I can confidently say I have reached a solid junior concept artist level — and I am only moving up from here.
— Anuj Rawat, Animation & VFX student, HyderabadBefore I joined Artma, my situation was simple: I had a passion for 2D traditional art, but absolutely no road map. I’m currently in my final year of college in Hyderabad studying animation and VFX — so art isn’t unfamiliar territory. But knowing what you want and knowing how to get there are two very different things.
My dream was to become a concept artist for big studios like Marvel or DC. I had a pen-tablet. I was trying to teach myself. I knew of things, but I didn’t know how to progress. My college faculty could teach standard things, but they didn’t deeply understand 2D digital workflows.
Then I came across Artma on Instagram. I reached out to Harsh Sir, had a great conversation with him and my mother, and joined. It has been a full year now, and the shift in my skill and mindset has been complete.
Original creature concept — dark slate skin with gold-veined markings
One of the most important things I learned here wasn’t about brush strokes. It was about navigating a changing industry. Like most students, I was genuinely worried about AI taking over artist jobs.
“AI won’t take over your job if you learn how to use it to improve your own work.”
— Venkatesh Sir, through conversations at ArtmaThrough my interactions with Venkatesh Sir, my entire perspective flipped. Today I follow an 80/20 rule: 80% of a piece is pure hand-painted skill, and I use AI for the remaining 20% — to critique my work, look for adjustments, and push a piece to its best possible version. AI became a tool in my kit, not a threat to my career.
Original superhero concept — full body rendering with environment lighting
Artma isn’t just a set of modules. It’s a living community, and that made an unexpected difference.
Through Discord, I connected with other students — including Palak Mathukiya, whose work I had admired from afar. We didn’t know each other before Artma. But once we were in the same space, we started sharing skills, critiquing each other’s work, and pushing one another forward. Being in the same age group, exchanging portfolio tips and giving honest feedback on Discord played a major role in how fast I progressed over the last year.
Even with a heavy college schedule, I make it a point to attend the live sessions. Watching Venkatesh Sir build a concept live is an entirely different experience from watching a recorded tutorial. If you get stuck on a software issue, Harsh Sir and Ruksana Didi are right there in the Zoom chat to help you instantly.
The ultimate proof of growth is when clients start paying for your art. Thanks to the digital painting and character design foundations I built at Artma, I’ve started executing real commission work.
Commission briefs executed in the Valorant game aesthetic
Before Artma, I didn’t know the professional path to creating a deep-down character design. Now I’m confidently executing specific commercial briefs.
“My parents see my growth. My college peers tell me I am highly skilled. And I am even receiving praise on LinkedIn from international artists who say my work looks completely professional.”
— Anuj Rawat
Full body armoured character with dynamic pose and lighting
The Foundational Modules. Harsh Sir’s onboarding call walked me through how everything is structured. The focus is entirely on building strong fundamentals — because if your foundation isn’t solid, your performance in digital painting will fall apart. The depth of the tool and Photoshop workflow explanations means even someone who has never touched a tablet before can build a real baseline.
Wednesday Night Live Sessions. These are something else entirely. There’s a difference between studying a pre-recorded lesson and watching someone build a concept in real time in front of you. That immediacy — being able to ask questions as the piece develops — is something no module can replace.
Because I want to be completely honest, there are two areas where I think Artma can evolve:
A dedicated “substitute tools” module. For beginners, getting stuck on a specific tool — like the Lasso selection tool — can feel defeating. A module that explicitly teaches alternative approaches (“if Tool A isn’t working for you yet, here’s how to use Tool B to keep moving forward”) would go a long way in keeping beginners confident.
A more structured progress tracking system. As the community grows, Maheti Ma’am is handling an incredible volume of student feedback on the Discord channel. A weekly assessment tracker — one that logs each student’s strengths and areas to work on — would help everyone iterate faster without things getting bottlenecked.
These are offered in good faith. The core of what Artma delivers is genuine — these are just places where the experience can get even better as the programme scales.
I paid roughly 7,000 to 8,000 INR for my membership. It has been worth every single rupee.
Most professional courses give you rigid, finite slots. Artma provides continuous live learning, real community, and honest feedback on your actual work. The learning doesn’t stop when the modules do.
I started with a pen-tablet and a dream and no idea how to turn one into the other. A year later, I’m at a solid junior concept artist level, I’m taking commission work, and I’m getting recognised on LinkedIn by artists from around the world. The road map I was looking for — I found it here.
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