Finding your own creative drawing style is a process that can only be achieved through practice. When sketching becomes a constant habit, creativity unfolds naturally, opening up a multitude of possibilities that can be used in final illustrations. Keeping a sketchbook has played an important role in Mattias’ creative process throughout his career as an illustrator. His long list of clients includes magazines like The New Yorker, The Hollywood Reporter, and New York Times, along with animation studios such as Nickelodeon, Dreamworks, and Disney. In this course, Mattias Adolfsson shows you the process of transforming your doodles into art. He goes through the initial steps to start sketching and liberate the hand, to learn new creative methods starting with real objects, and to develop your imagination.

About this course

Course table of contents U1 U1. Introduction

U2 U2. Materials as models

U3 U3. You are a real character

U4 U4. Perspective

U5 U5. Putting your art out there

FP FP Final project View details ↓

Start by getting to know Mattias Adolfsson, how he transitioned from graphic design in 3D animation for the computer games industry, to becoming a freelance illustrator, by sharing his work on social media. Discover the many types of media Mattias has illustrated for; from large ad campaigns to editorial illustrations, product design, record sleeves, and much more. Next, you’ll open up your sketchbook, write the date, sign it, and embark on your sketching journey with Mattias. He outlines the benefits of starting off with a pencil or his personal favorite: the fountain pen, going through other materials that you may want to use in this course. You will start sketching the drawing material that you have selected for this course as your models. Then, turn your objects into characters, by using your imagination and elaborating different figures, using other materials such as fruit or vegetables to practice. Define how you create faces and illustrate emotions, by drawing self-portraits with the use of a mirror or your smartphone. Discover how to morph your characters into animal-like creatures and more, by adding a series of details into your drawings. Mix emotion and movement in your illustrations by observing how they interact with each other, playing with a series of combinations. Delve deeper into perspective, as you learn to map out a single-point perspective, by drawing your room to practice. Learn isometric perspective, to give more volume to your illustrations, by drawing a cityscape while you explore this technique and add color to finish. Lastly, Mattias will show you how to share your art on social media and take part in the artistic community.

What is this course's project?

You will finish this course with a sketchbook filled with inspirational exercises and a final piece that will incorporate all that you have learned along the way.



The project for this course will be ongoing, as the main purpose of this course is to fill a sketchbook with doodles, ideas, and experiments to sharpen your creative process and solidify the habit of drawing.

Projects by course students

Who is it for?

From novice to experienced illustrators, and all those in search of developing their creative drawing process. This course is for anyone who wants to improve their illustration technique through the consistent use of a sketchbook.

What you need