learning curve Archives - Liron Yanconsky

DOING Is Better Than Thinking – Artistic Life Lessons | Liron’s Podcast Episode 112

In today’s podcast episode I’m talking about why I believe DOING is always superior to thinking and planning – when it comes to learning a new artistic skill or creating.

The Real Way to Learn

Like sports, music and many other endeavors – the only real way to learn in my opinion is to DO.

I had that experience with learning watercolor. Very early on I realized that I can spend hours watching videos and reading tutorials. But it was ME who had to learn how to control water and paint.

If I wanted to learn how to paint, I had to experience the challenges of mixing, applying the paint, failing with the timing and so on.

Writing My Story

The reason this topic came to mind was that I’m now experiencing this all over again with the story I’m writing. There’s no substitute to actually WRITING.

Then I can improve and fix mistakes. But I need to have something written first. You can’t really re-write what’s in your head only.

Planning & Learning Has It’s Place

I do believe it’s important to think, learn and plan. But I always believe they’re overestimated.

I had to do a lot of research for my story, its historical settings and so on. But every hour spent in research, in my opinion – should be backed up with 3 hours of creation, if possible.

At some point, you can fall into the trap of over-information and wanting to feel like you’ve accomplished something – by listening and watching videos.

So again – it’s all in the balance.

This is mine – find your own.

Now IS The Time

I think for many people – now’s the perfect time to create, with the Coronavirus crisis. So many people are stuck at home, being forced to take time off.

If that’s you – now’s the opportunity to write that novel you wanted, to work on that painting you had in mind, or to practice yoga (haha – whatever it is!!).

NOW’S THE TIME. Go and do (:

And this is it for this one.

I hope you found it helpful and thought-provoking.

Here’s where you can get in touch with me online:

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

The Learning Curve is Actually a SPIRAL | Liron’s Podcast Episode 107

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Art, creativity and the art business. In this episode I’m talking about the artistic skills learning curve, and how it functions as a SPIRAL. We learn and relearn things at varying levels of competence.

Feeling Like You’re Not Improving VS Actual Improvement

The gist of this episode is the idea of practicing consistently, but feeling sometimes like you’re not improving, or even going backwards.

I experience this occasionally, and often it’s a matter of your eyes and understanding improving.

You actually DO improve, which causes you to better recognize the faults in your own work. It also allows you to see more of the potential.

This makes it SEEM like your moving backwards, when in fact you ARE IMPROVING.

How to Recognize Improvement

My #1 tip for you to do that is to look at older artworks you’ve made!

Look at older paintings, drawings and sketches. Are you really moving backwards? Do you think the older work is better.

Often you’ll find they are of lesser quality. It’s just that your standards rose even more than your skills.

So the next time you feel that way, try revisiting old work and see for yourself.

And this is also why I HIGHLY RECOMMEND not throwing away anything. Everything you make – is worthy of keeping. Trust me.

And with that, we’ll wrap this one up. I hope you enjoyed it and perhaps gained a new perspective.

And here’s where to find me online!

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

— Liron

Manga Aspirations & HUGE Challenges on The Way | Liron’s Podcast Episode 105

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Today I want to share with you a new passion I started developing around MANGA!

I’ve been reading manga and watching anime for over a decade now, and somehow got back to a very old ambition of making my own.

In this episode I’m talking about my goals, what I’m currently doing and the challenges I’m facing.

Here’s a quick summary…!

What is my goal? – To create a one-shot manga chapter, from start to finish. These usually run at around 64 pages. I then want to get it published, probably in Japan.

This is a huge goal, by the way. Very few are good enough to get their works published.

Which brings me to the next point…

What am I currently doing? – To be good enough, I have a HUGE way to go, especially when it comes to drawing people in the manga style.

I have so much to learn in order to get to a publishable quality (should have made my manga in watercolor 😂).

What are the challenges? – The main one is definitely drawing people in the manga style. On the one hand, they are supposed to be somewhat realistic. Depending on the genre, you’ll see all sorts of different styles and approaches – some fairly realistic and others more cartoony.

But I do aim for a somewhat realistic style.

Then, on the other hand – it should LOOK LIKE MANGA. Not only do I need to practice realism, but also stylization and manga in particular.

To conclude, I have a long way to go, and this is definitely a long term process. I apologize if diving deeper on that takes some time away from other work, but I am doing my best to keep up with everything.

And I hope that in the future I’ll have something to show for it. And if you’re into manga – that’s perfect!

Thank you for your continued support.

You can reach out here:

TikTok – @Liron.Yan

YouTube – Liron Yanconsky Art

LinkedIn – Liron Yanconsky

Pinterest – Liron Yanconsky

Instagram – @LironYanIL

Twitter – @LironYan

Challenges in Watercolor Painting | Liron Yanconsky’s Podcast – Episode 24

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Hi there, in today’s episode of the podcast I want to share with you some challenges I’m experiencing in watercolor.

A 2 Week Plateau

For the past two weeks or so I felt like things were’t connecting the way I wanted in my paintings.

I didn’t feel like my results were up to par, and I also felt extremely out of control with the medium.

I actually have a few ideas as to the reason for this.

Advancing to a Higher Level

Usually when I hit that kind of plateau, it means I’m about to advance to a higher level.

This is something I consistently noticed over the past few years.

It’s almost as if there is something crucial I need to learn in order to progress. I maxed out on all of my current skills, and it’s time to move on.

Going Autopilot & Using Gimmicks

Aside from that, I have an inkling of an idea as to what I need to improve.

I got to this after examining the areas where I have this issue, and the areas where I don’t.

I’m only experiencing this when painting large scenes, mainly cityscapes. I’m not experiencing this when working on portraits or pen sketches.

My main conclusion is this – In some areas I tend to go into autopilot when painting. And I don’t mean the good kind of autopilot (flow, in the zone, smooth-sailing).

I’m talking about doing things without truly observing the scene. Painting things as I THINK THEY APPEAR, rather than how they truly appear.

A Side Note About the Artist Curse

As a side note, I want to mention a concept I learned from Mark (Draw Mix Paint YouTube channel, THIS video).

He says we as artists can never enjoy our art like other viewers do. That’s because we see it slowly built up, and so it’s hard to be objective.

I’d also add to that, that we have a specific, “ideal” vision we may compare the result to. The viewer has no idea and doesn’t care. All they see is the art (:

The Solution

For the next few weeks, I’ll try disconnecting from external influences and other artists.

What I want to do is always focus on the subject at hand. To truly observe it and carefully study it.

To think, analyze, sketch, prepare and so on.

Sharing the Journey

I’m really happy to share these insights with you as I learn them.

I hope this will inspire others in the future. I really want to show how this is a challenging journey on the one hand, but how it shows promise on the other.

With enough practice and perseverance, you can master the medium.

Artist Corner

Today I talk about Dan Burt, an American watercolor painter.

Dan has a very unique style of painting, in which he applies many, MANY colors. He actually prepares multiple pools of paint, and slowly uses them all for painting.

He paints mainly in Texas, Mexico, Italy and Spain.

You can learn more about him here.

And here’s where you can find me (:

You can support me on Patreon

Check out my YouTube Channel – Liron Yanconsky

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