CREATIVE SPARK NEWSLETTER |
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2024 Summer Sketchbook Un-Slump |
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SUMMER SKETCHBOOK UNSLUMP PROMPT 5 |
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I like wrapping up the SSUS with a prompt that allows us to explore ourselves and I love the idea of creating a self portrait each year--even though it sounds like 95% of people hate doing this lol. But I'm here to nudge you towards trying new things and things that might feel a little uncomfortable :) I think the biggest road block is the idea that we need to create a likeness of our face and drawing faces is hard. I totally get that and agree! But I also think sometimes we can surprise ourselves and it doesn't have to be perfect. There are also SO many ways we can create self portraits! I'm sharing some self portrait ideas below in the first section along with other ways “character” can be interpreted in the second section. |
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- 81 Self Portraits Take a look at the portraits on this Pinterest board--there's a variety of ideas that you can try or take an element of and make it your own.
- Face Drawing Tutorial Start with How To Draw A Face In An Easy Way then follow along as the same artist shows How To Draw A Face from a photo reference. It's explained very well and goes through the process step by step. After watching, try it with a photo of yourself!
- Collage Portrait Here's one method of doing this or instead of making your likeness, fill in an outline of your silhouette with images of things you enjoy, words that describe you, etc.
- Express your personality in an abstract way: with colors, shapes, textures. What color is your personality? Does it look like messy strokes or very organized? Are you round or angular? Include as many things as you'd like--we made up of so many different characteristics!
- 100 Years of Women Artists - Self Portraits
- A Collection of famous self portraits
- Self Portraits in Expressionism From Tate.org: “Typical images of reality, such as a landscape painting or a portrait, become dramatic expressions of the artist’s inner feelings or emotions…Expressionist art often concerns itself with the inner necessity (or creative vision) of the artist, as well as themes of spirituality." Below are 3 self portraits from Expressionism--click on the images to learn more about each one.
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- Cartoons is another word that comes up for me when thinking of “character”. What cartoons were part of your childhood? What did you like about them? Who did you identify with? Is there a way to incorporate them in a collage or mixed media page? (I remember watching Care Bears, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Gumby, Jem, and Ghostbusters!) Artist Elle Billing created a collection incorporating the Berenstain Bears--view the collection and read the artist statement here.
- Create Your Own Character I was reminded of Ed Emberley books from my childhood and how you can create your own faces and worlds. This is something I haven't done in years and I feel like it taps into another part of our creativity and story telling as well! What would your character look like? Would it be an animal or human or a creature you made up? What's their personality like? Where are they from? What do they do? What are their likes and dislikes? Draw, paint, sketch, collage what you are imagining. Here are some characters created by sculptor Spencer Hansen. Another way to approach this is thinking of a character you don't like and changing the attributes you dislike.
- A Written Symbol Find inspiration in this definition of character from type to figures to hieroglyphs to logos to signs. Try creating our own font! You can do this by drawing out the alphabet then adding details or turn your writing into a font. Then use it to type and print out words and phrases that you can use in your art.
- Synonyms If character isn't resonating, try one of these similar words: individuality, personality, sense, spirit, mood, integrity, disposition, style, temperament, reputation,
- How other artists are creating characters: using only plants and flowers, using food, and how AI reimagines classic Disney characters as old Hollywood stars.
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I hope you'll give one of these self portrait ideas a try :) and if not, that you find other inspiration in our final Summer Sketchbook Un-Slump prompt! I will be sending out one final email in the upcoming week to wrap everything up and let you know what's up ahead! |
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PS: Here's my self portrait from kindergarten, 2021, 2022, and 2023--click on the images to learn more about how I created each one. |
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