Is drawing a natural talent to all humans?

[keac]

Most of us here can draw at any level, right?
I saw people could only draw a stickman than complex objects.
Some could draw a house without effort.

Is it a natural talent to all?

Well, I guess a dog can draw...

(Source: mastphotos.com)

[scythe]

The 'thinking' part of the brain is essentially a machine designed to make predictions, so it relies heavily on patterns and imagery. It's therefore not a leap to say that all humans can instinctively draw, at least to a certain degree. Most of what we call drawing today is probably a learned behaviour.

[studiomik]

I don't think it's a natural talent. I guess it's a form of expression.

Just like making music. Nobody is good at playing the guitar for the very first time.

And if you like to express yourself with drawing, you can get good at it. If you like to draw, you will take the time for it to learn. And it takes time to master a craft. I think talent is a word people use when they don't see the amount of time one has put in it. "Ooooh, she's sooo talented. Well, yeah, she put a lot of effort in it wich you did not. You're good at something else." Sorry if this sounds a bit rude, didn't mean to. But this a thing where comics tent to suffer from.

Einstein never got clever instantly. He learned and studied. Tesla did a lot of trial and error. Slash learned to play the guitar and even Van Gogh struggled so hard. And so did everybody else i guess.

Talent is a word made up by TV shows to bring a bit of magic on tv.

[keac]

It's not "talent" but a gift

[gateofselidor]

Most people could probably learn to draw if they put in enough time and effort, but I wouldn't say it's a natural talent for all human beings, and it's bound to be easier for some than others.

[zelkats]

I remember having a conversation with an artist from Inkblazers about how some of us seem to improve at drawing even after taking a long break from it. Some people have brains that are much better at ingraining details of pictures and the things they see into their own minds and being able to apply them to their drawing. Whether it's something they were born with or something that's developed over time through exercises like constant drawing, I don't know.

There's a comic artist I follow who said to have only started seriously drawing in their early twenties and it didn't take long for them to be good enough get published. It sounds pretty crazy but I don't think that's impossible. Art prodigies exist, after all. There are certainly people who can draw well from memory, and those are the kind who can do life sketches that are close to the real thing at a quicker pace because what they see and memorise, they immediately apply it to paper. How they got to that point varies. I'm guessing that prodigies realised that ability early on, made use of it and developed it.

I think everyone has this ability from the beginning, but with different strengths. Just like how some people are better at numbers or remembering facts. I, for one, am totally crap at mathematics no matter how hard I try. I could have spent more years exercising my brain to be able to do math good but that was not a path I chose XD;

This is all just speculation

[scythe]

The fact that practically all children start drawing pretty much the exact same face (a roundish shape with two eyes and a line for a mouth), without being shown that composition, implies to me that's it's a natural instinct. Yeah, we sit them down and tell them to draw, but we don't start showing them how to draw until they're much older.

Kids like making marks, and if it wasn't a crayon on paper, it'd be a stick in the sand.

As for some having a natural talent, I absolutely believe that. Most skills seem to be that way.

[Latte]

I don't think drawing is a talent at all; it's a skill you learn through hours upon hours of practice, just like every other skill (singing, programming, whatever).

I think humans have a natural desire to create, but do not naturally have the tools required to create.

[Queashnd]

I'm pretty sure ive read something like this before so i'll try to extract it from my memory(since I dont remember where ive read it)

Its just like how toddlers learn how to speak,there are those that speak clearly and already knows how to construct a sentence at a quick pace and there are also toddlers who seem to find it hard to speak even when theyre already about 5-7.
We all have different brains,so we react differently to others. This is why some artists tend to find Proportions or colors or drawing backgrounds easy and some learn the skill quickly,because thats that.
Basically,Those people who can draw "quick sketches" in an hour,or like those have the "Quick Learner" trait in the Drawing/Painting aspect.

[Wolven_Sister]

I think anyone can draw and ultimately can tap into any branch of art/creativity. Personally, I think it depends on the passion fueling it.
If you try drawing and it instantly clicks and you really enjoy it, then you keep persisting and overcoming obstacles until you are satisfied as to what your art has developed to or you keep improving and learning new things. The key is that there's a motivation and a drive there, like if you can't imagine your life without drawing then it's a calling waiting for you to tap further into.

Now, if you try drawing and it simply doesn't interest you (not in the practice aspect) but in that it simply isn't enjoyable sketching something down, then try another art form. Knitting, modeling, scrapbooking, cooking, writing, music etc...One of these, if not more, will catch your interest, passion, and if you feel that drive to have it in your life, to pursue past all the highs and lows, then it's meant to be :') I think the human body and mind are capable of many things, but what makes us different and unique from each individual are our personalities, interests, dreams, passions, and the fire that fuels it.

[VermillionWorks]

....yes and no? Maybe it's instinct for a human to be able to doodle from the beginning, but not so much paint a masterpiece.

Perhaps there have been a handful of amazing people who basically just came out of the womb and knew how to draw a perfect face, but as others have said here, usually I see it at as a skill you have to work at. Just like learning an instrument or anything else, it takes years to get it right.

[eagle1]

Just a note:

I have long advocated the breaking of this into two parts: Talent and skill. Talent is something that you are just naturally better at. Skill is something you have learned to do. You probably can't be a great artist without both.
I have no talent for drawing, though I have a little for painting. Everything I have now was due to hard work in the way of learning techniques and theory.
I have small talent for writing, and was published before I started studying how writing techniques and theory work.
My only real talent is sword play. I can pick up any sword and almost instinctively know how to use it. Practice just enhances my skill, but the talent is the base of it all. Totally useless, but somewhat fun.

Eagle
(This 51 year old man just whipped a pair of practiced youngsters two weeks ago at a con)

[skyfish]

There are a lot of artists who shrink away from the word 'talent' when referring to their skills. When you call it a talent it puts an image that the artist's hours of hard work and struggles and insecurity and self doubt never existed (which they do for a lot of people) and they popped out of the womb holding a pencil or something.

In my experience the people who throw around 'talent' on other people haven't seen the hard work that goes into it.

[ArtistHan]

I think everyone is capable of drawing something. You draw a line, you drew! Also, it's possible to draw something "well" without being technically skilled or complex. Some of the funniest comics out there are just stick figures. That being said, I think the fact that drawing is considered a talent means that there is a certain level of being gifted to it. Some people are just born with a higher sense of imagination, creative drive, and ability to execute technicalities than other people. Anyone can draw a line, but not everyone can paint the Mona Lisa or create something that makes an impression, makes you cry, makes you laugh, etc. Of course, no matter how gifted someone is, a talent only thrives under practice and perseverance

[getsuart]

I saw an elephant painting trees once, so I think it doesn't apply to humans only. And it's a very interesting fact that not only human CAN paint "real" things.

Anyway, with human only ; I remember seeing on DeviantArt a stamp about talent "1% talent, 99% hard work". And I think it's true. You can be talented, but if you don't work at it, well... your can have many talent as you want, but it won't be enough.
Prodigies ARE prodigies because they learn and understand a way faster than regular artists = they got the "talent" + the skills quickier.

BUT everyone is capable of drawing. It just needs hard work.

[jessiepolfliet]

Everyone can learn how to draw. It is thinking up ideas and putting them on paper where the talent is needed really. Even if you can draw, that doesn't automatically make you creative. Yes you have some people that draw everything right, without practise, and other do need hours of practise to draw something right. As Getsuart said "It just need hard work"

[SpavVy]

Drawing is natural to all humans (ones that have hands anyway) as well as writing, however to actually be good at either one takes a lot of practice.

[AnnaLandin]

It's not a natural talent - it's an acquired skill. Some people find it easier to acquire the skill, because they have an easier time grasping visual information, but it's still a skill.

You have to work hard at it. We all start out as children on the stick-figure level - and some people stay there, because they don't work at it. If someone who has never practised drawing picks up a pen as an adult, they will probably attempt to draw 3-dimensional objects instead of stick-figures - but only because we as adults have a better visual grasp of the world than small children do.

To draw well, you have to practise. The same way you have to practise to be a good musician, or a good dancer. There are thousands and thousands of hours of practise behind any skill, and there is NO reason why drawing should be any different.

All "talent" really amounts to is an ease of learning. Just like some people find it easier to learn something if they get to hear it out loud, while others learn better if they get to read a text, and some people find it easier to memorise things if they write them down, having a "talent" for drawing is really only a matter of certain people finding it easier to acquire and process information visually. Some people just find it easier than others to understand things visually, but they still need practise to acquire technical skill.

Telling someone "oh, you're so talented!" feels a little bit dismissive to me. Sure, it's intended as a compliment, but that kind of thinking also dismisses the hours of hard work that goes into becoming good at something.

[eagle1]

Telling someone "oh, you're so talented!" feels a little bit dismissive to me. Sure, it's intended as a compliment, but that kind of thinking also dismisses the hours of hard work that goes into becoming good at something.

Yah! I know people with drawing talent. I know a guy who doesn't have much else going for him, but he can put a pen down anywhere on an illustration board and start drawing. No sketch, no planning, but he turns out highly detailed fantasy pictures with good perspective and anatomy. Makes me ill watching him. He was 22 when I first met him, and told me he had never had a drawing class or had to sketch.

And since it came so easily to him, he didn't do anything with it. Just 'doodled' occasionally when he 'felt' like it. I was selling my artwork at the time trying to make ends meet, and started selling his. Needless to say, his stuff outsold mine, but he only felt like doing a board once a month or so. I've lost track of him over the years, but he had talent and an innate understanding of the basics of art.

When people tell me "oh, you've got talent", I gently tell them "No, it's a skill for me". I wish I had talent at this, then I wouldn't be so frustrated with it. I am proof that any monkey with a pencil can learn to draw/ink/paint, but it's not something that comes easily.

Eagle
(A drawing Bird. Cool!)

[jonufele]

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