February 7, 2017
Learn How To Draw In 2017 – How I Plan To Help You
by Corrina Thurston
Everyone here knows that I’m a professional artist. This also means that, whether it be via social media, email, or in person, I get asked questions almost daily. Some of these questions are about what I charge for a commission, or if a certain original drawing is for sale. Some of them, however, are questions about drawing:
- How do I make colored pencil so vibrant?
- How do I get so many small details?
- How on earth did I create the skin and wrinkles for the African Elephant drawing?
- How do I draw water?
I get these questions a lot, and I’m more than happy to give advice and try to answer them.
With all these questions filtering in, I realized that there’s a huge audience out there of people who want to know these things. So if you’re one of those people who wants to know HOW I create my drawings, you’re in luck!
First Step: Tutorials
One of my big goals for 2017 is to help people learn how to draw using colored pencil and graphite. Not only do I feel that these mediums are underappreciated in the art world, they can be difficult! There’s a lot of people out there wondering how to best utilize these mediums.
So how am I planning to help?
First, I’m creating Step-By-Step Tutorials! These are inexpensive products you can buy directly from my website and download as a PDF to use whenever you want. These are tutorials for specific drawings, and I have two already available for you, with more coming soon! Check them out here.
These Tutorials average 20 pages and explain in detail, with photos to help you, exactly how I drew each piece. The Tutorial above, of the African Elephant drawing, is 22 pages long. You don’t need many materials to complete this drawing, and the Tutorial is only $12. Once you pay for it you can download it at any time, and you have lifetime access! You can come back to it over and over again, and what you learn from this drawing, you can apply to any other drawing you do.
If you have any questions along the way, contact me! I’m more than happy to answer questions or clarify anything you need. I’m here to help!
Second Step: Online Courses
After I create a few Tutorials to get you going, my next step is going to be to create some online courses. These will be mostly focused on colored pencil drawing.
The first course is going to be about the basics of colored pencil. You’ll learn how to layer, blend, create different types of textures and details, create shine, make the color vibrant and opaque, make it realistic, and have fun while doing it! You won’t need any experience to take this course, it’s for beginners and intermediates alike.
Then I’ll create courses that will be more specific, like how to create life-like cat portraits in colored pencil, or how to draw a human portrait in colored pencil, how to draw water in colored pencil, etc.
Third Step: In-Person Workshops
My third way to help you learn to draw better is to teach in-person workshops! This will start out locally, and I’m in the process of finding venues to do so in the Burlington, VT area, and central VT.
So if you’re local, keep an eye out for an announcement about an upcoming workshop, possibly in the Burlington or central Vermont areas!
These workshops, similar to the online courses, will start out focusing on the basics of colored pencil. Then they’ll progress to more specific subjects or techniques and more intermediate levels of experience.
If you know of a place or organization who might be interested in hosting a workshop of mine, let me know in the comments below or by contacting me here!
I’m excited to get going on these exciting new projects and looking forward to seeing what you create!
Great extension of your fine work:-). Good luck.
Thanks, Cassie! I’m looking forward to it!
I so love your work!!! I am learning to draw pet portraits and I am really looking forward to your online courses….please please p,ease add me to you mailing list so I don’t miss them ❤❤❤❤❤
Hi Heather! Thanks so much for the compliment! I’m so glad you like my work. I’ll add you to my email list and you should get a confirmation/welcome email soon!
Would love for u to send me packets with instructions, I don’t have a computer. I do have iPad and iPhone. Have you considered doing that? Please let me know, thank you JoAnn