Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Alexandria Dority. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.
Alexandria, so great to have you with us today. There are so many topics we want to ask you about, but perhaps the one we can start with is burnout. How have you overcome or avoided burnout?
Whenever I experience burnout in my artwork, I take a step back and try to focus on other things, such as cooking, baking, hanging out with friends, or gaming. I think switching gears and working on something entirely different from your focus helps with the recovery process and if possible, take a decent break from it for a few weeks. If I don’t have the choice to take a break due to work obligations in regards to creating art, a good work around would be to do studies of something I’m not used to drawing or try to replicate someone’s artwork just to get into a different mindset.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
I create a lot of illustrations that revolve around character design and concept art, as well as some animation here and there. While it is a laborious task, I enjoy the process as I reach the final product to see what once rough sketches was, to something that feels full of life. I think everyone should create things even if it’s just for fun, it gave me an appreciation for things that people would not normally perceive as beautiful.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
When I first started out, I did not have anyone to teach me how to create art. Most of my art journey is made up from being self-taught and intensely analyzing art and photography. If there is something you want to learn, the internet can be a valuable resource that is often free.
Study from life first and foremost: you must understand the rules of anatomy before you can break them through stylization.
Having self-discipline is also important so you don’t give up as soon as things become difficult. Even when I’m not satisfied with a finished piece, it’s good to acknowledge why I don’t like it so I can work on those issues with my next work.
And finally, being able to accept useful criticism and feedback. Even if you put in a lot of time and effort into creating something, if someone provides feedback that suggests ways for the drawing to be improved, don’t take it negatively. You don’t always have to implement every suggestion that is given to you unless it’s for a job, but it’s good to know when to actually make use of the advice.
What’s been one of your main areas of growth this year?
The biggest area of improvement that I have experienced within the past year would be my animation work. I did not have a lot of time to dedicate towards animation throughout my college career, but this year proved differently. From my capstone final to some collaborative projects I’ve taken up, actually getting the opportunity to put to practice the concepts I have been studying has proved to vital to growing as an artist.
Knowing to use and create references has been super helpful in improving faster as an animator and understanding how to make movement feel more alive and believable.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://avdority.com
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- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCKB6KiInloaVBaNVGU_ln1w
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