Finding Your Own Art Style

Trying something. I ripped the pattern off of Vectorstock, but I'll be replacing it for the final (if ever I get to it). I've also added the original drawing.

It's a concern many young artists have: "How do I find my art style?" And I addressed this concern in a Facebook post some months ago.

You're familiar with the elements of art--line, shape, form, texture, shade, color, space. And every art style is based on these elements. Not only that, art styles also cover composition, themes, and preferred subjects. Even the materials you choose to use figure into your style, as each medium can create a special effect or result that other media can't.

In a nutshell, an art style is about how you interpret life.

When you look at two drawings from two different artists, you'll see that each artist would have their own personal takes on the elements of art. One artist might use mostly thin lines, cross-hatching, and angular shapes, while the other artist might use more organic lines, lots of blacks, and rounded shapes. These two artists have chosen their "recipes," their own ways of interpreting life.

More insightful artists, particularly those who are more into fine art, develop their style as a reflection of their views of the world. They essentially ask, "How do I express how I feel using the elements of art and composition?" Many art critics would interpret artworks using that vocabulary. "Mr. Artist has always been very critical of the commercialization of culture, and you can see that in his blocky forms, the stoic, almost hypnotized, look in the faces of the the people he paints."

If you're struggling to find your art style, you actually already have one. You just don't like it. If you want to find a better art style, or a unique one, you have to take action.

1) Who do you want to emulate? Every artist will have their influences. An artistic influence is simply anything that influenced how you work with the elements of art/composition/themes, etc.. When I was in early college, my strongest influences were John Romita, Jr. and Alan Davis. But when I discovered Adam Hughes, I almost immediately gravitated to his style. Moreover, Adam Hughes' influences included Alphonse Mucha, Normal Rockwell, and Kevin Nowlan. When you analyze some of Hughes' work from the mid-1990s, you can see bits of Mucha, Rockwell, and Nowlan in his drawings.

What this means is that you have to study the works of your influences. How did your favorite artists work with the elements of art? For instance, with Hughes' work, I like how he renders the female form, how he executes light and shadow, as well as the classic expressiveness of his poses. And I would take those and try to "copy" them. But I also like the dynamism in the works of Bryan Hitch and Ivan Reis, so I would add that into the mix. More recently, I was drawn to the hatching styles of Stephen Segovia and Sergio Toppi, so I'd add those to my drawings as well.

2) Ultimately, it's a mix and match. You would have to spend time experimenting. If you like how an artist draws eyes, or hair, use that in your drawings. It's going to be sloppy at first. It might take weeks, or months. You have to be willing to try several approaches.

3) Apply the "recipe" to other subjects. There would be subjects that your favorite artist hasn't drawn yet, so do take the time to find out how you can use the style on those other subjects. Everything is trial-and-error.

4) Make it natural. Part of the process is making the recipe a natural part of you, and the only way for that to happen is for you to implement that style to most of your drawings. One thing to note, however, is that we are individuals. We are unique in our own way. We may try to force ourselves to implement a style we really like, but we also have to consider the natural way we draw. I could forever try to be a clone of Adam Hughes, but over time I've discovered my own flow. Take the drawing of the woman I made for this blog post, particularly the blocky hair. That's not something I picked up from any artist--it just "flowed" out of me while I was doing it. It's an effect that I've begun to apply during doodling sessions, but in this case I've used it in an actual piece.

In singing contest-speak, you can always try to copy your favorite artist, but you have to allow your personal artistry to shine through naturally.

Many young artists have a hard time wrapping their heads around having to copy other artists. Do you have to copy another artist? The answer is no, at least not consciously. Art is a reflection of life, so whether or not you copy from another artist, you will still be "copying" something. 

And, most importantly, even if you think you've found your style, it will continue to evolve. Be open to that.