Art Block Execution #26: Stamps

This is an exercise in simplicity! Make a very small illustration, no more than 1×2 inches (or at least something that’s around the size of a Postage Stamp wherever you are in the world.)

If you don’t do visual art: Keep It Simple, Silly is more or less the goal and rule here. Make it short, make it small, don’t try to cram a lot of detail into the thing.
Moviemakers: Make a vine. as an extra challenge, what can you accomplish in three seconds?
Writers, what can you do in 200 words? What about 140 Characters? or 6 words?

Difficulty: 3/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: This one is a mix of warm-up and learning! It’ll either get your juices flowing orit’ll force you to learn how to make something work at that size- which should help you in the future with planning larger pieces. (Thumbnailing and blocking are important!)

Art Block Execution #25: Take the First Step

This ABE is all about getting started. Laying the groundwork for the Thing you want to make.

Where other ABEs have been warm-ups, or exercises, or distractions, this one is a Challenge.

We challenge you to take whatever it is you’ve been putting off, and commit the first few lines to paper.

That’s it. You don’t need to finish it- you just need to break the ice.

Put something down, start roughing out a layout. Write a bunch of cusswords on the page so that it’s not blank anymore.

Ideally, get it complete enough that you’d feel okay calling it a First Draft.

And then relax a little, because you got over the first hurdle. The Blank Page cannot defeat you.

Difficulty: 4/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: Like it says on the tin. It’s all about gaining momentum.

Art Block Execution # 24 Remix Your Style

It’s a well known fact that every artists have a style.  From different shapes and colors, to how people punctuate notes in a song.

Now its time to try a different style.

Take a character you own [ or a character you like ] and redraw them in different styles.  Create a different style of your own. Mimmick, twist,  reduex. Always fond of simple storybook styles? How about a lot of detail? what was your favorite thing to look at/ read growing up?

 This is similar to our 8^th ABE. But instead of drawing yourself, you’re drawing someone/something else.

Again, if you do not draw you’re welcome to practice other styles in your medium!

Difficulty: 4/5 Breaking out of the box can be hard if you’re used to sticking to one style.  But we believe in you!

How does this kill art block?: Think of it as stretching a muscle you didnt know you had! It helps you push out of your normal box and see the artistic world through rose colored lenses! Also, trying out different styles gives you a chance to admire what makes your style so unique!

Sites of Suggestion 

Character Design Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/characterdesigh/

Art of Animation: http://theartofanimation.tumblr.com/

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Have an idea for an ABE? Submit it to us!

Art Block Execution #23: Make Some Fan-Art

Okay, listen. You like things. That is SUPER COOL.

Actually you don’t just like things.

You LOVE THINGS, and the only reasonable way to express your love of those things is to make some art of them, or write a story, or record a song, or cosplay aggressively.

Except you’re super busy. You have way better and more important things to do.

We are giving you permission to make some fanart.

If you’re having trouble justifying it to yourself, use an excuse like “I’m going to practice a new technique!” or “but i’m trying something new!”

Or see how fast you can make something that you don’t think is terrible! Or do it because you want to show a small creator how much you like their Thing!

And if you don’t need an excuse to let yourself make something not specifically for your own projects- that is also great!

Difficulty: 3/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: A lot of art block comes from working on things that you’re not enthusiastic about- do that long enough and it can keep you down for a long, long time. So let’s work on something that you’re DEFINITELY enthusiastic about, and THEN get back to what’s causing you trouble

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Have an idea for an ABE? Submit it to us!

Art Block Execution #22: Creative Space

The space you create in is pretty important. You spend a lot of time there.

We want you to show it to us- in whatever way you like.

Set up a microphone and record the ambient sound of your space. Or maybe write a song that you think captures the mood of your creative space.

Draw a picture of what your ideal creative space would be, or what you think your brain would look like if it were a place, instead of an organ.

Take a picture of your space, or of a place that makes you feel inspired.

If you don’t work in any one place, show us the tools you always carry with you!

Difficulty: 1/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: It’s one of those things that is mostly a warm-up, but hopefully it has a few positive side-effects, too. Maybe showing your space will result in you organizing it a little bit, making things easier to find and quicker to make. Maybe it’ll give you ideas to make your space more conducive to the way you work, or maybe it’ll help you figure out what you like about your space, which will make it easier to work effectively in other places, too!

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Have an idea for an ABE? Submit it to us!

Art Block Execution #21: Mythical Reproduction

We’re not sure how to introduce this ABE, so we’re not even going to try.

Pretty much, the idea is to pick a made-up creature- from Mythical creatures to B-Movie Monsters- and draw or write out the gestational period. How is babby formed?

We aren’t super interested in the do the parents do to make the kidlets (unless it’s something particularly unusual or exciting) but how do the babies develop? Think as far outside the box as possible!

Difficulty: 4/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: It’s partly a distraction thing, and partly a warm-up exercise! The goal is to get your brain moving in unusual ways, and hopefully if helps you out of the rut you’re in.

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Have an idea for an ABE? Submit it to us!

Art Block Execution #26: Stop Putting it Off

This is advice that sounds sort of obvious- and it really is advice more than it is an actual ABE.

Those tools you bought last year that you haven’t used yet?

The supplies you got thinking I COULD MAKE SOMETHING WITH THIS.

That thing you acquired from the garage sale because I HAVE THE BEST IDEA.

The things that have been sitting around your house, taking up valuable storage or floor space when they were supposed to be used for something amazing AGES ago.

You know the ones.

Get those out, and finally do with them what you’d been planning.

Difficulty: 2/5

How Does This Kill Art Block: This is pretty much just a form of productive procrastination, to be entirely honest. (Plus, Roo finds that he’s most motivated to work on what he SHOULD be working on when he’s doing something else.)

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Have an idea for an ABE? Submit it to us!

Art Block Execution #18: Inside the Box

Too many options can make things difficult- a good way to spark creativity can be to limit the tools and options available to you, and work only with what you have. Thinking Inside the Box can be, often, easier and much more useful than thinking outside of it.

Illustrators, Painters, Traditional kernoodlers: Get your two favorite colors- you can use any medium, you can use any additional tools, but only the two colors, any colors made from mixing the two, and any color that shows through from the paper/canvas.

Digital Painters: Same, but remember: two exact colors.You may NOT use any of the additional saturations or values within a given hue, but you MAY use any colors you can make by mixing, or layering, and you may use special layers.

Sculptors: Use your one favorite tool

Musicians: You might have two favorite chords and a rhythm pattern you’ve always meant to try- combine those two things now. You may use any individual notes found in the chords and you may use them in any octave.

Writers: Your two favorite but little-used character archetypes, in the situation of your choosing- for the purposes of this abe, make it at least 500 words, and no additional characters.

Difficulty: 3/5

How Does This Kill Art Block? Like it says at the top! The human brain makes decisions easier when it has fewer options. if this ABE doesn’t look like your cup of tea, set your own limitations and give it a go!

Bonus Points: Once you have your minimalist framework, save that by itself, then set new limits and finish the creation!

We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!

Art Block Execution #17: Remember Who You Are

We all have things we doodle most often- things that filled our sketchbooks, things that we automatically play when we pick up an instrument. This ABE is for when you feel like you can’t create- nothing is coming out like you want it to, your fingers aren’t cooperating, you know what you want but can’t make it work, and no amount of practice or planning will help.

Your confidence starts to waver.

So stop what you’re doing.

Right now, stop.

Take a short break, get a clean slate, and carve some time into your schedule to make something personal. What are the things you will always create, given no other input? No rules, just you and a sketchbook, a spiral notebook, a spare lump of clay. Nobody watching. Is it beasties? Dragons? Jazz? Romantic Fiction? Whatever you find yourself doodling idly, given the spare time, make that now. Take that topic/item/genre and GO NUTS. Do it well And Most Importantly, Have Fun.

Difficulty: 2/5.

How Does This Kill Art Block? This is all about taking something you KNOW you can make well, and reminding yourself that you ARE good at your craft. This one is about getting your Mojo back.

Bonus Points: Make it really, REALLY nice. Follow through, finish it all the way. We love to see your completed ABEs! You can email them to us at abe@tiix-n-roo.com, or post a reply to this topic! If you have a tumblr, you can post your ABE there (or Submit it to our blog!) and be sure to use our tags, #ABE, #TixNRoo, and #ArtBlockExecution. We’ll post some favorites more or less monthly!