AuthorTopic: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?  (Read 6945 times)

Offline Melodee

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really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

on: December 29, 2017, 08:37:09 pm
hello! i decided to post this in general discussion because i am not really asking for critique, well sort of but not a specific piece. i have been pixelating for about a year, i did have a moment i saw how horrible my artwork was and it helped to improve. so yeah, now i improved, and i can see why no one ever asks me to commission them or gave any kind of reaction like a favorite on deviantart or a watch or something when i was so bad. but i really do think i improved so why is it still not happening? i did get a lot of help from others but noticed i can also do a lot on my own, i might still need a lot of critique, examples and help but.. i think my designs are honestly good, and that it could help people a lot because the hardest part for most people is thinking of something to draw and i do this without any help, and i do have some skill in coloring and shading so.. it's not that i am completely useless.

these are the reasons i can think of:

- my artwork is still horrible i just don't see it.
- since i still didn't delete my old artwork people avoid my page.
- it's just difficult to get known.

i really want to know so i can do something about it. if you can think of anything else than these reasons i would like to know :( please help!

here is my deviantart page:
https://beardedgrandma.deviantart.com/

Offline Kizu

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #1 on: December 29, 2017, 10:33:02 pm
Well, just improve your art to the point of being commissioned :>

Offline RAV

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #2 on: December 30, 2017, 08:40:30 am
You need to learn about dramaturgy.


I would actually recommend this as an exercise to that:
Take whatever ordinary object in your room and try to draw it in an interesting way, from an unusual angle, with an unusual light.


Practice with setting ordinary objects into unusual situations. Draw an apple on a sky scraper. Maybe the apple is thinking about jumping off!

Draw an apple that slices itself into pieces with a knife, while an orange looks at it in horror.

You could have a pine apple slowly crush an apple to mush in lustful vengeance.

Have the apple shoot at a bunch of onions by spitting its apple seeds on them.

Have the apple flay the skin of a live banana while it cries in agony.

Have the apple stand proud ontop a pile of broken carrot corpses.

But also try work with more subtle suggestion of drama.


Right now, your pieces are too naive, than to be more interesting to a larger audience. I'm afraid they lack the murderous intent of a normal human being.

We are looking full front on just puppets standing there with a blank stare. They have no posture or otherwise expressive quality, to kill innocent fruit.

You can make them pretty all you want, you can refine your art techniques, nothing will really help, but bloody murder. Well, besides rape.

Possibly, make the apple rape a little cherry in a glass bowl, while other fruits are watching and laughing.

Or just dress up an apple and put a wig on it, while jumping into a fruit cake.


But these are just my personal preferences. Remember, there is all kinds of drama.

Once you are well practiced with dramatic scenery, your audience should increase.

You may use your popularity to increase awareness about a healthy diet.

This way you can shut up the jealous people. No jelly for them.



« Last Edit: December 30, 2017, 08:53:53 am by RAV »

Offline Melodee

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #3 on: December 30, 2017, 11:30:42 am
You need to learn about dramaturgy.


I would actually recommend this as an exercise to that:
Take whatever ordinary object in your room and try to draw it in an interesting way, from an unusual angle, with an unusual light.


Practice with setting ordinary objects into unusual situations. Draw an apple on a sky scraper. Maybe the apple is thinking about jumping off!

Draw an apple that slices itself into pieces with a knife, while an orange looks at it in horror.

You could have a pine apple slowly crush an apple to mush in lustful vengeance.

Have the apple shoot at a bunch of onions by spitting its apple seeds on them.

Have the apple flay the skin of a live banana while it cries in agony.

Have the apple stand proud ontop a pile of broken carrot corpses.

But also try work with more subtle suggestion of drama.


Right now, your pieces are too naive, than to be more interesting to a larger audience. I'm afraid they lack the murderous intent of a normal human being.

We are looking full front on just puppets standing there with a blank stare. They have no posture or otherwise expressive quality, to kill innocent fruit.

You can make them pretty all you want, you can refine your art techniques, nothing will really help, but bloody murder. Well, besides rape.

Possibly, make the apple rape a little cherry in a glass bowl, while other fruits are watching and laughing.

Or just dress up an apple and put a wig on it, while jumping into a fruit cake.


But these are just my personal preferences. Remember, there is all kinds of drama.

Once you are well practiced with dramatic scenery, your audience should increase.

You may use your popularity to increase awareness about a healthy diet.

This way you can shut up the jealous people. No jelly for them.

hmm yes i kind of see what you mean but not exactly. the reason i make them all on the same pose and have a blank stare is because it's basically just a design for other people to do something with. i didn't feel "ready" yet to animate them. but what else i understand is to create some kind of meaning behind them to make it less boring. tbh i am not really good in those stuff XDD but i don't think it's really necessary. like, i saw a lot of people who basically made a character in halloween clothes and got a lot of favs. it might make the artwork more interesting indeed, i really agree with that. because when i am looking at artwork i prefer to see something unusual than something we've seen too often. anyway, i still am not quite sure what the reason could be but i am happy you took the effort to reply!

Offline MysteryMeat

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #4 on: December 30, 2017, 01:22:47 pm
no, i'd say new poses and angles are VERY neccesary. it helps build understanding of everything from visualizing in 3d space to just understanding the details of something.

put in the effort! it can be intimidating at first but once you settle into a routine practice session (try to go for it at a bi-daily time for a month) it starts to click and get gradually less of a chore as time goes on. youll even start anticipating drawing new things!
PSA: use imgur
http://pixelation.org/index.php?topic=19838.0 also go suggest on my quest, cmon
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Offline Melodee

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #5 on: December 30, 2017, 01:27:08 pm
no, i'd say new poses and angles are VERY neccesary. it helps build understanding of everything from visualizing in 3d space to just understanding the details of something.

put in the effort! it can be intimidating at first but once you settle into a routine practice session (try to go for it at a bi-daily time for a month) it starts to click and get gradually less of a chore as time goes on. youll even start anticipating drawing new things!

i wasn't saying this wasn't necessary!! my point was that making the image more unusual isn't really necessary for getting more people to commission you, because i saw plenty of people that made things that you see very often :lol:

edit: i also made different angles for some of the creatures i posted, just didn't place it in my portfolio. but poses/animations i haven't tried yet. also i think i am going to take the step but i am not sure if i should focus on making my artwork itself better first.

another edit: im working on this now, i only did the arms yet.

« Last Edit: December 30, 2017, 02:33:51 pm by Melodee »

Offline eishiya

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #6 on: December 30, 2017, 06:15:03 pm
The artworks that are good for helping you improve are always not the same ones that help you get commissions. You need to do both. At this point, I'd lean towards doing the ones that help you improve, as getting better will help you make your portfolio works much better.

Plus, being able to do a wider variety of work makes it easier to get commissions. Characters blandly standing around appeals to a certain moneyed niche, but why limit yourself to that niche?

Offline Ai

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #7 on: January 01, 2018, 01:19:04 pm
To add to Eishiya's good advice:
Practicing poses and dramatization is best done in a traditional medium. If you are trying to arrange pixels, that's a technical concern that's a major distraction from the drama. IME it's really good to get to the point where you can churn out 20 poses in 20 minutes -- then you begin with a selection of options and can arrive at a more informed opinion about what is appealing for a particular piece.

If you insist on being pessimistic about your own abilities, consider also being pessimistic about the accuracy of that pessimistic judgement.

Offline hawken

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #8 on: January 05, 2018, 09:20:24 am
This might be an unpopular view in the "west" but people over here in the "east" copy stuff they like until they get good.

Copying for your own practice can go a long long way, then you can start to riff your own style from that. (just never pass it off as your own on the internet or you will be crucified)

I guess the most acceptable way of doing this is fan-art.

Mix it in with sketching practice, and a good repertoire of poses (comics are good), some colour theory and juxtaposition - you'll be up and running with your own refined style in no time.

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Offline EduardoH

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Re: really what's so bad about my pixel artwork?

Reply #9 on: January 17, 2018, 03:00:06 pm
This might be an unpopular view in the "west" but people over here in the "east" copy stuff they like until they get good.

Copying for your own practice can go a long long way, then you can start to riff your own style from that. (just never pass it off as your own on the internet or you will be crucified)


This is exactly what you should do. That's what people have always done in arts. It circumvents having to think of an idea and goes straight to the grunt work and practicing.
« Last Edit: April 26, 2020, 10:41:05 am by EduardoH »