Should you take a PAID ONLINE ART CLASS?

Heyho! Today I wanted to tackle the question of taking an online Art class. Most of the time these classes seem like a great opportunity to improve your artwork and make progress, but on the other hand they are expensive, especially if you are still a student. So maybe you have saved up for one or two classes, but have no idea if you should take them, which ones you should take and how you make the most out of it. These are the reasons why I made this Video :)

This video is not sponsored or supported by CGMA. This is my opinion after taking one of their courses. I only speak about MY own experience. I've heard both, good and not so good things about different courses, so if you want to take any class other that the ones by Tyler Edlin, that I can fully recommend, please feel free to ask students who have taken the class you are interested in.

Courses by Tyler Edlin:

►Fundamentals of Architecture Design Class:

►Fundamentals of Design Class:

Other Sources for online Art classes (with a personal Mentor that gives you critiques)

► Schoolism:
You can either pay a montly fee to acess all their classes and watch the Video material. Or take a class with a mentor who gives you feedback

► Learn Squared:
Offers different Models on how you can take their courses (either with or without a mentor)
If you are interested in an in-depth review, check out this Blog post by Volen CK

► Other:
Furthermore if you want to Level Up yourself, before taking any classes or you are someone who doesn't need/want or can't afford a course right now, the guys from "Level Up" have compiled a huge list of free resources:

Suggestions from the Comments

► My Social Media:

The Artwork in this video is used with permission from Tyler Edlin :)

[rdashian]

I am taking udemy's character art school, which I bought mainly because it had like a 95% discount and I was bored and I have poor impulse control, but I have to tell you. It's amazing. I'm like on block two out of like ten and I can already see the improvement. I was not a complete amateur, but my characters always ended up looking kinda blocky and now I can finally see some dynamism in them.

[alexeru]

There are only a few out there that are actually worth the money. I personally enjoy schoolism's style of accessible and flexible classes. And as more and more appear, the insane prices look more absurd by the day. As you said, it boils down to what you're looking for. Ideally, if anyone is going to invest in these. A few questions should be considered:

1. "Is this what I want to learn?"

2. "Does this course offer me a good amount of knowledge I can't acquire in any other way?"

3. "After completion, does the course offer any sort of accreditation worthy of being on my CV, and if not, is the knowledge enough to build a strong enough portfolio to make up for that?"

Personally I've found that just about any of the information in these courses is achievable through research and self teaching. But of course, not everyone learns the same way, and some find it more convenient to have the information already gathered and structured for them.
Lastly people, never allow yourselves to be scammed, if the price is so high that you're not sure what to do about it, then don't do it, look for a better solution. Or at the very least ask other people about it, do your research!

[DarkGloComics]

I'm a big guy and if you love big, warm hugs then I am sending one out to you for this video! I am 42 and I was a Comic book artist (as you can tell from my avatar) but I have never truly been in a proper position in the industry and with my life I basically moved on and gave up drawing.

Recently, I just find myself simply astounded by the talent my 12 yr old daughter has and my valuable experience and life lessons sound like hypocrisy to me, because I teach her to always finish what she starts...but did I do the same thing? NO.

So, I decided I want to finish the best way I can and I already work for a game studio as a Community Manager and they have seen some art from me but I know it's no where near ready.

I have finally committed to putting down my money for the courses in the Foundations & Design Program. Before that, I wanted to peruse youtube and see stories from others who may have taken courses, to see what they thought and got out of it.

Your video was exactly what I was looking for and I have subbed.

Thanks again and if you have any other tips or suggestions, feel free to let me know. 💗

[annitendo]

The painting you made in the video looked amazing!! Keep it up!

[candrealx]

I have taken drawing camp by an artist called Keshav Rathnavel aka Kesh. I am 13 and my parents gifted me this program for my birthday. I love his art style so I like the course a lot as of now. My art definitely has improved!

[ymirsmack]

2:23 Tyler by far one of the best digital artists I've ever seen, 100% recommend him. But, if you guys take one of his courses, you have to know that first, you need some practice and knowledge about photoshop, otherwise you might not understand what he is trying to say from time to time.

[Simonemaendl]

Pinning this comment, because I see this video get popular from time to time:
PLEASE KEEP IN MIND THAT THIS VIDEO WAS MADE IN 2017 and the state of art education was very different from what it might be in 2022 or after. Generally there is way more free content on youtube and the discussion is more about if you can self-study or if you need a learning environment. I'm thinking of making a follow up, because I truly belive that becoming an artist shouldn't be a question of how much money you have available.

[hammockmonk]

This was a really valuable video for me. And well done with the artwork process and editing, too. Thank you!

[lillowh]

I didn’t know about CGMA so this is great. I’m currently just looking for any ways to learn about concept art, illustration and character design.

[USCBeastmode]

Wow thank you so much! You open my eyes and inspired me with your art❤️💜💙🌹

[Fahad-Abdullah]

Thank you Simone! Very informative video. 🙏🏻

[The_CatTastrophe]

Hey! I am very new to all this and I want to take paid online art classes but I don't know where to start. I did find CGMA originally before seeing this video and I thought that would be a good start. I was thinking of the Absolute Beginners course and taking the whole course track with teachers/artists that I liked and such. I obviously don't want to spend money I don't need to and I don't want to jump into something that is well over my head... Just wondering if I should probably start with some stuff on Udemy and getting decent that way first before attempting CGMA or just following the path from beginner to intermediate using CGMA. I have the motivation and the time to put a lot of effort in but I just need to know where I should properly start at this point to do it right and learn properly. Any suggestions would greatly help <3

[jinleft]

my favorite artist isn't even teaching but I really love her work

[Darkalfondso]

Question, do you have a before and after? Art from before ou took Cg Masters academy, and art from afterwards?

[loringbush]

How do I draw buildings? I use my ruler triangle and my T- square !

[bdsign]

Thank you so much! I was looking for some information like this =)

[Adriano-do-Couto-Illustration]

There are plenty of great online classes for all budgets. Having a good teacher makes a huge difference. At any level you are.

[ronishastroud]

Thank you for making this video. Bc i was about to pay for a drawing course with a teacher bc they have experience but i didn't like his drawing style. But i found a course on udemy that i like that draws what i want to draw. So yay.

[loringbush]

I don't use that laptop drawing computer! I use my sketch book! Why? Because I draw and ink the old school way!

[aleksdeveloper]

Hi,
I had a drawing teacher for really cheap, like $30 / month. He gave me huge value for the money in the beginning but I quickly started noticing that he was not someone I would like to be mentored from as his pace was too slow for what I wanted to achieve. Do you think the pace of the mentor / teacher has to do with a person's growth? I think it was fundamental. Even if I liked what he drew and had respect for him, I felt I was moving super slow to what I could gather.