Tuesday, November 15, 2011

The beginning

           I started drawing at  young age. I was homeschooled up until 2nd grade, so my mother would always have little art projects for my older brother and I. We would everything from drawing fish to indians. We learned how to make our own paper and sow. From 3rd to 5th I went to a small private school called Veritas Classical Christian School. There I recieved my first formal training in the art department. My art teacher there taught me alot of things that really helped strengthen my skills for the future. After I left that school I did not any take art classes again until my junior year of highschool. For the most part I self taught my self how to draw. I did this by looking at other drawings or painting and recreating them, by looking at the shadowing and details. I even bought a book on how to draw horses and would sit in my room drawing the horses, barely skimming the instructions. One time we had a calendar featuring Thomas Kinkaid's artwork, so I went through it and drew all of my favorite paintings. Finally during my junior year artclasses became open to me at my highschool Richmond Christian School. I loved both teachers I had, although I feel as though the teacher I had during my junior year didn't challenge me. In those two years I was finally taught to paint, which I am so greatful for.

This painting and the one above are both Thomas KinKaid paintings. This painting is one of the ones that I tried to draw when I was younger. Both are beautiful, I love the lighting and detail they both have.
          
  

Thursday, November 10, 2011



 Back in highschool my art teacher always had interesting art projects for us. This is one of the first we did my senior year. The instructions were to first pick an orginal painting in one of the books she had. I chose The Magpie, painted by Claude Monet. Then we were to cut it out of the book and cut out three squares randomly throughout the painting. Next we were to glue the cut out squares on to a white canvas. Last we were to recreate the painting, matching the colors to the cut out squares so that they blended in with the painting, so much so that they were unable to be spotted. We also had to make it our own by removing specific features etc, I took out the barn, some trees and the color changed. This is actualy the second acrylic painting I had ever done, so it is definitly not as detailed and as well done as Monet's. It was probably the most difficult painting I have ever had to do because I had to make the squares invisible. Can you see them? Mine is at the top, Monet's is the second.