Hey there, those pieces are looking amazing! I like the way you are shading and coloring the pieces - very pleasing visually
As for the conversation on motivation - I feel you guys. When I was starting out here in art school, it was 17 years since I was trying to draw XD thanks to medschool and med-life. When I started up, I had zero idea on fundamentals and my drawings constantly looked terrible to me - especially the figure drawings. It was at the point where I started doing the gestures that I posted what I felt was absolute garbage and people would say they actually aren't too bad and gave me pointers that I just pushed through it and did the motions and that led me to constantly improve
As I saw my improvement it really motivated me to keep going and that lesson thought me that even if what I am doing now is not where I want to be - by keeping at it - I can get there. Just a matter of pushing through, pumping out studies based on the fundamental you want to improve.
Another thing I realized is that certain fundamentals are hidden or not obvious and can break art. For example "shape design" "design language" and other stuff I still find quite cryptic. Some shapes simply look better than others and smart usage of those shapes, varying sizes of similar repeating shapes, using consistent shape or line or brush language can really make a huge difference. So experimentation and keeping an open mind is key.
Those are some of the most relevant things that have hit me recently and I think they have a profound effect on my work mentality currently - but I am still learning and consider myself a beginner so ymmv
I also agree with Mitsuki, taking a break can be a life saver not just in art
cheers and keep at it!
(sorry for writing so much XD)
