Art Every Day - November 2011

My friend Sara sent me a link to some art ideas that were perfect for my art outlet while in the hospital. The links, in case you're interested, are here and here. As usual, they were more challenging than I anticipated and took much of the day (on and off) -- but art therapy is, well, therapeutic -- and I'm in here for healing! (BTW -- don't you love my sham and hand-painted silk pillow case? Such blessings of comfort and colour!) 

Art Every Day - November 18 - More Hospital Art

While I like to think of myself as an artist, I confess that I lack confidence to tackle any big project that requires any degree of skill. So Kathy Barbro's blog Art Projects for Kids often inspires me with simple projects for my children -- and for me. Last night she posted about a Kandinsky Water Colour activity, and I decided it would be a perfect hospital project for me, especially since it would be fun to make another variation of our Family Art Day Project a couple of years ago. 


I didn't have crayons in my Art to Go kit, but I figured oil pastels would have the same resist effect with the water colours. With this Kandinsky painting in front of me, I spent a good deal of time painstakingly painting in my circles, only to decide I didn't like the neat lines and controlled colours. (I wish I'd taken a picture, though, to compare! You'll have to use your imagination.) So I put random blobs of watery paint all over the page and held the paper vertically, letting the paint drip and wander where it willed, bumping into the oil barriers of the pastel lines, and running in different directions. Call me crazy, but I like the effect much better! It is somehow more unified and interesting. 

It got me thinking about my tastes in art. Would I be drawn to this kind of art to decorate my home? Mmmmm. Not so much. But I like it! And I think I like it because I look at it and think, "I could do that!" And I like the random, funky nature of it. I think I'm becoming random and funky in my old age! (I hear someone saying, "You mean crazy!" ;)


I also found myself wondering, "What's the point?" It's not like I would frame this and hang it on my wall (except maybe in our art room, where few people go. I'm more likely to recycle it and use it as a background for something else). But I remind myself -- it's the process, not the product. Some people might feel like doing this kind of art is a waste of time. But I do believe in the healing power of art and creativity. 


And since I need to heal, and it's fun, I think I'll ignore the voice in my head that says I could find other ways to be more productive. I can't remember who it was that recently reminded me (in a blog post) that Peace is more important than productivity in any given day. 


So I will pursue Peace. And letting the Spirit inspire me to be creative is one way I can do that. (Just rediscovering an old book by Brenda Ueland called, If You Want to Write: A Book about Art, Independence and Spirit. In a letter to her friend, poet Carl Sandburg, she said it was actually "a book about the Holy Spirit." That interests me! I don't know much about either of them, but since I already own the book from years ago, I thought I'd see what she has to say.)


Do you agree that Peace is more important than productivity? If so, how do you pursue Peace?

Art Every Day - November 17, 2011

Last night I had some time to just sit with my Art-to-Go case. I looked for some inspiration in a creativity book, but after half an hour of not being inspired, I decided to just go with the flow. My friend Malcolm had said he'd like to see an artist's rendition of The Cat Lady, so I thought I'd give that a whirl, though I really have no clue how to draw (and I told Malcolm that ;). The proof is in the pudding; The Cat Lady is Asian, and my rendition sure doesn't show it. But whatever. The drawing gives an idea of how she would curl up at the end of her bed like a cat. 

I gave up on my drawing and decided to just doodle on black lined paper with a silver gel pen. 

Nothing terribly inspirational -- but it was fun to just "play" :)


Have you played with anything lately -- just for fun?

Art Every Day - November 15, 2011

So art has not been happening much lately. Amen. But I did manage to finish some ornaments I started before my diagnosis -- intending to participate in an ornament exchange. (I made these ones as a gift, so the work I did back in September was not for naught;) I made these with my children and their friends years ago -- but I rather like them as an adult activity, too :) They are simply heavy wire shaped by wrapping it around a cookie cutter, then that shape is wrapped with finer wire (I used a silver for the frame and gold for the wrapping). Two of them are then covered in glass beads (just glued on with gel medium). Simple, but pretty -- and prettier in real life :)

Do you have any simple, go-to craft ideas? How about some ornament ideas? I'm always on the look-out for creative ornament ideas. 

Art Every Day - November 8, 2011

This isn't exactly art, but it's creative -- so that counts, right? ;)


During my weight loss journey, I kept a food and water journal, and was drinking around 14 glasses  of water per day. Now that I'm not trying to lose weight anymore, my water consumption has dramatically gone down (to maybe two glasses!). That's not good, especially since I need to be clearing my body of the chemo toxins. So I devised a little tool for keeping track of my water without having to use a pen and paper. It's a craft stick with marked holes. As I drink my water, I move a marker (an elastic band) to the appropriate hole. The whole thing is attached with elastic bands to my water bottle, so it's always handy to keep track. 

We'll see if it helps me to be more conscientious in my water consumption.


Do you have any unique ways of keeping track of things you need to do on a regular basis?

Art Every Day - November 5, 2011

So art every day has been a little bit unattainable -- but I saw this cute idea at Art Projects for Kids and since DD9 had some friends over today -- and it looked simple -- I thought we'd try it. It took (me especially!) a lot longer than I anticipated, but we all enjoyed the basic drawing and colouring activity. There's something soothing about applying colour to paper with markers. 


Here is DD9's cat:

Her 9-year-old friend's:

And her 7-year-old friend's:

And mine:

Any thoughts on what we might do with these cute kitties? 

Art Every Day - November 1, 2011

Today is the beginning of Art Every Day Month at Creative Every Day. I don't know if I'll be able to meet the challenge every day -- but today I had the opportunity to sit in a hotel lobby and work on some of the exercises in my Drawing Lab book. 

The first exercise was to draw something with a single line -- and to make several attempts at it. I guess the Cat Lady is still on my mind, so I went with cats . . .

The second exercise I tried was called "Picasso Dog." The task was to draw an eye, another larger eye, a snout/nose, a paw, and a tail -- turning the page clockwise 90 degrees after each body part, and then connecting them with lines. The example was coloured, so I used some Coptic markers and water colour pencils to add some colour to mine. Can't say Picasso is my style, but it was a fun exercise, nonetheless. 

And since I still felt like playing, I used water colour pencils to make a feline version of my Cat Lady ;) Perhaps one day I'll be brave enough to try a human version. (I wish I'd taken a picture of her -- but since she suffers from dementia, I'm not sure that would have been ethical.)

By the end of the day, DD9 wanted to spend some cuddle time on the couch learning how to do some sketching. So she tried her hand at some of the exercises in my book, too:

Might you join me in participating in Art Every Day Month? Don't be shy! "If you don't do something, you'll have nothing!" ;)

Art Every Day Month - Scribbly Drawings

Not much to show this morning -- just some "Scribbly Drawings" from Lab 24 of Drawing Lab. I quite like my puppy pic, and appreciated his co-operation in the endeavour ;) (I did have to make him lie down again when he got up half way through my sketch!)

Art Every Day Month - Index Card Multiples

Last night before bed I hadn't done any art for the day, so I decided to do a quick run of Drawing Lab 6, which was to draw 20 or so quick pictures of the same dog using a chisel tip marker. Here are the results, randomly numbered:

Carla Sonheim's examples are so simple, and make the lesson look so easy. Alas, I did not find it easy, and do not like the results. Number 11 is cute, but it's a copy from the book that came as a last ditch attempt to draw something that looked remotely like a cute dog. Other than that, numbers 2 and 12 are the only ones that show any potential in my mind. But it was just a quick exercise, so I won't be too hard on myself ;)

What creative endeavours do you have to give yourself a break about?

Art Every Day Month -- Hope Painting

This was my most ambitious "art" project yet -- not because it's major -- but because it doesn't play to any of my strengths and it's a larger canvas than I usually use.

Nothing against Anne Geddes, but when I saw this picture in the neighbour's "free" pile, I knew that it needed to make its way into our art room to be repurposed . . .

Quite honestly, I didn't expect it to get used quite so soon because, well, we're hoarders when it comes to art supplies, especially things that "could" be used for something else.

I'll say right off the bat that while this image formed in my mind as I travelled downtown last night, I know it was influenced by the work of others. Over the last few months, I've seen a number of tree images that show both the roots and the branches. That concept speaks to me (I'll explain my own use of it below). I have also been very drawn to Leah Piken Kolidas's work , especially her lovely ladies, and I have been tempted to try to imitate one of them. However, I deliberately did not look at anyone else's work before I started this piece; I just came home and started painting and collaging -- and finished at 1:00 a.m.!

This photo shows truer colours, though the flash wrecks the centre of the painting. I wish you could see the sparkles in the snow! (DD8 is not the only one who loves that diamond dust!)

I'm calling this piece "HOPE" and had actually planned to incorporate the word with some repurposed sign letters, but I decided I didn't like the look of them. (I may still stamp the word somewhere.) While I did not intend for this woman to be a tree, the tree is associated with her spirit in the sense that it reaches up to the heavens, but also extends into the earth, rooted and grounded. To personalize it, as my soul (mind, will, and emotions) seeks God, entrusting Him with my heart, I am rooted in His Hope. Sometimes Hope is buried, and even frozen for a time -- but it is there, strong and supportive nonetheless.

I'm not sure if this piece is finished. I wonder if my lady needs some outlining and some more gradations of colour on her dress. And does she need a nose and mouth? (If so, how do I do them?!?!?)

Your feedback is more than welcome!!!!!

Art Every Day Month - sculptures

A couple of weeks ago I showed you the wire and papier mache sculptures I began with two of my DC. Well, we finished them today . . .

For some reason, it surprised me a bit that the wire rusted as the glue dried. I sort of liked the look:

But I decided to go with my original plan of painting mine black and then brushing it with a bronze glaze. Both DC thought they preferred to paint theirs with colours, so they primed their sculptures with gesso lest the rust show through the paint:

This is what I used to glaze my sculpture:

Here is DD8's finished sculpture -- though you can't really see the diamond dust she showered it with:

As he saw my sculpture progress, DS11 decided he liked the look, and went with the black and bronze:

And here is my lady. I decided she needed some celebratory ribbons to be waving as she sang her praises to the Lord:

While I kind of wish I'd covered the wire completely, I'm happy with the results of our labours!

Are there any creative endeavours of yours that you've accomplished lately that please you?

Art Every Day Month

The last few days have not been conducive to creating art because I've been in transit so much -- but I have been enjoying some library books about art :) And tonight I had 90 minutes to sit and be creative with some of my mobile supplies (as I waited for children at Awana) -- so here's what I did . . .

The first is a rather random, quirky collage a la Claudine Hellmuth. I couldn't find a suitable woman's head in my limited, portable stash, so this cow's head caught my eye. You probably can't see it too well (even though I highlighted it in pink), but her chin is very hairy -- and that reminded me of the joke my DH made the other day about the hairs on my chin. Her ears are also very hairy (also highlighted in pink), and that reminded my of DH's latest lament about his aging process -- so in general, this cow head made me chuckle. The page I used for her dress brought to mind one of the art books I perused from the library -- Al*pha*bet*i*ca , in which a group of artists explores letters and numbers in an art swap. And since my goal was to complete the Altered Book Yahoo Group's November challenge to use fall colours and elements, I tried to incorporate just that -- though it's rather forced. I started with a background I made a while ago for The Artistic Mother projects, and I wanted to remember that I began with a pizza flyer -- so that's why you see that random bit of pizza pricing at the top left. Oh -- and her arms are made using the eyes of a gorilla!

When I finished with Miss Mooo, I moved on to try an idea that one person reminded me of in a comment here recently -- applying pastels to sandpaper. All I could think of to do was a leaf, so here it is:             

I still had a bit of time left, so I deceded to colour an image transfer I'd done several months back for another AB challenge. I used watercolour pencils and applied water after I'd coloured. Perhaps this little guy will find a place in a collage one of these days.

I'm loving, loving, loving all this artsyness! (Susie F. -- you must come play with me one Wednesday while we wait!) There's lots of writing I should be doing these days, too (DH is being particularly encouraging of that -- for the benefit of myself and others) -- but there just aren't enough hours in the day!

Do you have any quick art ideas that you find both fun and fruitful? I'm always looking for new ideas to make use of those few minutes I can find here and there -- even though my preference would be spending hours on end in the art room!