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Improve Faster – Draw From Life
Despite living in the UK where the sun is barely functional, one of my favorite things is to get out to explore a new place, find something interesting about it then break out my sketchbook and start drawing. I’ve done a lot of art exercises since I began drawing in 2011, but those I’ve seen […]
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Plunging Into Retail – Selling Art Through SDX
Last October I was looking through the Creative Scotland website for work opportunities and I came across the Scottish Design Exchange (SDX). SDX is a not-for-profit shop set up to help artists and designers get into retail – they provide exposure to the masses through a busy shopping centre. I found them at the perfect time, […]
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Challenge Yourself: The 40-Minute Illustrations
Art is a way of exploring your inner and outer life. At its best, making art helps people uncover and come to terms with problems in the way they’re approaching the world. Creating is, therefore, a deeply personal act, and this complicates the work of any professional creatives. How can I be expected to make […]
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Negotiate More Fruitfully As a Freelancer
Two years ago, a friend sparked my interest in negotiation, talking about a course he’d taken while studying law. I’d never thought about negotiation as a subject to study. Growing up in the UK, I had the idea that negotiation was just for haggling and hostage situations. I was wrong. As social creatures, we’re constantly […]
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How I Use Custom Brushes to Create Rich Textures in Photoshop
I love simplicity in my work. I make it my goal to show what I need to as cleanly and precisely as I can. That being said, I feel something’s lost when you get too abstract. A lot of simple ‘vector’ style artwork looks lifeless to me. Functional, stylish, but lifeless. I try to get away […]
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How I use Pinterest to Generate Inspiration
Like most artists, my creative drive can fluctuate wildly. We all want to be productive, but not at the expense of doing good work. Inspiration tells us we’re onto something, but does inspiration have to be something we wait for? I’ve recently found Pinterest to be a great tool for making artwork. It allows me to […]
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The 4 Steps I Took to Build My First Website
These days, every respectable business venture has its own website. Social media is an important tool, but the giants are always shifting. You need a stable base. This article offers guidance on making a completely customisable website with WordPress (free software). Learning HTML & CSS There are plenty of options available for someone who wants […]