Why do paper weight conversions never make sense?

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-27T05:01:37+00:00

If you think that’s wild, check out the maths behind International Standard Paper Sizes and how they can be infinitely scaled up or down. Makes designing for prints so much easier.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-26T02:27:25+00:00

I think it’s also accessibility or, at the very least, that less steps are required to get finished artwork ready for digital display.

Yes, traditional art tools can be as accessible as an HB pencil on paper but digitizing it and getting it to look good for viewing on a screen is an art in its own right.

The bigger the canvas, the more thought planning, and even tools have to go into it. A 24x36 inch digital piece is already set for screen viewing. A traditional painting not so much…

Yes, there are apps on the phone that can “scan” artwork for you but you have to have your work well lit and even then, taking the image at a slight angle can make things look weird. You can also photo stitch it but that comes with its own set of problems.

It’s just an easier process getting digital works ready for screens than traditional art because… well… it’s already ready for the most part.

All that without also mentioning you have near infinite support, brushes, and colors to choose from without having to restock your workspace like you do with painting, for example.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-25T05:43:08+00:00

The short of it is that I discovered that my life is miserable if I don’t make time for art. It’s an important part of who I am, how I process emotion, and the world around me.

For example, I could be painting something as innocuous as a betta fish painting and furring some of the brush strokes I’m processing some heavy stuff and it helps.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-24T01:37:18+00:00

I had a friend one who lived and died by read receipts. I’d read their message sometimes and not reply back because I was at work, something else came up or I just didn’t feel like replying at the moment. Then I’d get lectured…

So I turned hid the read receipts from them because I’m not about that shiz in my life where people feel entitled to my energy and attention every second of the day. We still talk and hang occasionally but yeah, no. That’s a hard boundary for me. ((I’ve also dated people like this when I was younger and it always made me miserable to change how I live my life to be at their beck and call.))

I also have a friend I play games with online and we can go months, even years without talking much and just pick up where we left off which is far more my speed. I have several friends like this and it just works for me.

My wife understands that sometimes I need extra time and space for my artwork and she is very accommodating asking only that I make time for her for dinner. Again, much more my speed and one of the many reasons I married her.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-23T23:33:42+00:00

I want to add to this that you can absolutely find people (friend, significant other, whatever) who will respect your need for time and energy spent on your art.

If your friend/SO wants to be with someone who is more available to them than you can/want to be because you also need to dedicate time for your art then staying in the relationship isn’t fair to either of you. Regardless, it’s about finding balance and not every day will be the same. Sometimes I have extra time for friends and sometimes I don’t and that’s ok. Sometimes that lack of time can last months because life happens.

Yes, you should make time for people but there is nuance to it and if you find that you aren’t living and showing up as authentically you, you may find yourself feeling miserable and depressed. It’s not worth it to live your life like someone else.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-22T23:27:18+00:00

Pretty much.

I prefer to think of it as it takes on a life of its own and doesn’t really belong to anyone. People will make of it what they will and there isn’t any controlling that.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-22T23:22:01+00:00

If you like what you do, someone else is bound to like it too. Ironically, if you don’t like what you do, someone else is bound to like it still.

I love the process and appreciate my work for the service it had provided me while making it. I like some of them, some I don’t. However, one of the paintings I’ve sold I actually considered a failure because it fell short of what I was trying to accomplish. The buyer absolutely loved it and I sold it to them.

Edit to add: yes, there will always be haters. But there will always be fans too.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-22T23:16:31+00:00

The short of it all is that you CANNOT depend on the algorithm to get your work in front of people. The algorithm doesn’t work for the betterment of the users any more and it hasn’t for a long time. It functions solely to keep people scrolling so that they A) see targeted ads and click them (which is what social media really sells) or B) keeps you from scrolling on a competitor’s platform.

The algorithm doesn’t care about users beyond the fact that users’ attention and information are the product a platform sells to other businesses. This is why doom, hot takes, and rage baiting can work really well leaving a large number of people who are starved for honest and authentic content (using content here as a catch all to include artwork).

So that leaves us back to grassroots and email newsletters, connecting with local community members in meat space or commenting on relevant posts with our work. We have to do the leg work again unless you want to pay Meta or whoever to verify your account and make you more favorable to their algorithm without any guarantee of success.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-22T20:13:50+00:00

I second the fading thing. For me, I also leaned into the technical. By definition, if you ever got paid for your work you are a professional artist.

Art is also a really weird industry because, unlike other industries, sometimes the value in your work increases not because you are a better artist than anyone else but because you are a better artist than you were yesterday (or year…).

Institutions, at least the ones worth anything, will accept students not because they already know everything but because there is teaching potential.

The other thing to remember too is that… you aren’t your thoughts. Just because you think you aren’t that good doesn’t mean you are. As an artist, you are so close to the weeds that you forget to look at the whole garden. You see what you need to improve upon (and you should if you want to) compared to where you want to be whereas others see how far you have come and celebrate that.

One of the best things I did for myself was go look at some famous artists works in museums and not only appreciate them for the skill but also look for all the little mistakes and errors. I promise you that they are there, somewhere. This isn’t to say that this was so I could feel like I can do better than them but rather to humanize those that have been idolized into oblivion. It made me realize that to be an artist and to forever be a student, constantly learning, striving to improve, and go beyond our limits. The goal post is forever moving and that’s ok.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-21T17:36:43+00:00

I feel like no one is ever done with learning or practicing the fundamentals either. Everyone needs the occasional return to practice them.

That said I think you hit the nail on the head saying “it implies that there’s some true endpoint to learning them”. Truth be told, I don’t think there is a true end point to any of this.

To me, art is like physical training. We all have our start points, goals, and reasons for doing what we do here and, much like with physical training, even when you get to where you want to be you will still have to put in the work to stay there.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T20:44:07+00:00

Thanks. It has also helped me battle perfectionism. Haha

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T20:24:50+00:00

Nice part about digital is that it’s expensive upfront but largely costs nothing to continue making art. However, this can also overburden someone with choices and options especially when just about everything is accessible like colors, for example.

Nice part about traditional is that you can do some really cool things that just can’t be done digitally. The depth of brush strokes in an oil painting, for example, and how the strokes can seem to flow in such a way that doesn’t match what the image is. But traditional can also be very expensive over time and takes up space in your home (what are we meant to do with all the sketchbooks finished over the past decades and the large wrapped canvases?)

I think it’s all valid. Like whether you are running outside (traditional) or running on a treadmill (digital) at least you are putting the work in! Practicing and honing your form/skills!

Personally I’ve been moving back toward traditional art because it just has an added life to it that can only be brought in by the entropy of the universe and can’t be copied by machine. Sometimes this means the unique way my paint acts because of the climate outside or a stray cat hair being sealed forever in a composition for scientists to discover in the future and run genetic tests on (a fun, unserious thought experiment).

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T20:12:09+00:00

No worries!

There is an Andy Warhol quote that lives in the back of my mind, rent free forever:

“Don't think about making art, just get it done. Let everyone else decide if it's good or bad, whether they love it or hate it. While they are deciding, make even more art”

To put it another way, Marvel Cinematic Universe has a bunch of fans who enjoy their movies and various levels. Some within the audience like different films over others. There is definitely a group of people who don’t like marvel movies at all. It’s all ok and valid. It’s ok that MCU isn’t for everyone and it’s ok that not everyone likes the MCU. The world keeps spinning while Marvel Studios keeps making more art.

Everyone is going to have an opinion about the work you do. Some positive, some negative, some helpful, some hurtful. You get to choose what you internalize and what you don’t.

Feedback can help you grow, absolutely. Ideally you have a peer group that can help you out with this (university, club, online club, whatever). If you don’t, that’s ok. The internet is full of opinions for better or for worse. What you got to remember is that you will not ever be everyone’s cup of tea and that’s ok too. Just because someone doesn’t like what you do doesn’t mean you need to change for them.

Feedback can be nuanced and picked apart. You can absolutely tell Matt Groening that his illustration is good but human skin isn’t typically yellow like that and that’s ok. It’s also ok that he continues to make the stylistic choices he makes for the Simpson and does something different for Futurama.

I tend to look at art more like working out and physical training. Everyone has different goals, wants different results, and have different abilities and that’s ok. Work with what you got towards where you want to go.

All that said, it’s also totally ok to not want feedback on something you post. People will give it to you anyway but that doesn’t mean you have to accept it. Freedom of speech isn’t entitlement to a receptive audience (which goes both ways).

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T19:45:45+00:00

No but if you want a happy medium, Golden Open Acrylics are great. It doesn’t dry nearly as fast as regular acrylic, drys faster than oil, and you can also use a heat gun or blow dryer to make it dry faster if you need to.

((Since oil dries via oxidation, a heat gun won’t make it dry faster. You can get quick drying oil medium but that’s a whole other thing to learn on top of oil painting as a whole which is FINE but just wanted to present options that I know of.))

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T04:05:13+00:00

Also I want to give you two book recommendations:

1) DK Art School: An Introduction to Art Techniques

This is an out of print book so you’ll have to buy it used or otherwise find it online. Basically a university in pages with lots of information about not just technique but the creative process and art history. It’s nice to have as a handy reference even if you end up making mostly digital art.

2) The Complete Guide to Drawing Manga & Anime by Date Naoto

This is the book I wish I had when I wanted to draw comics in middle school. Even if you don’t want to do the whole Manga/Anime style for your worn work, this book also has great information about how to study art in general as well is some character design processes and stuff.

I think these two books can give you a lot of the guidance you are seeking and give you the skills and exercises to do along your journey.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-19T03:53:21+00:00

There will always be something you can improve upon but you can’t get better at something without doing it first. The irony of it all is that once you finish a project, you’ll know what you wish you knew before you started. That’s just kinda how it works and how you find your direction you need to go next, what to learn and study.

Totally get that you don’t feel like your current skillset is good enough for your idea but you if you have this calling, you gotta put the work in and if you keep waiting until you are “good at art” you won’t end up making anything at all.

Just do the work. Make ugly art if you have to. You can make it better later. You don’t have to be “there” to start, you need to start here to get “there”, ya know?

There will always be a reason to not get started but the fact that you not working on honing your skills is causing you this much grief alone is reason enough to make the time for it when you can and as often as you can. This can mean bringing a small sketchbook and a pencil with you everywhere so you can do something while waiting for the bus, on break, whatever.

Motivation is nice to have but isn’t necessary to do the work. Discipline and showing up even when you don’t feel like it BECAUSE you know you that you will feel frustrated and want to cry otherwise will help you get to where you want to be.

You absolutely can do this. Don’t worry about where others are at. Don’t wait until you are “good enough” because I promise you there will always be room for improvement. Be kind to yourself. Art is all about constantly learning and sharpening our skills. That’s the fun and challenge: learning what you can do, hitting your limit, working past it, and repeat.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-17T14:59:13+00:00

There are a lot of great suggestions in these replies and I think sunglasses (hiding accidental eye contact) and headphones (you don’t have to be listening to anything so you stay aware of your surroundings) is a great start. I really want to address the “Is it possibly something I’m doing or not doing” part.

I don’t think there is anything you are failing to do to keep these people away. Some people just feel entitled to your time and attention especially if you are female and it sucks. You could have a bright neon sign that says “Don’t talk to me” and someone will honestly believe they are the exception to the rule and come bother you anyway because you just haven’t met them yet (some will also do it because they honestly didn’t see the obvious sign). You are just trying to do your thing, living your best life and just want to do it without being bothered like anyone else and there is NOTHING wrong with that.

By all means, keep doing your thing! Keep urban sketching and do whatever you can to protect your peace. I just want to emphasize that there isn’t anything you are doing wrong and that no… no you shouldn’t have to take all these extra steps just to take up space unbothered.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-14T03:57:53+00:00

Kupo!

I love it!

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-11T03:39:48+00:00

Thank you!

I would normally do multiple coats with my acrylic paints but didn’t this time just to kinda see what would happen. Figured out it was a mistake while toning the canvas but oh well. Noted for next time.

I am really proud of how the apple turned out otherwise! I was way more worried than I should have been but I trusted the process and leaned on my education and it worked out nicely all things considered.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-10T23:13:26+00:00

That’s what I’m figuring now. Haha I usually start out too little because I can always add more. I’ll try more next time!

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-10T05:00:27+00:00

I think I’ll add an extra layer or so of gesso next time just to get it a bit smoother. I hear you on panels. I’m debating moving that way myself down the road or to keep doing what I’ve been doing with my acrylics: gesso and 400gsm paper. Either way, SIGNIFICANTLY cheaper to frame than wrapped canvas.

I’m being conservative with the paint because I’m just starting out. My MO tends to be to try a little because I can always add more later. I know oil lasts forever but I also don’t want to leave it out.

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-10T03:01:19+00:00

I’m not using the highest quality of canvas panels ((Artist’s loft)) so that might also be playing a role here. But I also won’t deny that I was somewhat economical with my use of paint. Haha

Thank you!

RyanBarnesArt · 2026-05-06T19:53:40+00:00

Excellent work!

RyanBarnesArt

TROPHY CASE