Student Self-Portraits: From Observation

Students in my drawing class just finished these self-portraits from observation using pencil on watercolor paper. They HAD to look at mirror to draw these, no photos! Before we did these we practiced drawing facial features and other people. Students are now working on their final, CREATIVE self-portraits. I will post these when they finish.

10 Minute Sketch: Holy Guacamole!

Here is my latest 10 minute sketch. I drew this sketch after my husband and I had a major snack attack after I came home from school today. We had guacamole, chips, salsa, carrots and hummus. Kind of a weird combination but it was delicious:) I drew what was left over from our crazy snack attack. Strangely it was a knife (maybe we used it to cut the carrots...? We probably used it to open the guacamole package!) on a paper plate with some chips with guacamole on it. The drawing took 10 minutes as usual. The chips do not look like chips..this I know...but that is ok- I drew the basic shapes and finished in 10 minutes! I used oil pastels, watercolors and black pen to do this sketch.

If you have not entered my art giveaway please do so here.

Have a great night! Tomorrow I am going to post some self-portraits that my drawing students completed from observation. They have so much character and are really fun so please check back!

10 Minute Sketch: Spoon on an ugly placemat

Well I am on to day 3 of my little resolution! This little drawing was of a spoon I saw laying on the table at my parents' house. It was laying on my Mom's awful looking brownish gold placemat on her kitchen table. Now my Mom has really good taste...so I really do not know why she has these placemats. I guess it will be one of those mysteries in life....

The drawing was done with a ball point pen and Prisma markers. I just love my Prisma markers! They are so old and still work like a charm:)

I hope everyone is doing well on this Tuesday! I thank all of you who have left comments for the art giveaway ! I am super excited about it and cannot wait to give my little artwork a new home!

Since school has started up again I have been very busy and have barely been able to get online (and my internet connection at home is not cooperating!) So I am trying to update this blog and visit my favorite blogs as best as I can! Technology can be so frustrating when it does not work..don't ya think?!

Have a wonderful evening...I am off to bed!

Art Giveaway: Little Pink Bird

Recently I have become blog friends with a lovely mother who has a wonderful blog called C.Beth. Blog. I love to read about her adorable children and their funny adventures. Recently C.Beth gave me the idea to do an art giveaway. So here it is! thanks again C.Beth for sponsoring this giveaway on your blog!

Details on the art:
This artwork is made with hand-painted papers collaged onto canvas paper. It will come matted, ready to be framed in a 5x7 frame.

Here are the contest rules:

1. Leave a comment, any comment, on this post. Perhaps you'd like to say what the little bird in the art is thinking? Or just say, "Yo, enter me." It's up to you.
2. For an extra entry, go to C.Beth's blog by clicking here, and leave a comment on her contest post, too.
3. For even more entries, tell everyone you know about this and encourage them to enter, and to mention your name in their entry. You'll get an extra entry every time someone enters and uses your name as a referral.
4. The contest will close at 8 p.m., Central Standard Time, Monday, January 12, 2009. An entry will be randomly chosen, and the winner will be announced on both blogs Tuesday, January 13. Be sure to come back here to see if you've won. If you don't contact Michelle or C. Beth by 8 p.m. CST, Thursday, January 14, another winner will be randomly chosen.
5. Contest is open to anyone with a United States address. You may also enter if you live in a country other than the U.S. as long as reasonably affordable international postage is available.

Good luck, and have fun!

10 minute Sketch: Chinese Takeout for Dinner and Drawing

Here is my second 10 minute drawing of an empty Chinese takeout container. Who knew these containers could be so interesting! I drew this with a blue ball point pen and Prisma markers.


Hope everyone had a great day! It was my first day back at school and it actually wasn't that horrible:) I am just trying to get back into the swing of things! Have a great night!

10 minute Sketches

For the new year I promised myself I would do something art related every day. I have decided that I will do a 10-15 minute sketch from observation every day using anything but a pencil! This way I will not be freaking out over little mistakes and will actually be more free in my drawings. Drawing from observation is the key here also. Drawing from life is actually a lot harder than drawing from a picture. A picture is already 2D while an actual object is 3D and you have to put it into a 2D space (the paper.)

This will be an interesting challenge for me! By posting the sketches it will make me keep up with this little project! Now be warned...these sketches are rough! All flaws will be seen because I cannot erase!

Here is the little pad I will be working in- it is only 3 x 5 inches!



Here is today's first sketch...like I said...very rough! 10 minutes was all it took!



This is a sketch of a pair of small scissors sitting on my desk. I drew it first with a blue ball point pen and then colored it in with colored pencils.


Hope everyone has a great night...I have to go back to school tomorrow! I am dreading the alarm going off tomorrow at 5 am! I have been so lazy on my Holiday break...oh well...back to work!

Retro Flash Back Video/ a-ha Take On Me

Ok...I know this video is more than 20 years old but I still love it! This is Take on Me by Norwegian band a-ha and I just love the drawings in this video! So cool when art and music collide, don't you think?! Anyways...just thought I would take you back a couple of decades. Just some quick trivia about this video courtesy of Wikipedia:

-This music video first broadcast in 1985 in Boston and later on MTV.
-This video was a combination of rotoscope-style animation and live-action (with real actors.)
-The director was Steve Barron
-This video was ranked by MTV as the 3rd best videos of all time (behind Michael Jackson's Thriller and Peter Gabriel's Sledgehammer.)

What is your favorite music video of all time?

Make sure 2009 is filled with lots of wine!

I made this for my "art penpal" aka my aunt. She is a little stressed out and I thought this would make her smile:) Hope your 2009 is off to a great start!

What is Beauty?

Here is my painting class's next project- I copied and pasted right from the handout I am giving them.

Some quick background info: We have been working with watercolors for the past month and our next big painting assignment is to create an artwork that illustrates what the student thinks is considered beautiful. I like to keep things pretty vague so that the student can really be creative and not have a ton of restrictions. I also showed students a powerpoint on Robert Rauschenberg a Pop artist who used a lot of transfer techniques, assemblage and collage in his art.

This assignment is to help in the brainstorm process for the “What is Beauty” painting assignment. It is also meant to be a unique work of art in it’s own right at the end of the process.

Steps to complete the collage:


1.Collect 10 (depending on size) images that relate to what you perceive beauty to be from magazines, newspapers, images printed from online or personal photographs. Give me at least one to photocopy for packing tape transfer method.

2. Stretch or tape your watercolor paper on your board. Alter your watercolor paper (backing for your collage) using at least one texture technique (sponging, salt, saran wrap, alcohol, stamping, scratching, spraying) Let DRY!

3. Illustrate at least one of your images with watercolor and ink on either tagboard, construction paper or newspaper. Make your illustration at least 4 x 4 inches or bigger. You may abstract this illustration from the original picture.

4. Alter 3 images by either a) cutting something out from the image b) painting on top of your image with watercolors or acrylic or c) drawing over the image with sharpie.

5. Complete at least one packing tape transfer with one of your photocopied images (remember step 1!) Remember to not do this in the sink-it will clog it!

6. Create your own what is beauty image. Draw from a photograph or observation on watercolor paper an object that represents beauty to you. Use watercolors and charcoal pencil. Make sure your image is at least 4 x 4 inches.

7. Once you have followed all of these directions begin to organize your new and improved images! Create an interesting composition on your watercolor paper. Include all of your images (at least 5). You may further cut and crop any pictures to make your collage flow.

8. When you are satisfied with your collage, glue images down onto the taped/stretched paper with matte medium. Add layers of acrylic or watercolor paint over some of your images to make them unified with the artwork.


9. You may add more collage items on top of your collage if you feel it needs it. Other options include adding 3d elements such as twine, string, little trinkets, ribbon to create an interesting textural effect.



I have been playing around with an example for this project to show students and this is what I have done so far...it is not finished but on its way!








My ideas of beauty include nature, innocence, wonder, hope, spirituality. I cut out images such as deer, a little boy and his dog looking out the window, trees, birds, etc. I used scrabble pieces and collaged a bird and an apple on them. I liked the 3-D elements they gave this piece. I am going to continue working on it today (if I ever get off the computer!) and will post more pictures later!

What are images/words that symbolize beauty to you?