Each Friday, I send advice, ideas, stories and tips to 25K creative people like you. Author of 13 best-selling books on creativity. Founder of Sketchbook Skool w 50k+ students
🏅 How you can be an Olympian.
|
Can’t make it to Paris? You can still participate in the Olympics in Paris this year! Here's how: 1. 🙋♂️ Be a sports reporter. Watch your favorite events with your sketchbook in your lap and draw your favorite moments. If the action is too furious, just hit the pause button on your TV and freeze the scene. 2. 🏃 Do an art relay. Pick ten materials and colors — then switch your medium every minute as you draw Paris. 3. ⏱️ Do some time sprints. Challenge yourself to create a quick sketch in under a minute, just like the athletes competing in 100-meter sprints. Set a timer and see how many quick sketches you can do during commercial breaks. 4. 🥇 Go for gold. Paint in metallics. There are so many new watercolors and pencils available now in gold, silver, bronze… 5. 🏆 Be a Triathelete: Combine three different forms of art into one cohesive piece. For example, start with a pencil sketch, add layers of watercolor, and finish with ink details. 6. 🏃➡️ Run a Sketch Marathon: Dedicate an entire day to drawing non-stop, just like a marathon runner. Keep a tally of how many sketches you can complete in 26.2 hours (or minutes, if you prefer a more manageable challenge). 7. 🔟 Do the Decathalon: Challenge yourself to create a piece of art about each event in the Olympics. It could be a quick sketch, a detailed painting, or even a collage. No matter your age or fitness, you can be an Olympic winner! Your pal, Danny P.S. 📓 Want more ideas, assignments, art material reviews, and inspiration for your sketchbook?... then you want to subscribe to my Studio Notebook. Every Tuesday — and now 50% off your first month. Just |
Danny Gregory: I help you make art again
Each Friday, I send advice, ideas, stories and tips to 25K creative people like you. Author of 13 best-selling books on creativity. Founder of Sketchbook Skool w 50k+ students
For thirty years, my job was to kick ass. I worked in advertising, which meant I was in a constant state of competition. Every meeting, every pitch, every campaign was about being the sharpest, the fastest, the most convincing voice in the room. I had to serve up hot ideas on demand, solve problems overnight, and make my work eclipse whatever and whoever came before. I was good at it. Good enough to win cash and prizes, and to stay in the ring for years. Once, I was hired to freelance for...
I plan to read more literary novels. But sometimes I end up blowing through a cheesy thriller that I grabbed at the library. JJ buys kale to make healthy salads, and then we find ourselves eating frozen pizza on the couch. I add Kurosawa and Bergman movies to my Netflix list, but I also rewatch the same episode of Seinfeld for the fifth time because it makes me laugh, and I already know how it ends. I like to think I have standards. I know what "good" is, or at least I have some idea. But I’m...
Lately, I’ve been spending time with a new online tool called Cosmos. It’s a way to collect and curate visual inspiration—kind of like Pinterest, but without the ads, algorithms, and kitchen makeovers. What sets Cosmos apart is its focus: it’s filled with images curated by designers, illustrators, and artists. Real people with real taste. And the quality of what they’ve gathered is next level. I recommend you try it, but that’s not the point of this essay. As I meandered through the site, I...