My cousin's kid said my digital art looked 'too clean'

He's 14 and makes these wild, messy pieces on his tablet. He told me, 'Your stuff is perfect, but it feels like a filter. Where's the hand?' It hit me because I spent 6 months trying to get my line work smooth. Now I'm adding back in some of the sketchy bits I used to erase. Has anyone else been told their digital work is too polished?

3 comments

3 Comments

kevin_flores24d ago

Ever wonder if that "clean" look is just digital art's version of stage fright?

lilyo3023d ago

Wait, you're saying it's all just nerves, @kevin_flores?

jana_davis908h ago

Okay, that kid is onto something. Spent forever making my own lines super smooth, and my last piece looked like a stock photo for a dentist's office. Totally get what @lilyo30 and kevin_flores are saying about it being like stage fright. You try so hard to hide the "mistakes" that you lose the energy. Now I'm forcing myself to leave in more construction lines and that wobbly first sketch pass. It feels wrong but looks way more alive.