Estonia

I had a very nice trip last week to Tallinn in Estonia for a couple of nights, to do an artist talk at a gallery called Ptarmigan. Tallinn looks medieval, and I stayed within the old citadel. The main art gallery there was very inspirational. It was nice to spend time with my friend Sari as well. I definitely want to go back there some day, there is a lot of art festivals and events during the year and it’s a great place for artists to be at the moment. Another plus was that the food was so, so much cheaper than in Finland!  

Art Adventures - Where's Wally

Where's Wally 

I hope you get to have a go at doing this one, or maybe we'll do it in a future art class when I get back. Inspired by the 'Where's Wally' books by Martin Handford, this Art Adventure is about making your own 'Where's (insert your name here!)' artwork.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:

*Paper

*Lead pencil

*Eraser

*Colour pencils

*Felt-tip black pen for outlines (optional)

Tips on how to draw your own 'Where's (insert you name here!)':

- first, think of the setting. Here's some ideas: a museum, train station, beach, your school

- fill the WHOLE page up with action, people, buildings, animals, hidden items

- hide yourself in the picture, wearing red and white stripes if you want!

- trick the people looking for you by putting other characters in red and white stripes here and there

- what are some other hidden items you can scatter in your picture for people to find? Martin Handford hides things like a scroll or a key. 

Here’s a weird one I did, based on geeky things:

Remember:

If you want to show your art to the world, email me a photo of your art at: daisiesn@yahoo.com.au and I might feature it on the blog! Please include your name and age, and any info about the work you'd like to share.

Art Adventures - Planes

I've been on a lot of planes lately! Planes are great to practice drawing. They may look very hard to draw (so detailed!), but remember: the best way to tackle a difficult drawing is to break the image into shapes and add bits one by one.

Drawing Planes

WHAT YOU NEED:
*Lead pencil
*Paper
*Eraser

Click here for a great step-by-step tutorial about drawing a plane by breaking it into shapes first and adding the details later.

If you want to show your art to the world, email me a photo of your art at: daisiesn@yahoo.com.au and I might feature it on the blog! Please include your name and age, and any info about the work you'd like to share.

Finnish Countryside

This art residency is in the countryside, with beautiful forests, fields and lakes are all around. Magical!

Arteles Cats

There are two playful black and white cats at the residency, I took this video of one of them when he greeted me one morning at the gate.

Arteles Art Residency!

I’ve been very busy during the last week taking photos and videos, now that I’m at Arteles (www.arteles.org). The other artists here are American, French and Finnish and they all make really interesting artwork. Below are a few pics of the residency:

Lots more to come soon!

Art Adventures - Marimekko

Art idea for today: Marimekko designs
Marimekko is a Finnish company that has been around since the 1950s, and is famous for bright, eye-catching designs like the ones here.

WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
Paper or cardboard for the base
Coloured paper or crepe paper
Glue

1. Cut out big, bold flower shapes in one or two colours and paste them all over the base page. Don't be afraid to go over the edges, it looks great! Just cut off any extra bits.

2. Cut out circle shapes in a different colour and paste those in the centre of the flowers, and then do the same with smaller circles (in another colour still).

3. Add some small cutouts here and there for the stems, and - voilà!

Remember:

If you want to show your art to the world, email me a photo of your art at: daisiesn@yahoo.com.au and I might feature it on the blog! Please include your name and age, and any info about the work you'd like to share.