next »

[Impmaster]

Dude. First of all, hug.

Second of all, based on this post, I really feel like you need to make some friends. Without friends, life is so much less satisfying. Join a group from a newspaper or something.

Third, what happened to your avatar? Is my internet just acting up again?

[Graham-]

I've had periods in my life when I was surrounded by friends, and periods when I wasn't. It is easy to trivialize something until you've been there.

Carrion, there are two ways out:
  . master work
  . master relationships

No woman is perfect but you can be honest with anyone, given enough courage and practice, and that is very enlightening. Most of the time I think I work just to meet people and have something interesting to say when I do. Then of course my inspiration to work comes from others. And around we go. We're all like that I think.

[Blambo]

Carrion, read lots of books and go to a museum, or maybe find a professional and do an apprenticeship or internship. Just by finding someone or something to aspire to and inspire you, while relinquishing a little bit of introversion to learn about things other than your own work, you'll get out of that funk. I dunno if your city has opportunities like that, but school and work never hurt anybody with the right mindset.

[joseph ¯\_(ツ)_/¯]

Carrion, read lots of books and go to a museum, or maybe find a professional and do an apprenticeship or internship. Just by finding someone or something to aspire to and inspire you, while relinquishing a little bit of introversion to learn about things other than your own work, you'll get out of that funk. I dunno if your city has opportunities like that, but school and work never hurt anybody with the right mindset.

thisssss, also get some hobbies aside from art. I was in a pretty bad place a few years ago and then i got into FIGHTING PEOPLE and met all of these people i admire and aspire to be like outside of my core interest of art -- it makes you love art all that much more if it's not your entire fucking life and only source of satisfaction.

also do any art projects that pay respectable rates (like, $30-$40 an hour) because at your age grownup money will radically change your life and let you move away or take breaks or pursue things you care about -- but don't sweat any smaller jobs because shit, if your heart's not in it you don't wanna slog.

[Blambo]

Fuck.

Catguy is hardcore.

[Graham-]

grown-up money makes you a grownup. poor people have to worry about malaria and civil oppression. we have to worry about which smartphone to buy. that doesn't make it illegitimate.

buy the right pants, attract the right girl, family. video games. life. ... take it to heart. (words to self)

[Carrion]

Today I came to the realization that my depression isn't a geographic condition(metaphorically speaking) Sadness, apathy, depression, whatever you call that void is much like darkness in the fact that it's an absence, not an identity or condition. I'm not fulfilled because there's an absence of life in my being, a void has been left in my heart, and I simply must live it out. I'll never experience life unless I live and needless to say, I'm alive.

Thank you all for the kind words and considerations.

I'm going to get back to work now.

[crowe]

buy the right pants, attract the right girl, family. video games. life. ... take it to heart. (words to self)

I hope one day I can attract the right video games, but I can't seem to find one that's my type (3DO)

[jddg5wa]

@Carrion; great to see realization of what you need to do. From all you said it seems like your comfortable in your life. A problem is that comfortable can get boring after a while if that is all there is. All I'd suggest is maybe finding something new that you can do that scares you, pushes you outside of your comfort zone, and go do it. That's all I can think to suggest that might make you feel "alive".

[Carrion]

[Kekskiller]

Why would someone need so long to load the sending of a hug but the actual sending seems immediate? That doesn't make sense.

[toborprime]

Hugs: work in mysterious ways.

[Graham-]

hugs.

[s_l_m]

I have been working on learning Inkscape so that I can make some graphics that I feel good about putting in a game. But I have probably been practicing it about an hour almost every day for maybe a month and a half and I don't feel like I am actually getting anywhere. Maybe I am just artistically retarded 

[ThemsAllTook]

Art can be excruciatingly slow to learn, but is also highly rewarding. Stick with it, it'll be good!

[Graham-]

@s_l_m

Practice must also come with purpose. You have to understand why someone would want to create art in the first place. Maybe you need to revolve around actually putting stuff into a game? Or you just need more practice.

For me, I am much more affected by a visual used in a story, or a game, than I am by one sitting there alone, static. So I'd have to learn in that context. Hopefully that is relevant. Tell me if it isn't.

[s_l_m]

That actually is pretty useful advice (from both of you).
Right now I am just trying to learn general purpose skills so that I can do "real" art later.
What I might do is make a list of assets I actually need, and try to work on those until I am satisfied. Even if they are shit and I end up tossing them it will still probably be good experience.

[joseph ¯\_(ツ)_/¯]

s_l_m, you aren't retarded. Being defeatist is going to make that shit even harder, and it's already really hard.


here's another angle:

art is a 99% mental task. This is a blessing and a curse.

The blessing is an expert artist, unlike an expert pole vaulter or something, has no physical advantages over you that you have to overcome -- the only difference between you is your knowledge and ability to solve problems. You can hack this process by reading other artists' discussions, watching videos, learning secrets and unlocking new ways to think about and analyze problems. All those gimmicky art techniques, color theory, measurement tricks, ways to remember proportions and rules of construction and even formal perspective -- are just alternate ways of analyzing problems, and the more you soak up the better you'll be at guiding your own work to success.

The curse is that no matter how good you get, if you just frustratedly scribble and scrawl onto a page it is not going to look good. There is no art muscle you can rely on to just power through a problem, art always requires a certain amount of curiosity, focus, and attention. So your mental game is a really big deal -- if you find yourself frustrated, fatigued, confused, lost, stifled, that is your Everest -- developing the right mental and emotional approach to art is oftentimes the hardest part for a struggling artist.

[Rahrahrah]

....and how!

I use the library and friends for insight.  I have many fine artist friends who own their galleries and studios all over the U.S.  I have also been derailed by so many life 'stuffs' that I have had to for go any 'under the roofs and in the halls' education.

Right now, I am reading a book, a wonderful book about light.  Simply a huge book on light, how it works in the real world, science wise, numbers wise, visual wise.  Its great.

I also grabbed a book this last trip on more color theory.

My words:  Trust the process.

Absolutely nothing worthwhile comes from doing nothing worthwhile.

Again:  Do the work, trust the process.

Hugs.

[Graham-]

Good advice Catguy.

I find that there are two kinds of game development challenges: those that I'm being a bitch about and should just force my way through, and those that give me trouble because I don't believe that they are useful way to spend my time (if I'm working on them).

It is really hard to tell the difference between the two. I think the last few years is just me learning how to do that - to tell the difference. So I say try lots of things and find what art you want to make. When you do the reasons for it will become more clear and you'll have a better sense of where to turn next. That's what I do. Sometimes I am bored with a design because its potential isn't juicy anymore. Often I have to look somewhere completely different, like right under my nose.