Going digital saved my art. Here is the honest story of drawing tablets, Clip Studio Paint, aphantasia, and why Control Z is my new best friend.
Everyone knows the trick: close your eyes and picture something. Sheep jumping a fence. A beach. A loved one's face. I have never once been able to do that. This is what it is actually like to live with aphantasia.
Most artists close their eyes and see what they want to draw. I close my eyes and see nothing. Absolutely nothing. This is how I create botanical art with a completely blank mind's eye.
Bob Ross made painting look effortless. What he never said was that you need to learn to draw before you paint. I spent years and a lot of money finding that out the hard way.
Most beginners try to find their art style by adding more, more techniques, more tools, more influences. The Subtraction Method works the opposite way. This is how I discovered my own style by eliminating everything that didn't feel right.
You don't need expensive supplies to start drawing. This complete beginner's guide covers everything you need to get started for under $20, including the exact tools I used when I picked up a pencil for the first time at 55.
Can you really learn to draw as an adult? After 50 years of believing the talent myth, one book changed everything. This is the story of how I went from "no talent" to artist at 55, and why drawing is a skill anyone can learn.