Thoughts and feelings on your old/beginner artwork?

[Twigz0n]

Unsure if this has ever been discussed yet, but it’s something I often think about personally, and that is the matter of our old artworks. Mostly the ones we created when we were just starting to learn art.

I feel there’s often this feeling of shame surrounding our “beginner” artwork, and that once we’ve finally developed our skills further, all of this old art becomes bad, and something to ignore completely.


Now sure, if you’re a professional building a portfolio you won’t wanna include some fanart you made when you were ten, but I’m not talking about art as a career in this post. I’m more so speaking of it as the personal journey we took to get where we are now, and how we’re reflecting on it.

And of course it’s okay to dislike your older works if you so do. I’m not trying to control how anyone feels about their art. I know that sometimes it’s be a matter of not wanting to remember the person we were, or perhaps the embarrassment that may arise from our old interests and personalities.


I personally love all of my older artworks, even if some of them do make me a little embarrassed at certain choices, ideas or subject matter. I feel that it’s like a time capsule of the person I once was, and even the person I maybe wanted to be in a way? I also want to give my younger self credit for the things I think she did well in her work too!

I’m honestly still quite fond of this piece I made when I was 13 (I think). I just really like the composition, colours and the blue shading that makes the character feel as if they’re apart of the environment. I also kind of like the over exaggerated size of the eyes lol, I think it actually adds to the feeling of wonder that I was going for.

I also still really like this piece because of how somber it looks. I’m unsure if it was a vent piece or not, im leaning towards it being me wanting to experiment with darker subject matter. But regardless, I still really like it. I feel that my artwork these days doesn’t really express enough feeling or emotion beyond just surface level appealing artwork of furry character designs.

Overall, I don’t subscribe to this idea that everything we created as newbie artists is bad and has no value compared to our current artwork. Nor do I believe that artworks that are just a couple years older than the work we produce now are irrelevant either.


But I wanna know what other people feel towards their older works. Do you still have any pieces you feel fond of? Are there some you think are better than what you can produce today even? Do you still feel a tinge of embarrassment towards some of it? I wanna know!


Edit: I won’t be replying to anymore replies unless I feel I have something  longer or of note to say, as I’ve been clogging up a lot of the thread and I hadn’t yet realised that it wasn’t good forum etiquette lol Please don’t think I hate you or anything if I don’t reply, I still read everyone’s replies because I love to hear about other peoples experiences with creating art. ^^

[radrocket]

good question for sure cuz this is definitely something that varies from artist to artist, but for me personally i like to archive as much of my old work as i can. i love to look back on it, either to poke fun at it or just admire how far i've come. there's a lot of art that i deleted entirely as a younger teen cuz i was emo and embarrassed about it which i really regret now. although some of it still really embarrasses me xD

that being said though there's definitely times ive looked back on my older work from 5-8 years ago and felt like my style has degraded since, but i havent been feeling like that lately

i'll share some of my cringe old stuff too even though I don't really have commentary on any of it

2015
2016 (1) (2) (3)
2017

ok yeah thats enough LOL

[Twigz0n]

for me personally i like to archive as much of my old work as i can. i love to look back on it, either to poke fun at it or just admire how far i've come. there's a lot of art that i deleted entirely as a younger teen cuz i was emo and embarrassed about it which i really regret now. although some of it still really embarrasses me xD

Ah, yes me too!! That’s also another fun thing about old art is how unintentionally funny it can be at times haha. Yeah, I like to archive as much of my old stuff as I possibly can to see how far I’ve come too! I also find looking back at pats works can be helpful to see what things you might still be struggling with in your current skill set too!

Also I love your older drawings!!   Genuinely, I find the artstyle and humor of the 2017 drawing you’ve linked to be very reminiscent of that area lol, it’s very nostalgic to me. >w< Also is that an animal jam oc in the first one you’ve linked?? I loved that one too, I used to draw just like that before with a super small canvas making my brushstrokes look blurry as hell lol I really like the chibi look of it though, it’s very cute ^w^

[killerscreen]

The shame aspect for me is really bad. When I discover something I made as a kid it's like it's radioactive, I can barely even look at it for more than like 10 seconds without cringing so bad that it feels fatal. For some of the stuff I made when I was a teenager I feel this way less, but emphasis on the "some". I can only really hope that future me won't scowl down at whatever I'm doing now.

[Twigz0n]

The shame aspect for me is really bad. When I discover something I made as a kid it's like it's radioactive, I can barely even look at it for more than like 10 seconds without cringing so bad that it feels fatal. For some of the stuff I made when I was a teenager I feel this way less, but emphasis on the "some". I can only really hope that future me won't scowl down at whatever I'm doing now.

Oof… I’m sorry that it causes such visceral reactions for you, it really sounds like an excessively uncomfortable experience for you and I’m sorry to hear that it does. :( I do relate a little though. A couple of years ago now, I had a very poor opinion of my art and my older artworks. Even all these years later I can remember a bit of that extreme embarrassment and shame from having made something that I saw as so bad to the point that I’d cry over it lol

I hope that maybe in time though you’ll get to a point where you can look back at some of your older works and find something positive about it. Doesn’t mean you have to think they were “good” necessarily, it could just be that they make you laugh in the future, or maybe remind you of a simpler time instead. 

[⋆DizzyLizz⋆]

I often feel somewhat embarrassed looking at my old/beginner artwork.I don't feel this way because of shame but rather envy. while my old works were entirely lacking in any skill or understanding of fundamentals I can tell that the younger me actually enjoyed drawing in spite of this.

I had so many ideas and so many creative designs and I Drew quite often.The most noticeable example of this is my willingness to try new techniques and styles (granted the younger me did not struggle with wrist pain as I do now).

I draw so much of the same stuff now and never try anything new even if its objectively better in some ways It's missing the spontaneity and wimsy that my art used to have.

[thecatscanvas]

In the past I used to be very ashamed of my old artwork and deleted most of it. I really regret that now. Recently I went through my old stuff to try and find some of it and now I keep all of my old art I could find in a folder. I really enjoy looking back on it and watching my art develop.

[radrocket]

Ah, yes me too!! That’s also another fun thing about old art is how unintentionally funny it can be at times haha. Yeah, I like to archive as much of my old stuff as I possibly can to see how far I’ve come too! I also find looking back at pats works can be helpful to see what things you might still be struggling with in your current skill set too!

Also I love your older drawings!!   Genuinely, I find the artstyle and humor of the 2017 drawing you’ve linked to be very reminiscent of that area lol, it’s very nostalgic to me. >w< Also is that an animal jam oc in the first one you’ve linked?? I loved that one too, I used to draw just like that before with a super small canvas making my brushstrokes look blurry as hell lol I really like the chibi look of it though, it’s very cute ^w^

yes, it is animal jam ^^ that was my main wolf character that i used for a while. i drew basically nothing but animal jam in 2015 xD

[Twigz0n]

In the past I used to be very ashamed of my old artwork and deleted most of it. I really regret that now. Recently I went through my old stuff to try and find some of it and now I keep all of my old art I could find in a folder. I really enjoy looking back on it and watching my art develop.

Me too! It’s always a blast to see how far we’ve grown since. I also keep most of my older works from 2018 to 2019 in a big folder. I used to be very destructive of my own work too at some point, but in my case it was mostly my traditional sketch books. I would rip out pages and even destroy some. But I still kept them because in the back of my mind I was afraid that I’d regret it even if I hated what was in there. I’ve definitely deleted some of my older digital works but what I’d often do is just cover the canvas in black on a separate layer and when I was ready I’d uncover it again. Or just leave it blank if I didn’t want to look at it all the time.

[Twigz0n]

I often feel somewhat embarrassed looking at my old/beginner artwork.I don't feel this way because of shame but rather envy. while my old works were entirely lacking in any skill or understanding of fundamentals I can tell that the younger me actually enjoyed drawing in spite of this.

I had so many ideas and so many creative designs and I Drew quite often.The most noticeable example of this is my willingness to try new techniques and styles (granted the younger me did not struggle with wrist pain as I do now).

I draw so much of the same stuff now and never try anything new even if its objectively better in some ways It's missing the spontaneity and wimsy that my art used to have.

Ahh yeah,, this is something that I’ve been feeling with my own art too. Even if my older drawings were lacking most of the core fundamentals, I used to be so ambitious with my ideas then compared to now. I guess it’s that philosophy of when you’re in a beginners mind there are infinite possibilities but when you’re an expert there are less.

I find that if you’re feeling stagnant in your art or your artstyle picking up a new medium that you’re new too or have done in the past can help things feel more refreshing sometimes. Or simply trying to draw something else that interests you but is different from what you typically draw is also an option. It’s possible to start experimenting again but in smaller ways so that you don’t get overwhelmed. This is just what I try to do when I’m getting sick of how my art looks but don’t want to scare myself into procrastination with something more intensive e.g fully rendered scene. Of course you can push yourself if you want too so long as you don’t hurt yourself.

[musicobsessed107]

I guess it was pretty typical for children's artwork, I guess. Some stick figures wearing clothing in very linear backgrounds, sometimes doing some really cool things or in a place that would otherwise be normal except it has fun dance floors, slides, ball pits, and any other fun thing my brain would come up with as a kid to turn the mundane into the extraordinary.

Hell, I was just thinking about a drawing I made as a part of an assignment I had once during Saturday school (it's exactly what it sounds like, except it was only 4 hours long instead of 6 hours and you'd usually have to attend if you were absent or something) when I was in the 2nd grade. The prompt for the assignment was "what is one thing would you change about your school" or something and I drew this giant tower with a slide going down from the 3rd floor, a rollercoaster and ferris wheel outside, the interior essentially being a mall and movie theater complex, and the sign at the top of the building saying "Super School". We also had to write a paragraph to go with our drawings and I basically wrote about how I'd change the entire building and to make school more fun (I wasn't a very big fan of school when I was 7 years old, in case you couldn't tell already). Unfortunately, the drawing was destroyed accidentally, though I do remember what it looked like and the unique features that made Super School a super school in my young and wild mind.

I also vividly remember how I'd often doodle in class (and get in trouble for it, of course, though in my defense, my teachers should've just been glad I wasn't talking to my colleagues during the middle of class instead during those moments).

Needless to say, I had a very strong imagination as a child (and still do now even as an adult).

[Twigz0n]

I guess it was pretty typical for children's artwork, I guess. Some stick figures wearing clothing in very linear backgrounds, sometimes doing some really cool things or in a place that would otherwise be normal except it has fun dance floors, slides, ball pits, and any other fun thing my brain would come up with as a kid to turn the mundane into the extraordinary.

Hell, I was just thinking about a drawing I made as a part of an assignment I had once during Saturday school (it's exactly what it sounds like, except it was only 4 hours long instead of 6 hours and you'd usually have to attend if you were absent or something) when I was in the 2nd grade. The prompt for the assignment was "what is one thing would you change about your school" or something and I drew this giant tower with a slide going down from the 3rd floor, a rollercoaster and ferris wheel outside, the interior essentially being a mall and movie theater complex, and the sign at the top of the building saying "Super School". We also had to write a paragraph to go with our drawings and I basically wrote about how I'd change the entire building and to make school more fun (I wasn't a very big fan of school when I was 7 years old, in case you couldn't tell already). Unfortunately, the drawing was destroyed accidentally, though I do remember what it looked like and the unique features that made Super School a super school in my young and wild mind.

I also vividly remember how I'd often doodle in class (and get in trouble for it, of course, though in my defense, my teachers should've just been glad I wasn't talking to my colleagues during the middle of class instead during those moments).

Needless to say, I had a very strong imagination as a child (and still do now even as an adult).

Woah!! Your super school idea sounds dope as hell though, I’d go there any day of the week! I can relate a little too actually. I used to love play areas, parks and theme parks and would often draw my elaborate play area designs but instead of stick figures I’d draw really shitty looking power puff girl ocs lol 

As someone who also hated school for basically the entirety of their adolescence I can relate to the feeling of wanting to make school feel more fun and exciting. I  remember day dreaming about being at the mall or at theme parks I liked whilst I was in class a lot. Also got told off plenty of times for doodling too, and still do today except it’s from my college tutors hehe

[MediocreMetastasis]

I used to draw a lot in high school and I kept multiple sketchbooks. I do think some of them are bad but some are also pretty good. I had a artstyle where I made gormless characters as seen in img 2 and 3 (because I could only draw those characters).

For like a lot of my old art/media I view on them range from pretty decent to I hope you burn in hell (especially the first music album I made please go away).

But unfortunately, because my laptops tended to wipe itself without my consent. I lost a lot of my early video game projects and other files.
I did upload Super Duper Moai Guy to newgrounds and it didn't get blammed.

Some of the games I made that got wiped are really raunchy so maybe it's a good thing they're gone.

[Twigz0n]

I used to draw a lot in high school and I kept multiple sketchbooks. I do think some of them are bad but some are also pretty good. I had a artstyle where I made gormless characters as seen in img 2 and 3 (because I could only draw those characters).

For like a lot of my old art/media I view on them range from pretty decent to I hope you burn in hell (especially the first music album I made please go away).

But unfortunately, because my laptops tended to wipe itself without my consent. I lost a lot of my early video game projects and other files.
I did upload Super Duper Moai Guy to newgrounds and it didn't get blammed.

Some of the games I made that got wiped are really raunchy so maybe it's a good thing they're gone.

Aw cool! I really like how gnawrly some of them look hehe. I like Homer Simpson too he looks very sweet c:
I saw your game too and I honestly really dig the vibe and aesthetics a lot! Couldn’t figure out quite how to play it but that is probably because I’m on an iPad lol

Also dig the shrek crossover art, wack as hell in a good way that brings me back a little 

[Corrupted Unicorn]

I have some thoughts regarding all of this. I have a lot of anxiety regarding "good enough" artwork, as if my art was not worthy of even being posted to the Internet. I have desires to work in the animation industry, and that requires "professional-looking" art. And I have a website one of the main purposes of is archiving all of my art. Including the oldest ones I have. I even want to add an "ancient" section with the oldest art I could find from when I was, like, five 

I've been fighting my art anxiety in several ways, my website being my main one. I also deliberately make my own art look "uglier" with filters as to eliminate that need of perfectionism within my head.

I might feel embarrassed about the poor execution of my art in past years, but never the subject. It's always things I love or things I'm learning. Sometimes I surprise myself with my own old art or ideas.

My biggest source of shame is most of my art being mere pencil sketches. Simply, this is due my head running faster than my digital pen & tablet  plus pencil & paper can be taken anywhere, and I don't need to be bound in front of a screen. It does make my art pop out way more, tho. I'm trying to both strike a balance between digital art and screen-free time, and find traditional ways to make my art pop.

Sometimes I have second thoughts regarding the purpose of my website. Should I keep archiving my old art? What if a potential employer finds my site? However, last year I attended an event for artists, and a professional one (Karla Ortiz!!!) showed us, in a huge screen for movies & presentations... her early Sonic OCs and manga art. Which makes me think it's fine for me to have a personal online space for art. Future bosses can look at my more professional-looking art elsewhere.  I also think it's important for beginner artists to realize artists they look up to started just like them. In a way, my website is recording my art journey in its entirety. If I ever end up working for Pixar or something like that, I'd like younger artists to look at my website and realize that, at one point in time, I was just like them.