Free Online Courses On Drawing
Get access to the best free online drawing and painting courses for beginners to intermediate artists. Develop your visual thinking skills, design abilities, illustration with these free courses to help you improve quickly.
If you are interested in developing your art skills on a budget, this post is for you. Learn how to draw and visualise forms in a 3D space and draw them from imagination for free! I have included some low-cost options too.
Online schools aren’t an inferior form of education. For one thing, it allows individuals to study at their own pace. Students doing independent work have the opportunity to adjust how they study based on their schedule and interests.
Not all of us have the luxury of being able to go to art school. Art schools can be prohibitively expensive. There is no real freedom of expression until your last year and even then it is based on projects set up either by your teacher or curriculum. They also do not teach you about art promotion or the business of art to help you make a living from what you do best.
What do you need to get started?
Consider looking up Free software that you can download onto your tablet or computer. I don’t think you need to buy expensive equipment either. Inexpensive materials around the house such as pens, pencils, and cheap paper bought online or from your local art store are plenty to get you started. Books with pages that have not been used can give you a surface to sketch. The walls in your children’s room can serve as your canvas. Get Creative!
Free books
Internet archive is a digital library that provides free access to digitized software, games, music, videos, images and millions of books. They digitize about 1000 books a day, amounting to more than 2 million books. You don’t have to buy books on art as there are so many digitized books to get you drawing and painting. They also have free videos on art and drawing.
Some of my favourites are:
- Perspective made easy by Ernest R. Norling
- The Natural Way to Draw by Kimon Nicolaides
- The Art of Animal Drawing by Ken Hultgren
- Bridgman’s Complete Guide to Drawing from life
- Drawn to Life by Walt Stanchfield
Free drawing videos
Udemy
Udemy is a popular online course provider aimed at professional adults. The lessons are broken down into short videos that are very close to the classroom experience. It offers courses in several categories and you can find wonderful courses on art as well. It offers a few free courses, depending on the instructor. You can also find courses that are inexpensive and fits what you needs. Look out for their sales!
There are 2,658 results for “how to draw” lessons that are free to watch. Go ahead and explore other search results based on what you want to learn.
YouTube
YouTube is the second most visited website, with over one billion monthly users. YouTube serves as a virtual library and will support you by providing you with instruction to learn complex concepts, procedures, and ideas entertainingly. According to a 2019 study, there were around 500 videos being posted per day. Your options are limitless when it comes to learning.
My recommended & favourite channels to draw
KlineCreative
KlineCreative was created by John Kline who has compiled a series of drawing lesson videos. For the beginner, it offers lessons on drawing, charcoals, pastels and painting to enhance any 2-dimensional work that you might undertake. The lessons are geared to help you understand that drawing is at the heart of creating two-dimensional art.
CtrlPaint
CtrlPaint’s short videos offer you different concepts, thus allowing you to manage your learning at your pace and as your attention allows. In this way, you can learn complex subjects in manageable increments. It comes as a collection of short, free, videos on the basics of digital painting. With the number of videos available to you, literally hundreds of them, you can be sure there is something for everyone. The videos are organized into a progression from basic to more advanced topics. Work through the whole thing and then get to the paid stuff if you want to advance further.
Blogs
Creativebloq
If you are interested in the latest trends and developments in global design, you should visit Creative Bloq. Everyone – from traditional artists, web designers, graphic designers, 3D and VFX artists – can get advice here. You can stay informed and up-to-date on the latest trends and developments in the global art and design industry. Their site brings you the best creative work and offers insight to help you create your best work.
EnvatoTuts+
EnvatoTuts+ has a huge collection of free drawing tutorial blog posts that can benefit a beginner or anyone who wants to improve. Offering expert instructors who teach you drawing step by step, breaking down complex drawings into simple steps, Envato has what you need to create results you will be proud to share. Whether you are drawing animals, landscapes, or cartoon characters you are covered with Envato.
If you are going digital, Envato offers graphic design and illustration lessons ranging from Adobe Photoshop to drawing theory. So don’t waste a minute, get started!
Drawabox
Drawabox offers you a rigid course of free exercise-based lessons that help you focus on the fundamentals not meant for the faint-hearted. By the end of their lessons, you will develop a strong understanding of form, 3D space and construction. Beginning with the basic mechanics of mark-making and how to use your arm, they take you through everything you will need to hone your skills. Sometimes it may seem boring but remember you are training your brain the core fundamentals of art.
You can also join the pateron community for a low fee of $1 USD per month.
If you are enjoying this post, please consider visiting my shop as it helps me keep creating valuable content for those who love to draw and paint.
Inexpensive courses
Very affordable with their sales!
Art of Aaron Blaise
Aaron Blaise, American painter, animator, film director and art instructor, teaches you the “how-to’s” on his site. With very easy-to-follow and affordable videos and digital downloads on this site, you will find animation lessons and digital painting courses that will help you get started on your dream. You will learn the fundamentals of animation, illustration techniques and more here. Have fun as you learn from a master of many dreams.
Creativelive
With courses starting at $10 USD and going up to $200 USD, CreativeLive offers you lower end of pricing for an online platform. For artists and designers who want to develop already existing skills, buy courses that are relevant to your needs. It is inexpensive and you get a bunch of free courses as well. While you are at it learn additional skills such as marketing and setting up your online art store too.
Domestika
Domestika, another online learning platform for creatives, has courses on software, crafts, illustration, and more for artists. Professionally produced, they make sure you learn something and have fun while doing it. If you purchase their courses in a bundle you can get a great bargain. Its creative community brings to you a selection of free online courses while making sure you keep safe while you are on their site.
Difficulties with free drawing courses online
The only disadvantage of doing small low-cost courses is that you have to be willing to pay for more expensive courses in time. You have to find the motivation and grit to get through it yourself. It will be important to build habits and rituals to ensure that you stay on track. The structure you create will be your own and the assignments you do alongside will be on you. How much or how little you absorb from these courses will be totally dependent on how you tackle the issue.
Some paid courses offer a more nuanced approach, others have mentorships with more experienced artists. In time you will need to work with a more experienced artist who can guide you to reach your full potential and expose things that you have missed.
Get the best from free online courses on drawing
Create assignments for yourself with every video or tutorial you consume. You might feel like you accomplished a lot by watching many tutorials, but unless you practice you won’t improve. Be sure to practice… practice… practice…
Watch a tutorial and then try it. Or draw along as you watch the lesson. Read the blog and then draw it.
While creating the structure you need to build your art to the level you desire is a whole topic in itself, I hope this post helped you.
If I have missed any of your favourite free resources please share them so others can learn from your experience.
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