The setup

When you start as child drawing you start with crayons, or coloured pencils. You draw doodles, you draw your family, maybe dragons and unicorns.

At some point, if interested, maybe you start learning to shade. And you discover that different strengths, when applying the shade, give different results.

You can even learn to diffuse with your finger, softening those shades, or making them more uniform. Maybe creating a smooth gradient between different strengths of shade.

You maybe understand that some colors work better with other colors, or that you can add some clashing on purpose. And reusing the diffusing technique you can mix them after applying, not just adding one color in top of another.

You are grasping how shapes work, how to provide volume, how perspective works (even if you have not read anything about it). You can make things appear farther away, or close to you.

Maybe you start using some new material (charcoal, pastels). And though they have similitude to the crayons and pencils, the results are quite different. And the techniques change, ever so slightly.

You master the use of oils, and the completely different strokes that you can use, which create different effects on your painting. And the color mixing is so different to the work that you did with all previous materials. You can mix before applying!

Maybe you gain knowledge how to use sprays, which are like nothing you have used before. All the techniques out of the window. But what you have learned about shape, colors is still useful.

During this process you have also learned that where do you paint has also an effect both on how things look, and which techniques and materials you can use. Is not the same your notebook paper than a canvas than a brick wall.

And you have been learning from others by copying. Nowadays, by studying and reading, with the wealth of information available. You discuss with your fellow students of the techniques, the styles, the tools. And get into discussions if Picasso or Dalí was the greater (Dalí, of course)

You are approaching a high level of mastery of your art.

The end

Then you think back: you wouldn’t be here without those doodles that you did at the beginning. And yet, you are so far away from them.