Category: Drawing

This category deals with any topic related to drawing. This can refer to full fledged drawings and sketches, but also drawings that are solely meant as a basis for paintings.

Expanding My Artistic Horizons & Painting Beyond What You See | Liron’s Podcast Episode 99

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In this episode I’m sharing my thoughts on the trajectory I’m planning on taking with my paintings and drawings, in order to expand my artistic horizons and create more, and evolve my AUTHENTIC creation.

Authenticity is Key!

The key here really is authenticity.

I want to create in a way that’s authentic to my artistic vision.

Think about it – why do some people simplify their work? Why do others paint hyper-realistically?

Why do some people go for abstract?

Technique and approach are SECONDARY to your authentic vision. If the vision is abstract – perfect! If it’s realistic – also perfect!

My Artistic Goals

I want to go beyond techniques, methods and “approaches”, and improve my skill of CONNECTING WITH THE REFERENCE, and seeing it with fresh and clear eyes.

I know it’s a bit “woo-woo”, but hopefully this makes sense!

Let me know your thoughts in a comment below, and feel free to reach out on any platform (:

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

ARTISTS – You Are ALLOWED to FAIL | Liron’s Podcast Episode 98

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Are you failing in painting / watercolor / art? In this episode I’m talking about failing and why it’s an inevitable part of success and the artistic journey.

What’s Failing?

My perspective here is that failing is very subjective.

You may not like your painting, while others may LOVE IT. So – did you fail? That will depend on who you ask the questions.

I think another component is whether the end result matches the vision you had in mind for it. And you are the ONLY person who can say the result didn’t match your vision.

So you’re pretty much the only person who can declare a painting as a “failure” (;

Let’s Get to The Point – Failing is Inevitable

If I had to sum up this episode, I’m simply talking about how failing is an inevitable, inseparable part of the artistic journey.

There’s no learning a new skill, growing and improving without it. It’s just not going to happen.

So you better start getting used to the idea of not getting the results you want.

One fascinating thing I came to realize recently is that we fail at ALL levels of skill. In fact – your skill level is irrelevant.

You’ll fail as a beginner, as an intermediate and as an advanced artist. Even with lots of experience and fantastic work to show for. That’s simply the nature of creativity.

To Conclude Failing

The only purpose of this episode, as well as the original YouTube video, is to provide some mental support for you to KEEP GOING and KEEP PRACTICING regardless of the result.

If you love what you do, see potential in it or simply want to do it! – Don’t let the feeling of failure stop you.

I hope you enjoy this one, let me know your thoughts in a comment below, or feel free to reach out through these places…

How to Reach Out / Learn More

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

The Value of REPETITION in PAINTING – Improve Fast & Efficiently | Liron’s Podcast Episode 72

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In this episode I’m talking about repetition – a valuable exercise for improving your drawing and painting skills FAST and EFFICIENTLY.

Table of Contents

1. Repetition in Painting and Drawing
2. Worse 2nd Attempt
3. Internalize
4. Loosen Up
5. Recognizing Recurring Mistakes
6. Conclusion

1. Repetition in Painting and Drawing

Repetition is a great tool for improving. It involves painting or drawing the same subject several times.

This allows for more focused learning, and unlocks some obvious (and less obvious) benefits.

2. Worse 2nd Attempt

Surprisingly enough, you may find that in your repeated efforts you actually do worse.

That’s to be expected.

The 2nd time around, working on the same subject, you lack that same spontaneity that characterized the first version.

You may also have some “arrogance” (very natural, not blaming you (;), and a feeling you “already know” the subject.

Don’t let that deter you from doing this. Even when you don’t notice, you are learning and improving.

3. Internalize

Drawing the same subject / scene several times, allows you to internalize a part of the process, and focus on a different one.

As mentioned, you may find some of your result to be worse, but other aspects may be better.

So take the good with the bad. 

Whenever you try an “extreme” technique, it tends to be accompanied by some growing pains.

Whenever I have a streak of great paintings – I am happy, but also weary of the fact it means I may not be growing.

4. Loosen Up

One side-effect of repetition, that is barely discussed, is how it sets you free and helps you loosen up.

Doing something a second time, and DELIBERATELY at that, makes you less worried about the end result. You can just paint yet ANOTHER version!

This freedom helps you loosen up without you even noticing. And it will show in some of the later attempts.

That’s especially true if you are as impatient as I am. The fear of boredom in the 2nd and 3rd iterations actually motivates me to try something different!

5. Recognizing Recurring Mistakes

That’s really the gist of this exercise. Doing repetitions of the same subject will bring to surface recurring mistakes that might have otherwise gone unnoticed.

And that’s probably the biggest benefit of doing this.

6. Conclusion

I hope this episode encourages you to give this exercise a try.

And by the way, creating a small preparatory painting for a larger piece, or even just a preparatory sketch – are also a form of repetition.

It’s up to you to decide just “how much” repetition you are interested in doing.

And with that, let’s move onto the artist corner!

Artist Corner

Today I talked about Samuel Colman, an English painter. He lived from 1780-1845, and painted mostly portraits and landscapes.

His landscapes are what really grabbed me about his art. It’s rooted in realism, with an added layer of surrealistic atmosphere

You can check out some of his works here: Samuel Colman. I also recommend doing a Google Images search.

And Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

— Liron

Drawing Fundamentals – Shape, Volume & Mass | Liron Yanconsky’s Podcast – Episode 61

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Liron here! And today I want to tell you about me going back to the drawing fundamentals, and sharpening my pencil-related skills (pun intended).

Why Fundamentals

I’ve known for a long while now that what makes a piece of art really communicate with the viewer on a deeper level – is usually not the glitz and glamour.

Usually it’s good mastery of the fundamentals of art. Those would be composition, form, value, colors and so on.

Artists Teaching the Fundamentals

I recently also started exposing myself to artists and teachers that focus on the fundamentals.

This really awakened something in me that wants to revisit this ideas, strengthen my understanding and control of them, and incorporate them in my artwork (mainly watercolor painting).

If I really want to become the best I can, this is an integral part of the deal.

What Fundamentals I’ll Focus on

Here are some of the main fundamental principles / techniques I plan on working on: Pencil and line control, shading, volume and mass, simplification, working from direct observation, creating a sense of depth and more.

I’ve been doing this for about 2 weeks, and am already very excited about the results. I feel like this is the right decision for now.

Scheduling Fundamentals Practice

This is going to be the real challenge. I need to somehow carve up more time for pure practice and working on my skills.

This is already a challenge as it is, but I’ll get it to work. It’s at least as important for me to work on the quality of my art, as the rest of my daily tasks.

And by the way, I plan on continuing with the normal routine on YouTube. However, I may share new insights as I learn them. Especially if I feel like something is significant enough.

And with that being said, let’s move onto the Artist Corner!

Artist Corner

In this episode I talked about Marcos Beccari, an extremely skilled watercolor painter based in Brazil. 

He paints what I would call hyper-realistic watercolors. His subjects are mainly the female figure and water.

It’s incredible and I highly recommend you check him out. Here’s his Instagram to get you started: @marcosbeccari

Here’s where you can find me

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

Or ask me questions on Instagram – @LironYanIL or Snapchat – @LironYan3

I hope you enjoyed this one. Take care, and we’ll talk again really soon,

– Liron

Improving the Composition of Your Paintings

Hi, Liron here! Today we’ll briefly talk about how to improve the composition of our paintings and artwork.

I decided to translate my videos to blog posts as well. And I decided to do so on a regular basis, as much as I possibly can!

So in this one, I want to talk to you about this video, on improving your paintings’ composition.

In the video I talk about how I approached doing this, and the things I focused on.

So let’s get started!

Improving My Composition

For the last 2 months or so I’ve been really focused on improving my composition.

I find watercolor to be such a fascinating and challenging learning curve. I basically keep learning the same principles, only at different levels.

In any case, I’ve been really focused on composition and believe I made some progress.

Where I Used to Be

So here’s an example of a typical painting I would make. Aside from the multiple mistakes and inaccurate representation – what really bugged me was the composition.

The building’s just stuck in there, dead in the middle. Sure, there’s that car, but even that doesn’t read as well.

Here are several other examples. Some may even look good in terms of the technique, but the composition, to me, is obviously not thought through enough.

Now, here’s an interesting example from when I got lucky and accidentally got a nice composition going.

Lot’s of things to improve, and the style doesn’t feel like it’s “mine”, but at least there’s some movement and interest.

Where I am Now

So here’s the first painting in which I REALLY devoted my thoughts and work process to composition.

With this one I took some time to carefully plan where everything is going to be placed.

The main change I’ve gone through is avoiding the centers, and putting more emphasis on uneven space divisions that create more interest.

I show more of how I do this in the video. If you want to see it make sure you watch it HERE, or by scrolling to the top of this post.

Here’s another good example.

Notice how the distances between the trees are varied. This is true for the trees in the background as well, and pretty much for most elements in this painting.

Here’s another example, simpler this time. What I love about this one is how simple yet effective it is, in my opinion.

And a final, more detailed one.

Notice how it is quite even when you examine it horizontally. I tried creating interest here around the vertical axis.

Conclusion

And this is it!

I hope this encourages you to devote more time to composition and more careful preparation for your paintings.

I know this was (and still is) one of my weaknesses, and I sometimes have to forcibly slow down my work process.

Again, you can check out the full vid with my explanations HERE.

Let me know if this helped in any way!

– Liron