Pursuing Art at 35

I'm 45 and I have a 5 year plan to pursue my passion to be a fine artist. This has been a dream of mine for almost 20 years. I am unsure if it will work but I'm going to do it anyway. Let's do this! I'll see you in 5 years! Goodluck!

I think everyone forgets how young 35 is. You got this. 🎉

I didn't start writing again until I internalized three important concepts: 1. You need to systemize in order to normalize. Do something small each day at a set time for a predetermined amount of time, until it's routine. 2. Failure is a problem for editing. 3. It's okay to let yourself sit there, and allow yourself to do nothing. No distractions, just stillness. Eventually doing your art becomes more interesting than simply being.

I'm 33 and did so much art when I was in high school but stopped once I got to college. I felt like it was a "waste of time" because I couldn't make money from it. After working in corporate for 12 years I yearned for a change and I have slowly been improving my art in hopes of becoming fully employed on my art. It is never too late! Thanks for your video, definitely makes me feel less alone (and all these comments too!)

the title itself hits home, i am currently 27 and the dread of getting to 30 without that much progress to drawing the things i want is an everyday battle i struggle with. i wish i could just do it without compromising myself or the others around me. great video and i hope i your journey reaches a lot more people like this video did. thanks!

After changing my diet, exercise, and a whole host of other habits, I realised that not being able to draw was just the bit of the iceberg sticking out of the water. I really relate to your revival in your life and your art. I think happy artists make good work. I'm turning 40 in a month, going all in on art, and it feels right.

I am a 53 year old woman that just graduated with a BFA in Graphic Design but self teaching in illustration and painting. Regardless of what this world throws at me, I plan on making the 2nd part of my life a good one, God willing! Thank you for sharing your video! I refuse to let this ageist world label me and hold me down.

I'm 36 and quit my 9-5 to pursue becoming a children's picture book author-illustrator. I'm starting from scratch whilst looking after my two year old and have been sharing my art progress on youtube weekly since taking it seriously. It’s my 6th month & I’m determined more than ever! It’s so wonderful to discover you and see there’s so many of us feeling very similar. I struggled with time, feeling not good enough and scared of judgement too, but we got this! Also if anyone else is sharing their art journey on youtube too, please reply with your channel name, I'd love to see your progress and cheer for you too!

I'm just speechless. It's so weird to actually hear someone else to articulate all the thoughts and insecurities I'm battling right now. Thank you a million for this video. I just turned 33 and never was thinking about being an artist until few years ago. I wasn't the kind of kid who always had to draw, but was creative in other ways (knitting, crocheting, paper creations, ...). But lately I had this inner urge to express what I perceive as beautiful, all the little daily stuff we pass almost blindly. I want to surround myself and others with these casual beauties. So I started learning how to draw. And as one does, I turned to youtube, which probably messed my head a little. Seeing all the successful artists, creating all the amazing art is intimidating. I ended up just watching tutorials, but being super scared to try them out. I guess my biggest fear is to create something original and not just copy someone style. And as you said, the fear is basically crippling to the point where I stopped drawing, just admiring others and wishing I had their lives, but not working towards it for myself. There is some comfort in hearing that others struggle with this too. So thank you for this, and please keep going on your journey ❤

I'm currently 32. I want to publish my comic books within a year. I'm learning to draw again after 10 years. It has been 4 months since my journey, I'm glad I managed to improve faster than I thought I could. Thanks to all Youtube gurus and everyone who post art on the Pinterest.

As someone who lives in Brazil, i can tell that pursuing art as a carrear is know as "craziness". I know that all over the world is already hard enough, but here it seems even more impossible. Normally, just like my family, parents don't approve this kind of path and will say that classic "Art don't make money" and "You'll be poor" blablabla. I'm trying hard to self study since i have no money to invest in courses or classes, the all A.I garbage around the internet sicks me, not support from family members or friends are really depressing... but i keep going. Wish me luck, hope you all achieve your dreams.

This message came at the perfect time. I'm turning 30 in a few days time, have been trying to improve my art skills over the years and I was struggling with feelings of self-doubt and despair because I'm not where I thought I "should" be at my age. But watching your video gave me a solid reminder to not beat myself up and always remember that with every drawing I make, I'm growing. Thank you so much ❤

I am 43 and still struggling to break in! I work in the film industry have all the awards and stuff but could never manage to move over a few cubicles to story or character design. This video helps a lot knowing others are struggling with the same thing. I am at the end of my rope lately and really feel like giving up.. Thank you for making this and I am very happy to discover you!

I am 35 and decided to start painting in July on the back of a moment of inspiration. It was a multi canvas piece (7) depicting the spiritual journey I had been on for the past 5 years. It was finished after about 2 months and I cried finishing the last piece and cried even more when I put them on the wall up my stairs. It has awoken something in me that I must pursue.

This was a much needed video for me. I turned 36 this year and its the year I decided to jump into graphic design and now animation and its a constant struggle of learning and being excited along with feeling so behind watching all the younger kids who have already figured it out. Good luck to everyone starting something new later in life and finally having the courage to follow their passion! ❤

I just turned 34 and while I do work professionally (though... not really in the art field I'd like to YET...) this video really captured that universal feeling, I think... Anxiety, inability to truly focus, doubts about finances etc. It helped so much to realize that most if not all artists I really admire are actually older than me, often by a decade or two minimum, and that there's still time. Mid-thirties isn't too late to learn new things or develop more in-depth skills. No age is. :) I'm excited to see what you'll do next and love your art!

I'm 50 yrs old and I just started learning (about 4 years ago), so I can relate. But you have a lot years ahead of you to pursue your dreams. Nice message and advice. BTW, your wife is beautiful.

I'm 36, and I quit my job at 35 to coast for a bit. The goal was to find myself and discover my passion in life. Which I've discovered over this last year is art. This video resonates with me so much, especially the "aspiring artist" bit. It's true I am counting myself out before I have the chance to succeed. When people are like "oh, that's really good" I have like 15 caveats I toss out to discredit myself. "Oh the base model was a trace so I really didn't do anything special" "This is something I made from an example in a book" Or I'll just point out all the tiny flaws they didn't even notice. But I need to stop this. I AM an artist. And thank you for helping me see that.

I started architecture school at 30 and it's been such a game changer for my mental health and mindset. I'm still a wreck but at least I feel like I have a purpose now instead of working my mind numbing sales job. I took drafting and design classes in high school and I was so passionate about it it, but I never pursued it because I felt like I needed "more talent". Now here I am at 31 about to finish my associates soon! I love spending my day drawing things and using modeling software

I love and appreciate that you are sharing your journey with us. Art is something that many people don't ever stop being insecure about (is my art good enough?). Making art and putting it out there for the world to see means to be vulnerable. The fact that you are additionally showcasing your journey on YouTube for an even wider audience is really commendable. You're showing us who you are literally and through your art. This is something I hope to do as well, just as a way to share and have fun doing it. I feel like a large part of the youtube art community is actually more conducive to learning and growing compared to other social media sites. I appreciate your video shorts that include art tips and videos like these. I hope it helps inspire more people who want to learn to draw to actually do just that.