Ah, if only I got a nickel for every time somebody asked this question! I would be a very wealthy man. Every artist, usually when they're in the early days of their journey, asks themselves and the world this question.
"How to find your Art Style?"
Of course, several more experienced artists will see that as a form of capitalization and will exploit these poor souls' incessant search to get some views and, consequently, make some bucks. The reality is that seeking your art style is a huge waste of time. In fact, it is the wrong question to be asked, especially early on.
In the middle of a bunch of artist-influencers selling you the secrets to become the next Yoji Shinkawa*, I come here in my humble blog to tell you why you shouldn't be focusing - or worrying - so much about it.
Insta-Ending Your Search
Since you were a small kid, all the way back to elementary school, you know how to write. At least, if you're reading this blog post right now, I am sure that you can read, which means you're also able to write. Holding a pencil and sliding it across the paper, performing different patterns of motion as you do so, creating little symbols. Back then, we drew symbols that looked pretty ugly and inaccurate, which is natural when it comes from the hands of a small child learning a new skill.
As the years passed and we wrote more and more, the symbols we draw looked better and better. In this process, we even figured out easier ways of drawing those same symbols in different ways without changing their meaning.
Boy, what a journey! Now we are very competent at writing things down in a notebook. It's no longer an act that requires active effort to perform, it became second nature!
Then, you look at other people's notebooks and come to a realization: "their symbols look a bit different than mine!" They're the same symbols that convey the same idea and communicate the same information, but they look... different! The extremities of the letters connect to each other, creating a word that flows gracefully without breaking. It's unlike mine, where every letter is its own thing, loose, distant from each other.
Your handwriting is different from everyone else's. It came as a result of a long journey of practicing it, learning from teachers based on how they do it and even learning ways of making it easier and faster by yourself. It's unique to you! People make comments about it. "Your handwriting is so pretty!", said one of your co-workers. "What the hell are these scribbles?", asked your classmate that's trying to copy your homework 5 minutes before class starts because he forgot to do it last night.
Now, I bet that you didn't actively seek for your own handwriting! Your own, unique handwriting that will shock the boots out of people's feet when they look at it in awe.
Then why are you so worried about your art style, when it's not much different from your handwriting? In fact, I dare to say that you already have your art style! Even when you're just starting out, you already draw differently from everyone else simply because your brain works differently and your experiences are unique to you.
What is Art Style?
This is what I got from Wikipedia:
"In the visual arts, style is a "... distinctive manner which permits the grouping of works into related categories" or "... any distinctive, and therefore recognizable, way in which an act is performed or an artifact made or ought to be performed and made""
If we are being technical, we could say it's a group of characteristics somewhat constant that allows us to identify which historical period that art was made. Or we could be more romantic and say it's how the artists express themselves, which is not wrong!
Art Style is a very vague concept that is hard to objectively define. For the sake of the point I am trying to make, let's define it as handwriting with an applied purpose.
What do I mean by that? I mean that it's something that does not change the story being told, but it can definitely support it.
Let's take a look at the sentence down below, for example:
We understand what the sentence says. The information was properly communicated and the story is clear. Now, we could add to this by changing the font to one that better represents the story it's telling.
Now, this is more fitting! It became more impactful. The content is the same, but the style emphasizes the story.
We could also play with it and create a contrast between the dark message this sentence is passing and a fun, friendly-looking font. Complete opposites!
Style doesn't change the meaning of the sentence, but it definitely adds up to it. While style is, indeed, important, there are other elements higher in the hierarchy. The story is being conceived regardless of the font being used, but the use of a more fitting font can add to that story's energy and mood.
The stories we tell and the style we end up having relate a lot to our personality and who we are as people.
Why is The Question "How To Find Your Art Style" The Wrong One To Ask?
Imagine we are in class, and we are both copying the information the teacher wrote on the board in our notebooks. You're calm, just writing down everything in auto-pilot mode, while I am anxious, quickly copying everything afraid that the teacher will erase the stuff on the board in any second. Once done, I look at your notebook and notice that your handwriting is different than mine. It's prettier, more consistent and structured while mine is getting closer to the scribble and it's even a bit skewed.
However, despite all of these differences, it's safe to say that the information written in both of our notebooks is exactly the same. Perhaps it's easier to understand with your handwriting, but the information is still the same.
Art Style is not the content of your drawing, it simply supports it. It makes it clearer, it enhances its energy, but it alone will not make an amazing drawing. For something not so high in the hierarchy of important things to have in an illustration, it doesn't make sense to have so many people overly concerned and so desperately trying to find out the secrets on how to achieve your own art style.
Your Art Style is a natural result of your influences and how you incorporate them into your work. It all happens subconsciously or casually as you draw. What really matters and doesn't come naturally is the understanding of the art fundamentals and the basic set of "rules" that will improve the quality of your drawings and the ability to create strong, appealing pieces.
What would be the right question then? "How can I be a better artist than I am today?" is a good example of a better question. It's a lot more productive to wish to improve rather than to wish to make awesome artwork that everybody will love. It takes work and time to get there, and that's why everybody that does it very well and/or for a living says that you need to love it. It requires a lot of dedication, discipline and sacrifice to get there.
Conclusion
Art Style is not something that you should be heavily concerned about as an artist, since it does not heavily affect your artwork. It can be a great supporting element, sure, but without a foundation, it just falls apart. Your own style is something that naturally evolves as you learn more, improve your skills and keep consuming the things you like.
You'll find that anime fans end up drawing anime-styled characters, while people that really like superhero comic books will have an art style leaning towards that direction. People that really like Disney will naturally incorporate some Disney-style elements into their work, and so it goes.
You most likely consume several different things from different media. That means that you'll be influenced by all these different things and incorporate the elements you like the most in your work. This mix is your own, unique art style.
The moral of the story is: just keep drawing! Keep learning and have fun! Your art style will be a result of that.
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*Yoji Shinkawa is the lead character and mecha designer for the Metal Gear franchise. He is well known for his art style, which is different from the final game's realistic style.
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