Have you ever heard someone say, “I can’t draw a stick figure” or “I don’t have any artistic talent” or “The creative gene skipped over me.” Hearing that always makes me a little sad, because I know something the speaker doesn’t:

Drawing is a skill, and skills can be learned.

I always start my beginning drawing classes with this explanation:

Drawing isn’t an extraordinary talent that only belongs to the gifted few. Drawing is a skill, much like any other skill you learn, such as playing an instrument or learning a sport. But for some reason, we tend not to treat it that way. Instead, we have a picture in our minds of what we want our drawings to look like. Then we try to draw what we imagine. Then we’re surprised and quite disappointed if it doesn’t turn out just right. Then we come to the conclusion that we can’t draw. Often this happens some time during childhood, and the belief sticks with us as we grow older.

BUT – you can learn to draw.

Let’s say you wanted to play the piano. Would you assume that you could sit down at a piano for the first time and play a perfect concerto? Of course not! You know that playing the piano well takes years of study, lessons in music theory, and hours of practice.

Let’s say you wanted to play basketball on a team. Would you assume you could go to the tryouts, pick up a ball, and make every shot the first time you tried? No — you know better. It takes lots of instruction, effort, and practice.

Drawing is a similar skill. It takes a lot of practice and technique to get good results. And like any other skill, the more you practice, the better you get.

I’ll admit, there are those who are just naturally-gifted, just like there are naturally-gifted singers, musicians, and ball players. But that doesn’t mean the rest of us have to sit on the sidelines. If we work hard at it, we can get there, too.

The student in my classes range from 5 years through adult, and they have mixed emotions about what they create. Some really like their work, and others aren’t too pleased. But I try to remind them that each time they create a new piece, they are learning; they are practicing, improving, and honing their skills so that next time, they’ll do even better. In all the years I’ve drawn/painted, I can only think of a handful of pieces I made that I really loved (we’re often our own worst critics, aren’t we?). But I really love trying!

It’s okay if you don’t want to draw, but if you do, don’t listen to the voice that tells you that you can’t. If you can learn to cook, drive, ride a bike, play a sport, dance, write, build, garden – any kind of skill – you can learn to draw! And it doesn’t matter how old or how young you may be. It’s always a good time to learn something new!

Photo by 5demayo