not focusing too much on specific operational techniques—there are plenty of those online—but mainly to share my experiences and understanding of this art form.
This series is aimed at novice friends who are interested in digital art creation but don't know where to start; experts can skip it, as it may seem redundant to them.
The content I write must convey well-founded conclusions.
I am a novice in writing, and the content I produce is aimed at amateur newcomers to digital art creation. Therefore, it is necessary for me to say some "well-known nonsense." I cannot gauge the information volume and knowledge reserve of every reader, nor their emotional control and independent thinking abilities. I think this is also why professional writers often explain the same issue from several angles and always provide multiple examples to support their viewpoints.
The Power of Points, Lines, and Planes#
I have been exploring digital art creation for nearly a decade, and I have not gained any noteworthy fame or money from it; I am driven solely by interest and passion, and what I have gained is more nourishment for my main job. Because of my main job, my creative output can be described as ridiculously low, with only about 30 pieces produced in ten years. But despite this low output, and despite not having any so-called hits (I am rather grateful for that), many interesting things have happened during this time.
Because of these works, I attracted clients with similar aesthetics, which led to other business deals, and this is still the case;
Because of these works, I was able to study abroad and, as the first Chinese person (as my mentor said), won the annual Best Art Research Award in Thailand;
Even during my thesis writing period, one of my pieces was bought by a foreigner. It can be said to be the most unexpected income in my life so far.
I never thought of using these paintings to make money; they belong to my art, and once created, they can be viewed for free. I just wanted to leave something behind to feel that I hadn't wasted this opportunity to live and to give myself an explanation.
In the process of learning and creating these seemingly absurd, nonsensical, useless works, I gradually discovered their significant impact on my work and life.
As Steve Jobs said in his 2005 speech:
Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something - your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
Let me translate that:
Again, no one can predict the future; the cause and effect between events often only become apparent in hindsight. You have to believe that cause and effect will connect in your future life. People need to have some beliefs, whether it's intuition, destiny, karma, or whatever; believing in the connection between cause and effect will give you the confidence to follow your will, even if it means going against the grain, and never stopping. Only then can you achieve something.
Yes, only when you look back at the past can you discover the seemingly useless actions that slowly formed miraculous connections and the power that arises from these interconnected actions.
An interesting thing happened: I discovered that a designer I greatly respect, Matthew Encina, also summarized the same principle, and he even made a handwritten poster. In today's chaotic online environment, finding like-minded individuals is truly gratifying.
What is Digital Art#
Before we begin, it's necessary for novices to understand what digital art is. Instead of searching Baidu for answers, I'll share my own understanding.
At first, I thought that a drawing made with a drawing tablet, an image rendered with 3DMax, or a 3D animation was called digital art; that's what I learned in school.
After entering the workforce, I came into contact with television, VR films, trendy toys, music festivals, virtual idols, graphic advertising, fashion design, jewelry design, app development, and various other fields, and I found that these are also digital art.
Now, I believe that even posting on social media is digital art.
Any creation using digital technology to express one's thoughts qualifies as digital art.
With the rapid development of technology, the threshold for interested outsiders is only getting lower; I think for veterans, the threshold is constantly rising.
Starting anything is difficult; how do you begin?
Start directly before you are fully prepared.
It's Actually as Simple as Posting on Social Media#
Creation, objectively speaking, is not difficult; it's the subconscious that perceives it as hard.
Everyone has two levels of consciousness: the surface subjective consciousness and the subconscious.
If you think something is easy, your subconscious will also find it easy, so the power of the subconscious moves forward, and the subjective consciousness does too. The combined force is naturally very strong, so when learning and doing things, it really feels easy, and you might even think you didn't work hard; it was just good luck.
If you think something is difficult (not out of fear of trouble; trouble corresponds to complexity, and complexity does not equal difficulty), although your subjective consciousness is moving forward, your subconscious has accepted the notion that it's very hard. Once the power of the subconscious outweighs that of the subjective consciousness, it will avoid pain, and the combined force will naturally move backward. This can also explain any decision you've made in life.
You might recall your experience learning any skill. Ideally, it should be a skill you are genuinely interested in, whether it's something as significant as financial management after starting work or as trivial as learning how to spin a pen from your desk mate in school. Think back to how you went from starting to learning and then to mastering it. The source of confidence is hidden in these various experiences. Now, if we talk about a job you are currently doing that is already earning you money, most people will first believe they have the ability to do it well.
In terms of drawing, the basic unit is the stroke; each successful stroke is a small success at a stage, but the first stroke is 99% likely to be unsuccessful.
Confidence is built on these small successes at various stages.
But why do we still doubt when facing a new field again?
The answer is simple: 1. No goal; 2. No accurate goal.
If it's about choosing an offer, starting a company, managing a team, or completing a large commercial project, the goals are set by others, clear, and executable. However, artistic creation initially faces a blank canvas or an abstract 3D window.
I have encountered two situations.
The first is complete confusion. Am I drawing a person? A monster? A landscape? A building? Absolutely no idea.
Now, if I encounter such a situation, I would randomly choose a color and draw a shape. Then I would see what that shape resembles and continue from there. This is a method I invented for myself, which I will discuss further in the second article, "Shapes and Silhouettes."
The second situation is that I might already have an image in my mind, but past experiences tell me that it's too difficult, and I definitely can't achieve it at my level. This is the lack of a clear goal, which is also why the first step in learning to draw is copying. You might say life drawing? In my view, life drawing during the apprentice stage is also copying. The goal of copying is precise; how do we quantify the goal of creation?
At this point, we might take a step back and look from a distance. Today's digital art is no longer limited to drawing with a tablet. Broadly speaking, even posting a social media update or writing a microblog counts as digital art creation. As long as a person is expressing their thoughts, it belongs to art, regardless of the medium of communication. From taking photos and editing them to typing and publishing, who doubts their copywriting and selfies? (Of course, there are those who rely entirely on this for confidence, but that's off-topic and won't be discussed.) When you post on social media, you might even feel a mysterious confidence; artistic creation in its initial stages requires a bit of this mysterious confidence.
Note that this mysterious confidence does not mean that you firmly believe you will receive likes and positive feedback. That comes from the outside and will soon be forgotten; it's unreliable. You truly believe you can do it without needing any support from the outside.
What is an accurate goal? Quantification.
Outlining means completing the outline, coloring means completing the coloring, and detailing means completing the details. Completing any step, any character, a tree, a cloud, or any step within them is a precise goal. Do one step well, then move on to the next, and repeat this process.
Confidence is built on these small successes at various stages.
When I have free time, I love looking at the works of artists I am interested in; to be honest, it's mostly about accumulating aesthetics and appreciation, as I can't learn from masters. The places where I learn are often foreign forums, where the atmosphere is really good. These forums are a mix of frontline professionals and amateur newcomers, where experienced artists share their insights without reservation, and any valuable questions receive answers. In contrast, in my country, you usually have to pay tuition to attend classes first.
The most important point is that as long as the subject matter does not offend others, regardless of how weak the foundation is, there are always people willing to share their work, express their confusion, and ask for suggestions. Some even dare to price their work for sale, just like setting up a small stall. This almost maximally inclusive environment is something I only discovered in my country in the early 2000s, and now there are hardly any such environments and platforms. The market is flooded with works and courses that follow aesthetic trends and advertising for traffic; if you find any, please let me know, and I would be very grateful.
There is No Such Thing as a True Fresh Start#
I really liked what a professional player said back in the QQ group after posting a painting:
"If it doesn't change beyond recognition, I feel embarrassed to post it."
In creation, I always believe that figuring out what to create is more important than figuring out how to create it.
Once you start putting pen to paper, novices will quickly encounter two more difficulties.
- The skill level is not sufficient, and they truly cannot achieve the expected effect.
- They achieve the expected effect but then realize that it is not the content they wanted to paint.
The first seems to have no solution; you can only practice more. But don't forget that this is digital art, and it no longer relies solely on "hand skills." Many seemingly unsolvable problems can actually be resolved by clicking a button or adjusting a parameter in the software. You just need to make good use of search engines to find out where that button and parameter are. Alternatively, you can use another software to achieve it, or even AI. (If you are resistant to using AI to assist in creation, I think this article “Will Painters of Van Gogh's Level Be Replaced by AI?” can help you.)
For example, if the line is always not straight, you can draw a stroke in Procreate and leave it alone; after a while, the line will automatically straighten. In Photoshop, you can use Shift to draw straight lines, and there are even stabilizer brush functions and various symmetry features—there are many methods.
Another example, if you can't find a good color scheme, take a nice photo, apply Gaussian blur, and overlay it on your sketch. By moving, rotating, and scaling this photo, countless excellent color schemes will emerge without needing to try each one yourself.
Yet another example, if you can't draw the face shape accurately, you can use the liquify tool to directly "mold" the correct shape. If the proportions of the facial features are incorrect, you can adjust them in seconds.
Some people think these are cheating or lazy methods, but they are not.
Even though these techniques may cover some deficiencies in basic drawing skills, I believe the more important aspect is that they save time. Basic drawing skills are still necessary, but they are no longer as crucial as in the traditional painting era. In traditional painting, the emphasis on solid hand skills was not only to draw more accurately but also to save time. It was simply due to technical limitations that it had to be that way.
Reverting, layering, overlaying, copying, filtering, importing 3D models... these are the inherent advantages of digital technology.
The troublesome part is the second difficulty. Those works that are already halfway done and have no fatal technical issues may suddenly realize (either through self-discovery or others pointing it out) that the content has deviated from the theme and is not the idea they initially wanted to express. To correct this, a massive amount of rework or even redrawing is required. In such cases, sometimes even the most advanced technology cannot fix it, as it has deviated from the original core direction.
This is particularly reminiscent of that classic joke: you pay for a movie ticket, watch halfway, and think it's a terrible film—do you leave or stay?
Most people won't leave. However, I believe that creation is a bit different. Movies are made by others, and you can't do anything to improve the experience. Creation is self-directed; besides giving up, there is the possibility of correction. Even if you put it away and don't look at it, at least don't throw it away.
The products of digital technology creation cultivate the habit of archiving rather than deleting which is crucial.
I have also encountered such experiences.
When creating the first piece of the SCP - China Series, when I reached the stage of refining the fifth image, I realized that there was a significant problem with the metaphorical symbols in the picture. At this point, I had to decisively overturn the hard work I had put in, regardless of how beautiful the shapes were; I could only save a new version and continue to modify it patiently.
In movies, you often see someone writing something, struggling to get it right, and then crumpling the paper and throwing it away. I think it's better to face the current paper than to take a new one. Many novices often overlook the value of these "historical versions."
The fact is, there is no true fresh start in creation, nor does it ever end; it can only be abandoned.
It may seem like you are facing a new canvas again, but in reality, every action afterward integrates the experiences and memories you thought you had deleted. For something with an unpredictable outcome, all you can do is continuously adjust your direction on the way to achieving your goal. Even if you throw it aside, the lessons learned will seep into the next step, if there are any lessons to be learned.
Amateurs Should Share More#
As a novice, I am certainly an amateur, and even now, I am still an amateur player.
In any field, amateurs are usually the largest group. People are afraid of being seen as amateurs, but amateurs have their advantages. I dare say that in creation, amateurs always have the highest degree of freedom. They already have a certain level of interest and ability, yet they are far from reaching their own ceiling. Moreover, they are more likely to do unconventional things in creation, leading to more possibilities.
Amateurs will use any tools they can get their hands on to try to express their ideas. Especially in the digital age, you don't have to be an expert, you don't have to be wealthy, you don't have to be famous, and you don't need a fancy degree or a career background in a giant company. Online, everyone has the ability to contribute some value.
Therefore, amateurs not only need confidence and courage in creation but should also dare to share their works, thoughts, behind-the-scenes, or even just a sketch. They can share a small experiment, even if it's not public, with trusted friends. The final product is indeed meant to be seen, but many novice friends feel they have nothing else worth sharing. This is akin to saying, "My work speaks for itself."
The truth is, works do not speak for themselves. Most people are genuinely lazy; when I was building my website, I discovered a statistic in the backend. As long as I placed a link to the main site at the beginning or end of an article published outside the main site, the traffic to the main site would noticeably increase. Without that link, it remained flat.
Displaying rich background information about the work is as important as showcasing the work itself.
Due to my profession, I have a hobby of collecting movie soundtracks. If I hear this music for the first time without having seen the movie, I am likely to scroll past it. This is because many soundtrack names are numbered, unless the quality of the music itself is outstanding. In most cases, the opposite is true: I first watch the movie and learn the story, then immediately search for its background music. At this point, the story becomes the background information for the music.
Humans are lazy, but they are also curious. People want to know where things come from, how they were made, and who made them. When you talk about your work, it has a huge impact on how others feel and understand your work, and how they feel and understand it affects how they value it.
Just last month, I met a medical student from Germany on Discord. It all started because I shared my speed painting video in a forum. For a professional video creator, this could be considered a rudimentary video. They saw it and found it useful, added me as a friend, and we started chatting. As we talked, I discovered that she is also a budding YouTuber, sharing many suggestions more suitable for foreign media development, such as how to optimize titles, thumbnails, tags, keywords, filming, and voiceovers. Whether in drawing or making videos, we are both amateurs, but this is the unexpected value that sharing brings.
In the end, how others feel about your work and how they understand your work will naturally influence their evaluation. Believe me, even if you only draw a realistic basket of eggs, if you say nothing, there will still be people who don't understand what you are expressing. Most likely, experts will think it's a practice piece, while other amateurs will likely think you are showing off.
In Austin Kleon's book, Show Your Work, it says:
Words matter. Artists love to trot out the tired line, “My work speaks for itself,” but the truth is, our work doesn’t speak for itself. Human beings want to know where things came from, how they were made, and who made them. The stories you tell about the work you do have a huge effect on how people feel and what they understand about your work, and how people feel and what they understand about your work affects how they value it.
I am also correcting my direction.
I am trying to build a website to showcase my writing, paintings, and behind-the-scenes content.
I am attempting to gather everything I have learned from every field I have encountered and see what fresh ideas can emerge.
I am trying to output higher quality work to compel myself to input higher quality materials.
I am trying to plan different content for various platforms and understand the rules of each platform.
I am trying to connect with people from all over the world and discuss the value of documenting and sharing the creative process with them.
I am trying to embrace all possibilities.
Conclusion#
By now, I think you should have noticed that I haven't separated confidence from courage. They coexist and influence each other in almost everything in life, not just in creation. In the next article, we will discuss another new discovery—“Shapes and Silhouettes.”
The article was first published on: CG Art Lab, and you are welcome to subscribe for free via email.