Becoming a Better Artist – Critical knowledge and techniques for today’s artists

#521

Hello Robert, I was wondering if this was the right place to give feedback about the workshop from the student perspective, to anyone who is curious about the workshop and is interested in my pov. Cheers!

#522

Yep, it sure is. You can see lots of testimonials from past students in this thread throughout the pages. :slight_smile:

#523

Oh ok sorry, I didn’t take a look at previous pages.

Well, if anybody has specific questions for students, let me know.

I can share my personal experience. The funny thing about this kind of workshops is that it never really is what you expect. Because depending on your level, chances are you don’t even know what you really need, hence your expectations might be a bit off. The work and love to gather all the information and knowledge really shows. After reading everything and going through the material I felt like I have never really worked towards my art.

Make no mistake, some realizations might not be nice at first. The first thing the workshop does is to put in your face where you really stand (and if the information didn’t, the assignments will, they’ll kick you ass and that’s what you should expect). But after a short while you’re happy that now you know, and you’ll feel like you’re finally in the path to get wherever you want.

If you’re serious about your art, and can afford it get in it asap. You’ll be getting a very experienced mentor, with passion to help and teach for unlimited time. Believe me the knowledge and the mentoring is worth way more than the price of the workshop. I’d love to see this workshop in a semester/year long face to face format (one can dream right?).

One piece of advice: never rush an assignment. Ever. No need to. Robert isn’t counting the hours to get off the hook. Take your time to do the best you can and post it. Even if it’s crap and you know it (and it will probably will be), get the feedback from Robert. Go deep and understand what you’re doing. And don’t worry if you can’t absorb everything, it’s impossible and there’s no rush :p. Trust me on this one, if you rush just to get the assignment “in time”, you’ll regret it every bit in the feedback you receive. Plus “in time” is a term which doesn’t apply to the workshop.

That was my all around experience. Hopefully that’s worth the reading, specially for those considering the workshop but are unsure about it.

Cheers!

#524

Is it too late to sign up for the July 6th workshop? I tried to sign up, but it won’t allow me to submit payment. I sent a couple of emails out inquiring on this, but no one’s responded to those yet. Sorry if I missed something, I just came across this over the weekend and wanted to jump on board if I could. Thanks!

#525

For those who are reading this thread, reevisart did manage to sign up (it was some kind of weird glitch), and there’s still room. We usually leave enrollment open for the first week of the workshop, since my workshop has no deadline for the assignments and it essentially goes on indefinitely in the alumni students lounge even after the 8 weeks are over (it’s really a long-term mentoring relationship).

#526

Yes, everything went smooth after I tried the second time. Glad to be aboard, thanks Rob!

#527

Enrollment for the October 2015 run of the Becoming a Better Artist workshop has begun: http://training.cgsociety.org/course/becoming-a-better-artist

#528

Hi Robert, what is the format of the class? Is this through online video course or is the course conducted at a brick&mortar location? If online, do we need a webcam?

#529

The workshop is online, and we communicate through a forum. There are lots of lecture notes with many example images, videos tutorials, as well as discussions and Q&A. You do not need a webcam.

#530

Hi I’m fairly new to the site. And I’m definitely interested in taking the workshop.

I have a question about enrollment. Will you be still open after October 1?

I may be able to register to the workshop on perhaps October 2 or 3.

#531

We usually keep enrollment open during the first week of the workshop, so you can definitely still join us even if you’re a few days late. :slight_smile:

#532

Hi there, I’m a UK artist currently on my gap year before I go to university (where I want to study illustration), I;m very interested in taking your course as it seems exactly what I need to improve my abilities, however, due to the time difference in the UK what time during the week does the course take place? I dont mind having to stay up all night (thats when most of my art gets made anyway), but its something I need to consider just due to work commitments. Thanks.

#533

All interaction is done through the forum, so there’s no time difference issue. :slight_smile: For students that want real-time interaction, they can request real-time sessions, but to date, after seeing how astoundingly comprehensive and epic the course material is (lecture notes, images, videos, forum discussions, critiques), not a single student has felt like they needed real-time interaction.

#534

Becoming a Better Artist workshop (for January 2016) has a big sale going on right now with $100 discount. Better hurry and enroll before it ends: http://training.cgsociety.org/course/becoming-a-better-artist

#535

Enrollment for the next run (March 2016) of the Becoming a Better Artist workshop has begun! http://training.cgsociety.org/course/becoming-a-better-artist

#536

Hi, the workshop sounds fantastic - exactly what I need to rid myself of several bad habits! Just a couple of queries.

Firstly, my wife is due to give birth to our second child about 3 weeks before the next class (April 2016) begins. Are you planning on running another class towards the summer (which would suit my personal time better), or does the ‘no time limit’ approach to this course mean that I could join the April class and get involved when I find the time between nappy changes?!

Secondly, I work in arch vis and have never once been required to illustrate a character. The course description sounds like it majors on characters. I assume I’ll still find it all useful?!

Thanks

#537

There are no deadlines for the workshop or the assignments, so once you enroll, you can take as long as you need to read the lecture notes, watch the videos, and do the assignments. Some students ran into unexpected changes in their lives during the workshop, such as suddenly losing their jobs, death of a loved one, becoming ill, moving to another country, etc., and they took as much time off as they needed and resumed at their own pace–sometimes even many months or even years later. And I still help them with their questions and give them critiques on their assignments.

And no, the workshop is not only focused on characters. It teaches all of the critical foundations of visual art. Characters are simply an important part of the foundation, but there is so much more than just characters.

#538

I am interested in this class. I really love art but a lot of times I feel constricted, like I don’t know what next step to take in order to finish a quality piece and make its message and emotion come across due to getting bored quite easily in the process (from lineart to a finished colored piece would take me 2-8 hours). My interests are also on perspective/environment design and digital painting.

I have some basic questions if you don’t mind answering.
Does this class teach some coloring and perspective techniques in Photoshop?
How are the classes conducted, like is there a video in the first part of the session? What time do we have to meet online (I am from Asia)? As it says the start date is April 4, what is the typical week’s timeline? Like how many hours is a lesson conducted and when is the general time we must submit our homeworks for critique? Will we also have critiques and advice per week so that we may improve better? And lastly, is it possible to see any of your students’ works in order to see their improvements from before and after taking the class?

Thank you. I hope for a kind response to my inquiries.

#539

Have you read the detailed outline of the workshop’s week-by-week overview? If not, you can find out all the details about what will be taught during the course here: http://www.cgsociety.org/training/course/becoming-a-better-artist

The class is forum-based, and every week there are lecture notes to read and videos to watch, and then there are assignments that you do. You’ll get in-depth critiques on your assignments, and answers to whatever questions you have. Since it’s forum based, there’s no time-zone issue. My workshop has no deadlines so you can work at your own pace (great for students who live a busy life, having to work full-time jobs, or go to school, or raising a family). You can do the course at your own pace, take however long you need, and I’ll be there to answer your questions and give critiques to your assignment no matter what. I have students whose lives got derailed during the workshop and then come back a year or two later and I still help them with critiques and answer their questions.

As for my students’ work, there are so many of them, and they range from total beginners to professional concept artists, lead artists, and art directors working in games and film. Based on what you said, I’m assuming you’re a beginner. In the past one of my beginner students posted a thread, which contains the kind of drawings he was doing before he took the workshop, and what he did by the end of the workshop–the difference was night and day: http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=166&t=880796

I have many other examples of the drastic difference between what the students were doing before the workshop and during/after the workshop–I can fill a book with all those examples. That thread is just one very simple example out of many.

#540

Enrollment for the July 2016 run of Becoming a Better Artist is now open:
http://www.cgsociety.org/training/course/becoming-a-better-artist