Self Portrait - Tim Burton Style

I recently had my 5th and 6th grade students create self portraits. But not realistic self portraits...no, they created self portraits in the style of Tim Burton. I had not done any kind of portraits with them before and I wasn't really sure what to expect. We did some practice drawings first, to learn about proper facial proportions. I wanted to give them a chance to learn the basics and feel successful before starting on the actual project. 

The goal of the final project was to imagine what they would like like if they became a Tim Burton character. They could only use black and white colored pencils to create their projects; they also had to use correct facial proportions, and some shading here and there. They really blew me away with the self portraits they created. I hung up every one of them in the hall so that the whole school could enjoy them. We got so many compliments on them! So, I thought I'd share a few of my favorites with you. And I enjoyed this project so much that I created my own self-portrait too.

My Self Portrait

Student Work

Drawing portraits can be a real challenge at any age. So I'm really proud of the work the kids put into these drawings. They were so engaged in this project, and it was great to see. 

If you enjoy Tim Burton's style, I encourage you to create one of these too! And if you're an Art teacher, I absolutely recommend this project.

Who is Steph Curry?

I have an amazingly creative granddaughter. She is my favorite partner in art and all things crafty. She even has her own art table in my studio so that she can create whenever she's at my house. Awhile back, she asked me to create a drawing for her of Steph Curry. My response: "Who is Steph Curry?" The look on her face was priceless as she said, "Seriously, grandma?" Then she proceeded to school me on all things Steph Curry and convinced me to create this drawing for her. I was having blog issues, so I never posted it. 

This is all just simple black Sharpie. I swear, I should own stock in the company that makes Sharpies. I go through so many of them, at home and at school. At any rate, I wasn't sure if she'd like it, but she definitely did. And even though I'll probably not be drawing an athlete again any time in the near future, at least I know a little more than I did before about this particular basketball star.

Art Journal Colorful Tree

 I tend to be drawn to trees quite often in my artwork. I've painted and drawn trees many times over the years, and when possible, I like to have my students create trees too. There are just so many things you can do creatively with a tree. This one went into my art journal recently. 

I really like the contrast between the simple, black and white tree, and the rainbow colored dots surrounding it in the negative space. Just goes to show you, even the simplest things can come alive with a little color.

Art Journal Bird

 Recently I added some spreads to one of my art journals and forgot to share them. This first one is just cute, fat little bird. 

I just felt like doing something with colored pencils. My granddaughter's Crayola colored pencils were close to me at the time, so I grabbed them and got to coloring. He's a rather chubby bird, isn't he? LOL. I like him though. I also like the quote.

The man who has no imagination has no wings. 

Roses in Vases Painting

 I've seen so many artists doing still life paintings of flowers in vases--particularly in vases with stripes or other decorative patterns. So I was inspired to create a couple of my own. 

These are meant to be a pair, and both are painted using acrylics. They are on 12x12 canvas that was primed black. The background color is more minty green than it looks in these photos. And the bee was a suggestion by some of my followers on Facebook. The color combination is something I'm always drawn to...pinks, teals, mint greens. The black really makes everything pop, in my opinion.

I really loved painting these and love how they've turned out. Now I kind of understand the appeal of these types of still life paintings. So, I think I'll be doing more of this style in the future. I love flowers anyway!

Spattered Elephant Painting

 I created this painting for a dear friend for Christmas. I found the idea on Pinterest and thought I'd give it a go. My friend loves elephants, so I knew I wanted to paint her an elephant. But I wasn't sure exactly how I wanted to paint it. 

It's not everyday I use the spattering technique on a painting, least of all 2/3 of a painting. So this was pretty fun and different for me. It was rather messy, even though I covered my work area well. I still managed to get paint all over my arms and on my desk. But it was worth every stray drop to make this for my friend.

Pretty Pink Owl

At school each year, my school does a 'Mystery Friend' thing where we draw a staff member's name and become their Mystery Friend for the year. We each fill out surveys about things we like (favorite colors, foods, places to go, etc.) so that we'll know what kinds of things our recipient friends like. Then once a month, we buy little fun gifts to brighten their day. I always have such fun doing this. This year, I was so happy to be able to create something special for my teacher friend, who absolutely loves owls.

I had never painted an owl before this one. All I knew was that I wanted to do something cute and a little whimsical. So this Pretty Pink Owl was the result. I painted it on a wood canvas that I found at Walmart. It's fun to paint on different surfaces sometimes and I really enjoyed doing this. 

On the last day of school I was finally able to give my teacher friend this gift. The end of the school year was beyond strange and sad and maddening at times, thanks to the pandemic. But it was so nice to be able to give this to my friend and see her smile upon receiving it. We couldn't hug, because social distancing. But I felt her hug regardless. I absolutely love creating art for other people. It gives me so much joy, and this gift was no exception.

Dream Wish Imagine Art Journal Spread

I was looking through the blog and I realized I had not yet shared my latest art journal spread. Not sure where my mind is sometimes. I'll just blame it on the pandemic crisis and leave it that. But here it is: Dream, Wish, Imagine.

This is a mixed media journal spread. I used Inktense Pencils, colored pencils, and a little bit of acrylics as well. Sometimes, a girl just has to dream, wish, or imagine. Don't you agree?

I hope you have a creative weekend!

What is an Artist?

This art quote speaks so much in so few words, so I had to make this to share with you. It really speaks to me as an artist.

An Artist is a world trapped in a person.

So very, very true.