That’s what I heard from my kids’ art teacher a few days ago when I volunteered at their school for an art project. Wait, me?? Art teacher?? I loved hearing that!! I’ve never heard that before and it was an amazing compliment to me!! In seemingly unrelated news, I also saw a clip of Brene Brown’s netflix special where she talks about being seen. So with those two things resonating with me simultaneously, I thought maybe I should share some of the art projects I’ve done over the past three years.
The theme I noticed in every item is that there was some sort of emotion connected to them – good or bad. Life or death, boredom or excitement, family time or solace. Now that I can look back with the clarity of hindsight, I don’t think any of them were done without some sort of therapeutic value. These have also been done mostly over the past 3 years, totally original with the exception of the fall trees. That was one of many I’ve done at the paint & sip places. I’ve done about 10 of those, but one of my faves was the fall trees shown further below.
The next 3 images are acrylic pours. Apparantly it’s a “thing” lately so I figured, how hard can it be?? Not hard at all! But reeeeeally messy. You just pour paint into one cup, then pour it out & let it spread out. The first 2 were poured into the center then I tipped the canvas around to make it spread out. The third one, I put all the paint in the cup and then let it drip down in layers making sure to cover all the empty spots. That one feels a little more aggressive with the style & colors than the first two. I liked this method because it was so cool to watch it spread, and to know that it was extremely original. Watching how the paints blended but didn’t mix together was really interesting. They kept much of thier original quality but still mixed with the others. …a little like being a human. You mix together with others but you still maintain your identity.
These two pottery pieces were made last month when my Gpa died. I went to my first wheel pottery class – which is much harder than it looks – right before he died. When it dried a couple weeks later, I painted them blue. Blue was his favorite color. And when I was a kid my Gma taught ceramic painting classes in the basement. I thought it was a nice way to honor and remember both of them with one way. They sit in my entrance to my home.
Below are some projects I’ve done with the kids. My favorite is the one above the door. We soaked small pinecones in paint and threw them at the multiple canvases…and then art happened! I want them to appreciate what they make and know it’s important to be creative so we have it over our front door. It’s bright, bold, and super creative. Very original. The art teacher I mentioned at the beginning – I told her about it and she said she was going to steal that idea!
There’s a pretty obvious theme in everything. I like color. A lot. There’s obviously some type of therapeutic value for me in creating things. All of these are or have been hung in my home or office. I have more but these are the ones that I enjoy and have a lot of sentimental value to me for different reasons.
And for the finale… If you’re a Friends fan, you’ll definitely know the reference with the lobster below. “He’s her lobster”…this lobster is made from my foot and both of my kids’ hands. Maybe not the most beautiful, but definitely very sentimental, funny, and a definite connection to my husband. We watch Friends on Netflix all the time, and it was an important show early in our relationsip and marriage. So many great lines and episodes there.
No, I’ll never be an art teacher. But I never realized how easy it is for me to get out the paint & make something….and the contrast of how difficult that can be for others. The art teacher at school also mentioned that I had a good “feel” for the color & patterns that we were working on. I blame my grandmothers for that. They were both very artistic – not just crafty, but what I would call artists. I never really felt I had inherited that side of them until last week when someone noticed that it felt natural to me. It’s interesting to see yourself differently all of a sudden.
CHANDRA GREEN 