Lush green leaves form a vibrant background, setting a calming tone with the motivational phrase "Help Yourself" in the center. The contrast between the text and the foliage captures attention and invites reflection.
I wanted to do a piece that turns an insult into something more motivational. For context, to be called a strawberry is associated with being weak and sensitive, as strawberries are soft and easily bruised.
After a year of drawing pretty much nothing due to artblock/burnout that came after a few years of battling my mind to be able to draw, this drawing marked me finally being able to return to art this November 2023 with a fresh mindset of less perfectionisim and more focus on my own enjoyment of the process. I had a limited timespan to work on this, a gift for my grandmother's 80th birthday, as I only began the process the day before I needed to email it across. Compared to the months it has typically taken me to finish anything in more recent years, this presented an extra motivation to abandon "perfect" in favour of "good enough". It's not as detailed as some of my prior works, but given the limited timespan and that I'm out of practice I am nonetheless happy with the result. As usual, I combined a graphite and ink drawing with digital colour+shading.
I highly recommend the book, Gender and Competition: How Men and Women Approach Work and Play Differently, by Kathleen J. DeBoer.
In it, among other things, she elucidates that those with a conceptually masculine perspective (regardless of sex) are drawn to thinking of the world in hierarchies, which I have represented here with a triangle in the mind of the spotter on the left. She elaborates that those with a conceptually feminine perspective (again, regardless of sex) are draw to thinking of the world in webs, which I have represented here with a circle.
Those that think more masculine-ly are more likely to expect beginners in a sport or field to prove themselves in the group. They will often not "hold their punches" (i.e. curb their ability) to make newcomers comfortable. All members of the group are expected to "earn their keep," in a sense. When a member of the group exceeds expectations, they move up in the hierarchy.
Contrary to that, those that think more feminine-ly likely show acceptance and approval to beginners in order to foster an environment in which they will perform. They will often adjust their skills so that newcomers can more readily "keep up." When a member of the group exceeds expectations, they are expected to raise the status of the group as a whole. The playing field is "flattened" in that sense.
I am not advocating for either perspective, but I will share that I have a more conceptually feminine perspective, and that I have previously left groups whose members have a more masculine perspective.
Kathleen's book really helped me personally to understand the motivations of people that I genuinely did not understand prior to reading the book. It put a lot into perspective for me, and I hold fewer grudges these days.
Cheers, fam~
#blackcappedchickadee Facts
A bird almost universally considered “cute” thanks to its oversized round head, tiny body, and curiosity about everything, including humans. The chickadee’s black cap and bib; white cheeks; gray back, wings, and tail; and whitish underside with buffy sides are distinctive. Its habit of investigating people and everything else in its home territory, and quickness to discover bird feeders, make it one of the first birds most people learn. Want to know more check out this link https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Black-capped_Chickadee/overview
It's my third illustration with a lantern theme.
I had doubts while drawing this illustration. I changed the concept a few times. And I'm not sure if I got the expected effect.
But I'm not afraid to share it and say: "this illustration could be better."
It gives me the motivation to work harder.
It gives me reasons to push myself forward.
Have a creative weekend!
My apologies for older works, just going through old notebooks and wanted to share this
For all of you just getting started out there, or struggling with motivation, this is a side by side comparison of drawings about 18 months apart, 1 drawing a day. It may not feel like it, but every bit of practice you get a little bit better. Keep it up!
this is a gift for my online friend! their a trans boy and asexual, so I decided to incorporate that into my gift! It's just a little thing I did for my friend lol. I promise im going to post more space bean designs It's just that I haven ´ t had enough motivation too but ill post one tomorrow I swear- lololololol bye stranger
There's a series, one of many, I've been slowly getting the motivation to work on. This character is one of a few. I'm going to working on facial expressions and then full body drawings.
I've been seeing lots of new bird species around my neighbourhood, like robins and magpies!
I like to think this bird is watching me from the sea of uncertainty, and looking at all the things I will create in the future and secretly telling me to go on, without me knowing how they will turn out. And strangely, that is some kind of motivation for me. : .
I've finally redrawn my profile picture! Except, my actual profile picture will be magenta instead of blue. This design still isn't canon, but I haven't found the motivation to redraw the entirety of the Ringmaster's crew. My last attempt was with the advanced version of Elizabeth, and the unfinhed Preistor, but they take so long to make --- and that's why Preistor goes unfinished. The reason they take so long is because I also sculpt the endo inside of them, in which the 2.5 versions didn't have an endo, and the joints and such were put in after I had drawn ths shell. Drawn with FireAlpaca.
