Ask Tutors Questions

Question from Dean Pridmore

I am new to your fantastic course and was a little confused on one aspect.

I have all of the lessons open to me to complete. However you say the course period is to be completed in three months to be eligible to receive the Diploma.

So I was wondering how I go about the lessons, and how you evaluate my work. Do I complete all lessons within three months and send the work to you via email, along with an example of my drawing ability before I took the course?

Thank you for any help you can give me...

Questions from Shana Moens

How can I apply all the skills I have already and will hopefully gain in the future into becoming my own kind of artist?…

Question from Noah, Drawing Academy student

Good Day Art Tutor,

My name is Noah, I’m a fashion design student. I’ve been drawing for quite a while, and I particularly love illustrating human subjects. I’m self-taught and would like to learn more about drawing and also to correct my amateur mistakes.

I have a problem creating the foundation of my heads (I do not have an art museum that’s conveniently close to me so I use reference photos). My problem is that I can’t get the proportions right to capture the likeness of the subject I am working on, so I tend to focus on a particular part of the face, which makes the final product look like a caricature instead of a real drawing.

My questions are:

1. How do I adapt proportions to fit the subject that I am drawing?

2. How do I get the correct nose, eyebrow, and mouth levels?

I would like to thank you in advance for teaching and preserving the Masters’ way of drawing, and I look forward to learning more...

Question from David

Is it okay to redraw old drawings to see how far your hand skills have improved or just to exercise before drawing the real deal? I work 5 days a week but I make sure to draw for a least 2 to 3 hours. On the weekend, I draw all day.

What is your take on digital drawing?

Also, how can I see the Drawing Academy student handbook?...

Question from Cedric

Dear Mr. Vladimir London, I write to you to introduce myself and to ask a question about the Drawing Academy Course. First off, let me start by saying how impressed I am with the approach you have towards drawing. I think, in any skill, there is no better way to learn than from the masters; the proven and tested ways.

My name is Cedric. I am from South Africa, I have no formal training in art. I see myself as an absolute beginner in drawing. I did have technical drawing at school, though, and enjoyed that very much. I feel a need to have an artistic outlet, which, combined with the technicality of drawing, seems very appealing to me. I find drawing very relaxing and a mentally healing exercise. I literally woke up on the morning of…

Questions from David, Drawing Academy student

"I've been enrolled in the Drawing Academy for some time now and I've watched your lessons over and over to refresh my knowledge of how to draw certain things. I've improved so much. Now, because of that improvement, I tend to rush my portrait drawings. Its not out of boredom either, I just get excited and want to see the end results. That said, when I do this I tend to make mistakes. How can I manage my pencil strokes? And will painting help me train my hand patience and to do small find details? ...

Question from Carol, Drawing Academy visitor

"How to lay down features in the right place?"...

Questions from David, Drawing Academy student

I finally learned how to draw eyes equally, thanks to you videos and hours of practicing. I still need to look at a reference though which in time I'm learning to draw what I know. I want to thank you for you feedback to all my questions, it has really helped me. Now my question is how do I draw hair? Long hair that is flowing. When I don't know how to draw something I tend to sometimes stop drawing it and move on because I would be afraid to mess up the drawing or I forget the process of how to do it at times. I'm learning not to fear my mistakes when I'm drawing so I make sure to avoid them in future drawings. And how can learn to draw small but detailed. Can redrawing a image from my imagination repeatedly help me see it clearly?

I'm trying color most of my character creations and do colored portraits. What colored pencils do you recommend for that? And I love practicing drawing but I hear a lot of other students like myself say practicing drawing is painful. Painful as in they can't see to get an eye exactly right, proportions is off or they feel like they're not improving and so they get discouraged. I sometimes feel that way but what keeps me going, is that I tell myself I will get better and the other thing is that I love expressing my creativity. So I can't give up. The only option I have is to practice and get better. But if I do get to that where I feel that I will never be able to improve, what should I do? ...

I am currently doing pencil portraits for Gold Star Mothers of their loved ones killed in action in the military. All of my work is done from photos exclusively. I am self taught and have used the 5 pencil method as a learning base. As you have said, this just makes me a copy machine. I really want to put some soul into my drawings, but don't know how to do this working from a picture. My question is, will you be able to help me achieve this goal by working through your course? ...