After releasing my art book, a lot of people have been asking what exactly I do when I warmup.

Should you do gesture drawings? Maybe value studies? What about deconstructing the body into shapes? It can be overwhelming deciding what to do.

But with warmups, that’s the opposite of what we want. Similar to how you warmup for a workout with low intensity, drawing warmups are meant to get you ready for a day of art.

The way I think of them, warmups are nice and comfortable. I’m drawing things that appeal to me, developing ideas I like, and using techniques that I’m used to.

That also means letting go of the fear. Accepting that you’ll probably do some bad sketches before the good ones come out.

Warmups = Drawing what you enjoy, and accepting whatever happens. Because it’s just warmups!

So what exactly do I do when warming up?

As mentioned, draw what you enjoy when doing warmups. For me that’s:

• Line drawing
• Original characters
• Breaking bodies down into simple shapes (construction)

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I started the day off surfing Reddit for reference. I found an SFM animation with super neat composition and posing, and it was a good challenge to draw.

Then I started warming up with some construction (drawing bodies with shapes). This is my preferred technique for drawing, and yours might be different. For example, I’m not into gesture drawing, so it doesn’t show up much in my warmups.

An added benefit of warming up is that it stops art block when you work on bigger artworks and commissions for the day. You’ll be loaded with a fresh visual library from your warmups.

After, I stumbled on a photo of Sigourney Weaver in Aliens. It got me thinking about Em in space.

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And finally, a skater girl sketch because I felt like it. Combining hobbies with art gets me more excited to draw. Hopefully you’ll feel the same when you do warmups.

What about challenging warmups?

Warmups can be hard, but there’s a difference with being challenged and seeking out a challenge.

When I do warmups, there are poses that I just can’t seem to get right. That’s when I’m being challenged. However, I don’t hold it against myself. I try again or move on.

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On the other hand, you might enjoy warming up by seeking out challenges. It could be doing master studies or trying a technique you’ve never done before.

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Personally, I don’t like challenging myself when I warm up. It’s hard to prepare for, especially first thing in the morning. I also want to keep my warmups light, so I don’t get frustrated the rest of the day.

Conclusion

And that’s what I do when I warmup! Whether I’m drawing from reference, studying other artist’s works, or just doodling, warming up gets me ready for a day of drawing.

What do you enjoy drawing? I want to see your warmups, so feel free to share and tag me on Twitter @hbeatsart, or join the NSFW Artists Guild and share your sketches.

If you want to learn more about warming up, check out the Red Pencil Art Book, which compiles 4 months of warmup sketches and art lessons into an 85-page e-Book.

Cheers,

Beats