Author: Renjith Ravindran

Improving Creativity: Here are some tips

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Creativity is multifaceted. The process usually involves inspiration followed by action. Creativity looks different for each individual.  

Did you know that meditation actually provides opportunities to boost and fuel your creativity without the downside of stress and unhappiness? There are some tips that you can follow to get the job done.

  • Be playful with your meditation as overthinking kills creativity and keeps your mind outward rather than inward.
  • Try silent individual meditation or try a group meditation. The energy of group meditation is very different than individual meditation. Sometimes change is exactly what’s needed to the creative engine. 
  • Creativity comes in many forms. For example, that your personal style, how you deliver reports at works all require creativity, or how you plate your food. Put your attention on creativity and watch it blossom. Heighten your awareness of where you are creative to train your brain to think creatively.

Creativity isn’t reserved for certain people who are inspired or more unique, it’s in us all waiting for a chance to come out.

Here’s a fun fact about the Mona Lisa Painting

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Leonardo Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is a masterpiece, period. But did you know that it was stolen back in 1911?

The artwork has been in Louvre since the year 1797. But in 1911, one of the employees at the place decided to steal the painting. And shockingly, the empty place which was left on the wall after the stolen painting attracted a huge number of visitors.

In fact, more number of visitors came to see the empty wall than people that came to watch the painting. Two years later, the culprit was caught and the painting is still in the Louvre Museum.

Drawing: How it impacts your brain

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Drawing is not just a hobby or a profession. It is much deeper than that when we take into consideration the impact that it has on our brain. The creativity involved in drawing can be a big boost for our brain.

If you didn’t know how drawing can impact your brain, we will be listing down some facts that you should know.

  • Drawing can add synapses to your neurotransmitters. This means that memories and experiences stored in your brain can become stronger, more vivid, and easier to access.
  • It can Produce positive brain chemistry like Serotonin, Endorphins, Dopamine, and Norepinephrine
  • Many studies have shown that drawing could lead to the person getting a thicker brain stem.

So rather than seeing drawing as simply an artistic hobby, you should start seeing it as a tool to boost your brain as well.

Here are three apps with which you can learn drawing on iPad

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Everything has gone digital. Drawing is no different. Over the years, there has been a sharp increase in the number of people who sketch digitally and since it is an eco-friendly way of learning the craft, it is recommended by many as well.

But how can you kick start your drawing tutorials in a digital platform? Well, we will be taking the iPad and Apple Pencil into consideration for this article and listing down three apps that can help you.

  1. How to draw everything: As the name suggests, it can help you by providing some good step-by-step resources to learn drawing. It has many anime characters, animals and other elements.
  2. How to draw: It provides the user with nice breakdown of the drawing shapes and also provides option for colouring as well.
  3. ShadowDraw: It has some interesting tutorials which can sharpen your drawing skills and it also help you to learn the style of different artists.

Will you be trying them out? Or did we miss out your favorite app? Let us know in the comments.

3 Shocking facts about Art that you should know

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Did you know that Art can completely change your life?

Not many people are aware of this as most of us do Art just for fun. But according to various studies, Art can bring huge changes in the life of a person. We will be listing down some facts related to Art today.

  • Students who study art are four times more likely to be recognized for academic achievement.
  • According to studies, Art can promote creativity, social development and self-worth.
  • Drawing develops hand-eye coordination and spatial awareness- abilities that engineers and architects use

Not only these, Art is mandatory for children in countries that rank highest for maths and science. So if you are not trying out art, it is about time you spend some time for it.

Here is an interesting fact about caricatures that you should know

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Caricatures are probably something that we come across every day. While it never fails to amuse us, did you know that caricature is much older than you think?

Some of the greatest artists in history even practice it to develop their skills. Eileen Owens, curator of “Biting Wit and Brazen Folly: British Satirical Prints, 1780s–1830s” once noted that Leonardo Da Vinci was one of the first artists to use caricature.

In 17th century also, caricatures had a place in the society as Italian artist Pier Leone Ghezzi used them to make fun of Romans and tourists. So next time you see a caricature, remember that it has an illustrious and deep-rooted history.

Here’s what motivated mini food artist Jay Baron

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Food miniatures might not match up to the real food when it comes to size or taste, but they are a visual treat for anyone who sees them and is indeed an art. YouTuber Jay Baron is banking in on this fact.

Starting a YouTube channel was what Jay Baron wanted. He, however, did not have an idea until he found the mini cast iron stove.

Baron started creating miniature food art with his stove and has garnered some love from the YouTube community. And his motivation or vision is probably the best part about his channel.

“I try to look at it as a piece of art work. It’s not extremely symbolic or in depth, it doesn’t need to be overly complicated — I’m just trying to make other people happy with these videos.” He said.

He is now known as the Mini food guy and had more than 13 million views last year. You can check out his channel here.

Coloring with Crayons: Here are three tips you should know

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If you thought crayons are only for kids, think again. Crayons can be handy for budding artists as well as it can give an entirely new feel to the artwork. But at the same time, there should be some things that need to be kept in mind while using crayons for colouring.

We will be listing down three such tips below.

  1. Colour in uniform direction: This is a no-brainer. Colouring in uniform direction will make the picture look neat compared to non-uniform colouring.
  2. Apply same pressure in all areas: If the amount of pressure you apply on the crayon while colouring varies, it can lead to differentiated dark and light shades across the image. To avoid this, make sure that you apply the same pressure throughout the image.
  3. The usage of pressure for emphasis: While the last point stands tall if you want uniform shades across the picture, you can use the pressure to put emphasis on certain points of the picture. For instance, if you want a portion to stand out, you can put more pressure on the area and in turn give it a dark shade.

These are just some of the tricks that will come handy when you colour with the crayons.

Shading: How to use pressure control

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One of the major challenges that beginners face while starting to draw is the process of shading. While it might not sound like a big deal, it can decide how your final output looks like.

Pressure control is something that you should keep in mind while shading as it holds the key.

Realistic shades are made by creating shades from light to dark. This depends on the pressure you apply on the pencil. The harder you press, the darker the shade will be.  To practice this, take a paper and shade from one end to another while pressing harder and harder until the values get darker gradually.

Another way to practice is to draw a long rectangle and split it into four squares. Shade the rectangle from left to right and increase the shade intensity as you move from one square to another.

Practicing these two techniques can help you get a better hold of the whole shading process.

3 Films that every art student should watch

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Films have a huge impact on the society. And no matter which area you work in, you are bound to have a film related to it.

Art is no different. There is a long list of films related to artists and most of them are quite stunning as well. We will be taking three such films today that every art student must checkout at least once.

  1. Frida: Frida is a biopic about Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. The film stars Salma Hayek and she was nominated for the Academy Award for this film.
  2. Andrei Rublev: This film which came out in 1966 talks about themes like artistic freedom, religion and art under a repressive regime.  It is also loosely based on the life of Andrei Rublev who was a painter in the 15-th century.
  3. Lust for Life: Vincent Van Gogh needs no introduction but this film explores his excessive obsession with art. It came out in 1956 and tries to capture the journey of Van Gogh through his life.

What are some of the other films that should be in this list? Let us know in the comment section below.