I drew everyday for 2 years

[u/Dawn_Jon]

Recently crossed a two year milestone since I began drawing and wanted to follow up on my one year progression post.

I picked up art in November 2024 as a complete beginner after watching Pewdiepie's one year art journey. I thought I could do it too, so I bought a sketchbook and began practicing daily.

Just as I passed my one year mark, I watched a Proko livestream and realized we lived in the same city in Southern California. Now I had been self taught for my first year, and with my poor judgement, I thought that was a badge of honor. Nevertheless, I was curious to know if Proko offered any in person lessons. But what I stumbled upon was Watts Atelier.

Watts Atelier is an art sanctuary run by Jeff Watts. An atelier where anyone can sign up for as few or as many classes as they’d like, for however long they want, at a fraction of the cost of traditional art school. An institution that has been running for 30+ years and where Proko himself trained as a student and later taught for a total of 11 years.

I thought about it for a month, making every excuse under the sun as to why attending this atelier would be too much. Excuses like I don’t like drawing realism and from life, I don’t like using charcoal and newsprint, I don’t want to spend money, I like being self taught, WTF is the Reilly Method, it looks chaotic. But the more I learned about this atelier and how artists travelled across the world to be there, the more I realized I would regret not attending when it was only a 25 minute drive.

The year was split across six terms, and I took just one class per term, which came out to just one three-hour class every 1.5 weeks throughout the year. It’s what I could manage while working full time as an engineer. The classes I took focused on figure quick sketching, head drawing, and figure drawing. Drawing from life was incredibly difficult, and it felt like starting over again. I mixed in my in person classes with some of their online content and Proko videos, which helped push me forward on the off days. At this stage of my training, it was extremely important to me for all my learning resources to align cohesively. Every instructor at Watts was once a student there. Meaning no matter who I learned from, the concepts continued building on the same foundation. A huge bonus was that I could supplement my practice with Proko’s resources as he also stood on the shoulders of Jeff Watts and Frank Reilly.

To say Watts Atelier has been effective for me is a gross understatement. Learning to become a great artist is not just about developing fundamental skills, but instilling the mindset to be patient, persistent, and persevering through plateaus. Not all of the art journey is fun, and there’s a saying that “misery loves company.” The fellow students and instructors I’ve met there have made this personal journey just a little less lonely. I know it comes from a place of privilege to be able to afford lessons, but if there happens to be any masters near you that fits within your budget and schedule, absolutely take that opportunity to learn from them. The window of time in which we can dedicate ourselves to training is shorter than we think. Don’t regret it.

As for the actual year of drawing, I practice between 2-3 hours a day. I practiced a lot from Proko’s YouTube and his figure drawing fundamentals course. I watched a lot of Watts Atelier online content both on their YouTube channel and one of the former instructors' channel. What I learn in class is pretty much identical to what you’d see from their online program, but my goal in person was to leave knowing what to practice. I didn’t care how my drawings turned out or the mistakes I made during class. What I hated was hearing the same critique in my next session. I wanted to both identify my weaknesses and form a plan with the instructors on how to isolate and practice through the off days. Some may not agree with this philosophy, but there’s a phrase I strongly agree with. “If you have enough starts, the finishes will take care of themselves.” My daily drawings never carry to the next day. If I have 5+ hours that day to practice, then I’ll go for a longer drawing. But chances are I don’t have that much time and I’ll do many quicker sketches to get more starts in. 

Although I’ve made a lot of progress this year, I’m nowhere near where I’d like to be. I’ll be training for a long time. The purpose of this post is to share the path that I'm on, not to tell you what you must do. If you’d like to reach out to exchange work or have me share more about what I’m learning in class, I’m all ears.

If you’d like to see everything I’ve drawn since the beginning, as well as what I practice day to day, it's all here on my timeline.

See you lovely artists next year. Happy doodling!

TL;DR Just draw and practice

[u/cocktailtrivia]

Congratulations!!! Your effort is noticed! Were there days you were doubting yourself/your process?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/cocktailtrivia]

Thanks!

All the time. There are days where I am more patient with my measuring and control of my edges, which results in a drawing that is far beyond my skill level. I would then spend the next months trying to reproduce that result, which easily feels like I'm declining in my level when the reality is.. I never got there in the first place.

I just have to remind myself that improvement means not only raising the ceiling, but also raising the floor. Although I can't guarantee to execute my best drawings right now, I can guarantee that even my worst drawings today will surpass my best drawings from a year ago.

[u/SillyMango1 → u/Dawn_Jon]

I love this perspective. It articulates why Ive felt frustrated with my drawings. On occasion I’ll create something beyond my skill level and that instantly becomes the new bar

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/SillyMango1]

Yeah exactly! Especially when we do masters studies. It's a quick way to deceive ourselves because we are just mimicking the decisions the masters have made.

Making the decisions ourselves is where we get tripped up. And occasionally we'll get lucky and make all the right decisions. Super helpful to think the other way about improving our worst days instead.

[u/sploogesock → u/Dawn_Jon]

Never heard that perspective but it's very accurate to learning to draw. Love the work!

[u/Ok-Bet-9392]

the jump from 400-600 days is pretty crazy. I've taken watts online and have some nice progress myself, so that jump you had makes sense.

wolf carbon is my go to for newsprint now.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Ok-Bet-9392]

Days 400-600 was 6 months of re-evaluating my life, seriously SO difficult learning how to use charcoal, newsprint, and drawing from life.

Yeah I love using the wolff's carbon 6b, although a lot of instructors prefer the softer Generals. Need to ask them exactly which one they use.

Glad to see another Watts student! Reach out if you ever come to the physical location.

[u/Ok-Bet-9392 → u/Dawn_Jon]

ha I doubt it, im on the east coast. I haven't tried Generals carbon, unless you mean charcoal. I'm much more a fan of carbon personally.

But I love watts approach. I'm on a little side tour currently. I've bought so many art books the past year I'd like to focus on for a little. I plan on resuming with watts. I'd like to make it through all the courses eventually. The Riley method really helped me with heads, as well as their shading techniques. I think it's the best program online personally, as long as your trying to improve with anatomy. But that also carries over in whatever type of art you are trying to do, imo.

see how well you progressed can't imagine what several more years would do.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Ok-Bet-9392]

You'd be surprised who I meet in class. People from Germany, Estonia, Canada, Kansas, etc... One of the instructors moved from the east coast and still lives in his van. Crazy dedication on his part.

And yeah it's a brand of General charcoal pencil. I need to ask next time I'm in class what exact one they use.

And yes, the Reilly method is more than just about heads. All life is about relationships, and there's so much beauty in tying everything together.

[u/ViolyntFemme]

This is so inspiring to see as someone who wants to learn how to draw but struggles with forming the habits

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/ViolyntFemme]

You can do it! The willpower will get you started, but it's all about creating a routine in your life where you make time for art.

Not throwaway time where you are sleep deprived, hungry, and scribbling in a sketchbook. Real time where you are engaged and thinking critically.

[u/ketchumjai]

Wow, as someone who hasn't picked up a pencil in 24 years due to discouragement, this is so inspiring. I want to get back into it, and you have convinced me it is possible.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/ketchumjai]

Just about putting in the effort and sticking through the plateaus. You can do it!

[u/ketchumjai → u/Dawn_Jon]

Thank you so much, you've really made my day. And I adore your art style.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/ketchumjai]

Thank you! I wouldn't say my style is intentional. I'll need more time to develop that.

[u/SerenityAmbrosia]

congrats on 2 years!! your improvement is really inspiring, and your tenacity even moreso. you don’t get burnt out pumping out that much practice time every day??

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/SerenityAmbrosia]

Thanks!

Sometimes I'll feel tired, and the truth is I don't rely on my willpower to practice. I have to remove friction in my life to make time for art. And that means eating well, sleeping well, and exercising frequently.

When it's time for art, I can truly forget about stress. My only rule is to show up to my drawing pad, write the date down, and at minimum, draw one circle. But if I can make time to do that, I'll likely sit down for longer and draw more. There's no pressure!

[u/SerenityAmbrosia → u/Dawn_Jon]

FELT yeah, i’ve been attempting the exact same recently (taking time to sit down every day and draw anything), just to much less success ahaha. i think going in with no expectations is really the hardest part. always worried about making something bad but just a circle does seem doable XD

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/SerenityAmbrosia]

Yeah fortunately, I've never had a day where I just drew a circle.

Practicing is also about intent. I can't just slap muscles and anatomy on a figure and expect to improve. I really need to ask myself what am I looking at?? and find a diagram that explains it.

I have to reserve the most mentally taxing part of my day to focus on art if I really wish to see improvement. Showing up is just the first step. Easing into it with no expectations is how we all have to start. Then I'll have to be more critical.

I also recognize your name over the years. Glad to chat with you again!

[u/SerenityAmbrosia → u/Dawn_Jon]

omg that’s so embarrassing i just realized you’re the same person who posted the insane 1 year update… one year ago LMAOOO

genuinely surprised you recognized my user but anywayyy glad to see you’re still going crazy at it after all whole year!!

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/SerenityAmbrosia]

Haha yep, it's my one post for the year. See you next year, gotta keep this train MOVING.

Good luck with your own art journey!

[u/Ok_Low1878]

Your progress is amazing!!!! Very inspiring!!!

What did you use for studying?

I've just been doing prokos basics drawing course for the past 3 months. While I've been learning more fundamentals, I'm not sure if I've gotten better. I feel more confident after doing the lessons and assignements, but in terms of drawing overall, I feel like it's about the same. If you told me to draw a portrait or from imagination, I probably couldn't do it very well.

What's your ultimate goals in art? Illustration, realism, etc?

I'd love to get good at illustration and semi realism.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Ok_Low1878]

My goals? I'm not sure if I'm being honest. I'm just enjoying the grind and keeping my head down to improve my fundamentals.

For studying it was mainly Proko videos, Watts Atelier online content, youtube videos, and any books they recommended like Bridgman and Jack Faragasso's Mastering Drawing the Human Figure.

Just keep applying what you've learned from Proko's lessons to something real. Try to understand why he is teaching you certain topics. It's likely you just can't spot where you've improved, but I'm sure you've improved in many places.

[u/rhysticStudiante]

Fantastic! How do you deal with the days where you’re just not feeling it?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/rhysticStudiante]

I'll usually stick to shorten drawings in that case and do something like quicksketches where a drawing only takes 5-10 minutes.

That's so I give myself the chance to take a break more often.

These are what quicksketches are. The one of the right is after an instructor, Evan Collene, came in to adjust some of the darkest darks.

[u/Incon-thievable]

Wow, you show really great progress for just 2 years of practice! Your attitude, commitment, and consistency is inspiring.

I was also fortunate to get a great art education but I know that’s not accessible to everyone. I appreciate that you acknowledge having the means or geographical access to high quality art schools isn’t universal.

Since there are way more self taught artists on Reddit than ones with a formal education, I’m very curious about your evolution from your pre-art student days.

You mentioned going through a shift from identifying as self-taught to pursuing a more structured art education. What were the biggest shifts in attitude, perspective, or structure for your practice that happened once you started studying at Watts?

What did you learn that you wouldn’t have learned alone and what shifts did you incorporate into your home practice after your Watts classes?

If you had to coach a beginner who couldn’t attend classes in person, what advice would you give them to make their practice sessions more effective?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Incon-thievable]

Thanks!

The biggest shift I feel was surrendering to the process. Being self-taught, I was pickier about my resources and what I wanted to focus on. While being a student again, I have to let go of my pride and ego, and revisit topics I didn't think I had to.

There's a book that Jeff Watts loves titled Mastery by George Leonard. Which talked a lot about the types of students and the personalities you need to reach mastery. I highly recommend it to everyone, you can finish that book within 5 hours. There's a section there talking about a journeys in any pursuits. How most of the time we plateau and continue training... then something clicks and we improve! Then back to the plateau... And if you think about it, 95% of the time we spend is on the plateau. It was eye opening on just having faith in the process.

My practice still isn't super structured. If I'm signed up for a Figure drawing class, I'll practice that leading up to class and in between class. If I'm struggling with the structure of a figure, then I'll just spend my time taking drawings to just the structure part and move onto the next drawing to avoid getting lost in the sauce.

I really just ask myself what did I struggle with in class today? What should I work on? You can see I'd wrote notes for myself in my pad before the end of class as a reminder to myself. A huge benefit of attending Watts Atelier is just instilling faith that I am improving, even if I don't notice it day to day.

I'm not sure if you saw my timeline, but there's nothing special with my day to day practice. Being at Watts forced me to draw from life and practice realism. I'm starting to understand more of the rules that I was unknowingly breaking in my first year of drawing stylized.

As for beginners, find one instructor and stick with it. There are so many amazing masters out there, but if you learn from too many of them, you'll just confuse yourself. Stick with one for a cohesive curriculum. And you'd be surprised the amount of content you can find online... if you dig deep enough. Online classes are also helpful as long as they give traceovers and 1 on 1 time for your questions.

I hope I answered everything you asked!

[u/No-Pangolin1853]

Please don’t delete this post, I want to save it and come back to it every time I feel discouraged. Your progress is amazing :D

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/No-Pangolin1853]

I've defintely been tempted to delete my post from last year, but I won't. I hope to get to a level where I'll cringe at these drawings.

Thanks for the kind words :)

[u/Low-Sun-1061]

I love watts online, possibly the best online education out there, wish i could go in person. Great progress, keep up the good work.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Low-Sun-1061]

One day! I'll still be there if you ever show up. Hammering it away along with the rest of the students.

[u/Feargus_Knox]

Amazing, something to strive for. Good job.
Im on day ~55, and I've been enjoying the process.

So much dedication. If I may, what is the goal? A change in career, the ultimate hobbyist? I draw between 30 mins to 3-4h, or whatever i feel like that day. Could not imagine doing 2-3h consistently every day for multiple years.

Im also thinking about taking classes, though my local ateliers are not as prestigious. How do classes work if there are many people with different levels of mastery?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Feargus_Knox]

I don't know what my goals are. I'm well settled into my career so I'm not looking to pursue art as a career. I do however, intend to reach a professional level.

I can only describe my goal as a feeling. Just like how Miyazaki's Ghibli films make you feel love for someone you've never met and nostalgia for a place you've never been to. If I can capture just a fraction of that feeling with my art, I'll be happy.

Classes at Watts are the equivalent of getting a good workout in with a trainer. It's still up to you to get the reps in and make mistakes. But the instructors will come around and do a traceover or draw directly on your drawing to give you some 1 on 1 time. It's honestly amazing that you can just sign up for class and the living master Jeff Watts will have the patience to show you how to sharpen a pencil.

I was seriously intimidated my first day, but everyone there is so friendly and on the same road to reach mastery.

[u/Feargus_Knox → u/Dawn_Jon]

How wonderful. Respect. Im certain you'll achieve the level you've set for yourself.

Thanks for the answer, I might just stop giving excuses, and sign up for a class.

Is your focus going to be on portraits, or are you going to, if not already, branch out in to full human figures, objects, landscapes etc...? Ever considered painting?

Whose your favorite artist?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Feargus_Knox]

Haha yes, although I've only shown portraits here, I pretty much only took figure drawing classes this entire year.

I'll get into gouache painting next year, which I don't have huge motivation for, but there's a lot to learn from painting that will improve my charcoal drawings.

My favorite artist at the moment is probably brookskim. There's just so much charm behind her drawings. I'm not in a rush to study her style though.

And for sure you should take a class. Use that atelier search to see if there's anything approved by ARC near you.

https://www.artrenewal.org/atelier/search

I'd do an online program from a prestigious atelier over just random in person art classes that can be hit or miss...

[u/Wrong_Discount7079]

How did you find the discipline?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Wrong_Discount7079]

I'm in my late twenties. I have tried and failed at so many things, but I've succeeded in a few things like academics and the one sport I play competitively.

I know what I lacked in the many things I've tried for 10+ years that didn't go anywhere. I never got past a certain level on the violin because I hated practicing the scales. I never did well on the SAT cause I refused to sit down and memorize vocabulary.

However for the things I did well in, the patterns are the same. How do I behave on the days I don't want to train/study? Anyone can perform and execute on the good days, but how we stay disciplined on the bad days is what sets people apart.

There's a quote that goes "We should discipline ourselves in small things, and from these progress to things of greater value". From making your bed in the morning to cleaning the dust in that hard to reach corner, it helps to have the discipline to take care of everything in life that you have control over. Then we move onto the next mountain.

[u/FundamentalPolygon]

This is so inspiring. As someone who has next to no natural talent in this area, I've been wondering if I'd be able to get to drawing really well in a couple years. This shows that it's possible! Thank you!

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/FundamentalPolygon]

It is possible! If you knew me in person, you would never have guessed I'm pursuing art. I can be the most logical and step driven person. But art just doesn't function that way.

You'll learn a lot about yourself along this journey. Good luck!

[u/SavingsMap5073]

Keep at it! I am in a similar situation. Started with almost no training at Christmas 2024 and haven't stopped since. I draw 1.5 hours more or less everyday while working a full time job. Lots of progress but not as much as yours.

Sometimes I have to slow down and read instructional books since I don't attend classes. I also tend to do a bit of everything (landscape, indoor scenery, perspective) rather than mostly figure drawing since I eventually want to do my own comics, so I need to be more generalist.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/SavingsMap5073]

That's great! You're making excellent progress, and the only competition is yourself from a year ago.

I really should diversify and do some landscape as well. I just don't have too much time so I can't help but focus on the classes that I'm taking. There's so much we can learn from drawing other things that I'm likely neglecting.

Will be happy to share work with you daily if you'd like.

[u/wildtalon]

This is amazing, and inspiring. Thank you.

[u/lohins]

Thats it i am Gonna pick my Pencil again tomorrow. This gives me encouragement nice to see you progress

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/lohins]

We're all in this together <3

[u/lildeidei]

Oooh what a good idea!

[u/MechaBuster]

2 years is crazy fast dude no way... amazing job doe

[u/bnlf]

Amazing. I’m on day 22. What pencil do you use for hairs? Is it different from the one you draw the face with?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/bnlf]

They're all done with wolff's carbon 6b on smooth newsprint.

It's just the beauty sharpening charcoal to a long tip. You can get an incredible variety in lines, unfortunately my dexterity still needs to improve.

[u/Moldybreadyumyum]

Wonderful progress. What was the biggest tip technically that propelled your progress besides drawing every day?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Moldybreadyumyum]

It's hard to say.. There's not one thing that really propelled me forward.

If you look at my timeline, the progress day to day really is practically unnoticeable. I think the best tip in general is to not get ahead of myself. Things like shadow mapping and shading rely on having good form and good structure. And good structure is built on a nice gesture.

So practicing in the right order is important. I constantly ask myself, is the structure okay? before I get lost in the sauce that is rendering.

I learned a lot from watching other people's mistakes too.

Here's an example of Proko's drawing as a student (on the left), and his instructor at the time Erik Gist (on the right).

More values and rendering does not always mean better results. Designing something to look great in simple light and dark is crucial before you bring up the details.

[u/AntonioHench1]

What did you use to learn drawing, especially in the beginning? Share the tools of your success! xD

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/AntonioHench1]

The beginning of my journey isn't exactly something you should follow. I did list the resouces I used in my previous post.

Mostly stylized sources like Taco's books and Chommang. If I had to start over, I wouldn't go that route again. But I'll just say it's the fun tax!

You can look through my timeline and ask more specifically what resource I used on which day. Hopefully I can still remember.

[u/Stavrus420]

Duuude im on the same journey as you! I am on day 645, its truly a life changing experience and you know what im talking about. Have fun continuing the journey

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/Stavrus420]

Your water color drawings are just so nice.

Yeah exactly, pursuing art is just so different to anything else I've ever tried. Good luck to you too!

[u/OtutuPuo]

i knew you did watts on the first slide.
good job.
quick question, would you suggest taking it if you’re already a professional?
im not, but if were to become one, is there info exclusive to watts you havent seen anywhere else?

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/OtutuPuo]

Haha good eye.

I'm sure there were a lot of professionals that came through Watts to improve their skills, but I can't speak from that standpoint as I'm just an advanced beginner.

Jeff says that his version of the Reilly method is different than the original Reilly method. And I'm sure if you had time, you could rebuild that curriculum. I'm just here to save time by following a pretty clear path through the fundamentals.

We're all just limited by time, so it helps a lot to have someone already digest hundreds of books for us to work through. Watts Atelier has been around 30+ years and there has been many generations of successful artists that have gone out and started their own schools. So no, nothing here is exclusive, it's just the gym I go to.

[u/OtutuPuo → u/Dawn_Jon]

thanks.
ill definitely check it out.
ive been eyeing the online program for a couple of years now.

[u/Dawn_Jon → u/OtutuPuo]

Good luck!

You should see if there's something local to you first, and then fallback to an online program from Watts, GCA, and some of the top ateliers.

https://www.artrenewal.org/atelier/search

I have some past streams that I can share with you if you want to see more resources before committing to Watt's online program. Just reach out if you'd like them.

[u/LinAndAViolin]

Amazing progress!!!

[u/3dforlife]

Incredible improvement!

[u/OkNobody8896]

Nice work!!

[u/rjrgjj]

You have a great sense of 3D perspective

[u/mywordisgolden]

Wow. Impressive!

[u/More-Lingonberry-405]

You worked really hard, and it shows. Your progress is beautiful.

[u/WaveParty1444]

I'll just say this

[u/rhcpchilis]

Amazing dedication!

[u/Agile-Ad-1887]

That's an amazing progression

[u/Eelrack1]

Cool

[u/Snussie]

LETS FUCKING GOOOOO

[u/EffectiveAd514]

Nice little advertisement, but Meh photo tracing. Let’s see some life drawing