Two inspiring art project ideas

A week of inspiration and lots of art projects

This summer I took a small break from TYT - there just wasn't enough time. But since I've missed blogging so much I will try to write more blog posts this fall, I promise! What have you been up to this summer? I hope it was filled with lots of inspiration and great art projects. This week I discovered 2 great art projects which are really inspiring and give you great ideas for your own art projects.

Sounds of Nature Case Study by Thiago Storino, artist from Brazil.  

Thiago illustrated a guitar that grows out of the ground. Then he tried to reproduce the image realistically. I really like how the guitar looks in harmony with nature.

Here you can see the individual sketches and images he used for his project.

Sounds of Nature Case Study

Art project idea: Combining images/photos from nature with human objects

Take an image or photo from nature and mix it with something out of the human world, an image or object that is in perfect harmony with nature or something that contrasts it. Mixed media could make this project even more interesting.

Wonderland of Books by Charles Santoso, artist from Australia.

Charles Santoso created a series of illustrations "Wonderland of Books" for a holiday catalogue and the interior of a bookstore.

Charles Santoso, Wonderland of Books

Charles Santoso, Wonderland of Books

Art project idea: Take famous characters from novels and create individual illustrations from them

When I saw this project it inspired me to this art project idea - imagine you could take your favorite characters from a novel (maybe pick old novels so everyone knows the characters like Huckleberry Finn or Oliver Twist or even fairy tales!) and transform them into an illustration.

Then you could host a small art show by showing these illustrations along with the novels. Maybe you could get a whole group of artists to illustrate their own characters from their favorite novels!

I wish I could draw, then I would get started immediately!

Did you have lots of art project ideas this week?

Maja Lindberg - Curiosity, Fairy Tales and Astrid Lindgren

Maja Lindberg lives and works in Lomma, a small seaside town in the south of Sweden, where she runs her own company, Majali Design & Illustration, specializing in fine art prints. Her illustrations are mostly inspired by fairy tales and mystery, she loves combining colors and texturtes, creating a certain mood. With tradeyourtalent she speaks about curiosity, creative ideas that come at night and why she would like to illustrate one of Astrid Lindgren's books.

Maja Lindberg

Can you tell us a little about your creative process?

Many times the best ideas come at night when I have trouble falling asleep and hundreds of things are going around in my head. I try to focus and a picture builds up in my head. I finally fall asleep and in the morning I start composing the picture.

Maja Lindberg

A lot of my inspiration comes from fairy tales, dreams and myths. I start by sketching the creature/person/animal with pencil and paper, when I’m satisfied with the illustration I scan it and continue the work on computer. It’s here where all the colors and shades are made and actually my favorite part in the process. I love combining colors and the textures, together they’ll form the special mood that I’m looking for. I want my illustrations to be mysterious and dreamy and hopefully they’ll bring some curiosity to the viewer who creates their own fairytale/story when looking at it.

Maja Lindberg

Do you have favorite artists?Is there an artist you always wanted to cooperate with?

One of my most favorite artists is John Bauer, a swedish illustrator who lived around the turn of 1900. I love the mystery with the dark forest and the light that he so ably captures.

Maja Lindberg

Other artists that have inspired me are Elsa Beskow, Marit Törnqvist, Shaun Tan, Sven Nordqvist and Tim Burton.

If Astrid Lindgren still had lived I would’ve loved to illustrate one of her books. Her stories have the ability to catch childhood memories.

Maja Lindberg

Did you always want to be an artist? Could you imagine working in another profession?

When I was small I wanted to be an actress, but when growing up I understood that I wasn’t that good at acting so I went to art school and became a ceramic artist. I worked in my pottery studio for five years, it was hard to make a living out of it, so I  got an education in IT instead and started to work as a web assistant. But the lust of creating has always been there, so it felt natural when I decided to start over again and begin with illustration and art. Right now I'm very happy that I took that decision and I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to work with something that I love doing. But sometimes I still dream of being an actress.

Maja Lindberg

Visit Maja Lindberg's website Maja Lindberg

Maja's Facebook Page

Is this digital world stealing our time, our inspiration?

I had this weird writers block these

past few weeks - I feel inspired - but I still don't know what to write

about and where to start. There is so much inspiration and creativity I see everywhere, but once I sit at the computer, there is just a

white screen glaring at me, blinking.

I thought about it for a while and I realized,it must be an overflow of

information, never really a moment of silence around you and everything moving

fast. Pacing to work, running to grab lunch, writing a massive amount of

emails and at the end of the day not even remembering who I was

really communicating with.

Is this digital world stealing our

time, our inspiration? Those moments where we just log off, go outside

for a walk and stare at the sky? Where we figure out where our next creative journey will take us? Where we don't think about "Oh, I could use that for my blog". Where we just feel inspired without having to turn it into anything. Where we just let our thoughts travel?

So where does this all leave our creative thoughts, our inspiration?

Maybe we should just have one day in the week, where we

turn everything off, grab a piece of paper and pen - an no, the app which provides you with a virtual notepad does not count - and just write

down or sketch our thoughts.

And then the hardest part- we won't post these thoughts to our blog, we won't tweet them, we won't share or like them- we will just let our thoughts travel in time.

Letting our thoughts travel 

Ester Wilson "Watching art happen"

Ester Wilson is an artist from Atlanta, Georgia. With tradeyourtalent she speaks about letting your imagination run wild and why she can't imagine a life without creating. 

esterwilson.blogspot.com

What inspires you most when you work on a piece of art ? 

I'm inspired by the creative process itself. Making a drawing or a painting usually starts with a small thought, or one basic feeling that I'd like to see come alive. The feeling grows and becomes more exciting as decisions are made in the process, leading to a stronger conviction about where I'd like to take the work. In a way, the artwork seems to draw itself and I am just watching it happen. It resembles playing as a kid, letting your imagination run wild and knowing that anything you can dream up is valid and acceptable: playing was exciting and it grew on its own... art is the same way, in my mind - it's fun and self-inspiring.

esterwilson.blogspot.com

Your work is very colourful and full of energy. Has art always been your passion?

Very much so. My mom often jokes about how she never worried about me as a child, because I was fine to spend all day in my room with paper and pencil, no need for anything more. I can't imagine a life without creating.

esterwilson.blogspot.com

esterwilson.blogspot.com

esterwilson.blogspot.com

esterwilson.blogspot.com

For more art work by Ester Wilson visit 

web: www.esterwilson.com

blog: esterwilson.blogspot.com

Mariana Santos: "The way you deal with confusion"

Mariana Santos is a 15 year old artist from Portugal. She is an Urban Sketcher and likes to sketch everyday and she loves to paint from concert photos. In this interview with TYT she speaks about creating something new and why art is about not being afraid. 

Mariana Santos

What inspires you to your art?

I started drawing everyday stuff in my sketchbook because of the group Urban Sketchers, I got really inspired seeing all that fantastic work and decided to get my own journal, I started drawing every day and that really helped me to develop my drawing skills. Before I had a sketchbook I did some portraits of my favorite musicians, I got into drawing because I got into music and photos of concerts really inspire me when drawing a musician, I love to paint in black paper from those concert photos.

Recently I’ve had some ideas and done some studies for a different kind of paintings in which I’m trying to move a bit away from sheer representation of reality and to play with color and shapes even though they’re based on real subjects.

Mariana Santos

Your work is mainly about music and everday life.Which moments fascinate you most?

I think regarding my sketches on everyday life I’m more fascinated and enthusiastic while traveling. While I’m not traveling I lately tend to draw a lot of portraits of my friends maybe because I spend so much time with them, I also draw a lot on the subway, in the classroom. My sketchbook ends up documenting my life. I’m also fascinated with the possibilities of shapes colors and lines, the composition within a page.In my music drawings I draw my favorite musicians from photographs, usually what fascinates me is the action and the contrast.

Mariana Santos

Do you have favorite artists?

 I love all kinds of things and I change my favorite artists very often.Concerning the subject of everyday sketches and visual journals, I really love the work of Danny Gregory, Tommy Kane, Lapin, Eduardo Salavisa, Richard Câmara, Nina Johansson, John Woolley, as well as other Urban Sketchers correspondents.

The painters I’ve gotten pretty interested in recently are Egon Schiele, Basquiat, Touluse-Lautrec and Eric Fishell, I also love Andy Warhol, Picasso, Van Gogh, Rembrandt, Alexander Calder, Jackson Pollock, Oskar Kokoschka and lots more.

Mariana Santos

Mariana Santos

Would you like to become a full time artist after you finish school?

 Yes, I’d love to become a full time artist when I finish school but I’m keeping my mind open.  I think nowadays in the art word you have to do a bit of everything in order to survive. Those things still feel very complicated to me so for now I’ll concentrate on my art, what makes me happy.

Mariana Santos

Creativity is…

To combine the things you know and create something new, everything comes from somewhere. To be creative is not to be afraid. Creativity comes from hard work, dreams, involvement, confusion and the way you deal with that confusion.

Mariana Santos

If you'd like to have a look at more of her work, check out Mariana Santos Blog and on Flickr

A magical donation for our Bakhita Girls fundraiser: paintings by Susan Sorrell Hill

I'm so happy to announce that Susan Sorrell Hill is one of the first artists to donate five paintings for the Bakhita Girls fundraiser, which will help provide scholarships for young mothers and underprivileged girls to attend secondary schools in Ifakara, Tanzania. Susan is an artist and illustrator from Northern California. Her paintings tell universal stories, and are inspired by the literature of humankinds’ patterns: fairy tale, myth, and oracles of all types. It is always a treat to visit Susan's wonderful blog, Dream & Vision.  Susan was one of the first artists I interviewed on TYT and I'm happy to say that since then we've exchanged so many creative ideas and have even become friends. Susan recently submitted her cover art "The Girl with Silver Hands" to the Uncovered Cover Art Blog, a blog where you can vote for your favorite cover art! Also have a look at the TYT interview about Susan's art: "Fairy Tales and Magic"  Thanks again Susan for your kind donation! Here you can find more info about the fundraiser, if you'd like to donate just contact me via email -susanna@tradeyourtalent.de .


Here are the five wonderful paintings Susan donated: 

Susan Sorrell Hill

Susan Sorrell Hill

Susan Sorrell Hill

Susan Sorrell Hill

Susan Sorrell Hill

For more of Susan's art 

visit susansorrellhill.com

Illustration Friday - Midsummer Night

The Illustration Friday  word of the week is Midsummer Night and although I'm not a very gifted painter or illustrator I just had to write about this theme (and isn't writing a form of art too?) The image that immediately popped up in my mind was the play "A Midsummer Night's Dream" by William Shakespeare. But most of all I was thinking of Puck, the little elf. (I just think he is too gorgeous!)

I guess if I could illustrate I would have sketched him. Shakespeare plays with the themes of magic and dreams, and Puck is essential to the play because he causes a lot of confusion in the lives of the main characters. However, Puck tries to explain to the audience at the end of the play that what the audience had just experienced was nothing more than a dream - 

If we shadows have offended,
Think but this, and all is mended,
That you have but slumber'd here
While these visions did appear.
And this weak and idle theme,
No more yielding but a dream. 

Even though Puck basically apologizes to the audience that everything they had just seen had been a dream - isn't that exactly what the audience wanted to experience when they came to see the play in the frist place? 
To dive into a magical world, that, even though is sometimes confusing, is filled with dreams, visions and of course love? Isn't that what all artists do, to bring their vision on paper and share it with other people? Aren't they practically inviting their audience to have a glimpse of their creativity and inspiration? 
Sharing these dreams and visions is also something very honest and of course, makes you vulnerable in a certain way, because you reveal your true feelings to your audience. I guess blogs have also changed the way artists work and share their vision - the audience can learn much more about the artists' true feelings about their own vision and of course, their dreams. It is a quite magical world at times - and I think it is truly great to be part of such a creative world, filled with inspiration. 
This is why I had to mention Puck to you - and although I wasn't able to show him to you here, maybe you can just imagine how he would have looked like. If I could draw. :-)

Natalie Hughes "Crowd of Creatures"

Natalie Hughes is an illustrator from Norfolk, England. She graduated in 2009 from the University of Gloucestershire and is currently looking to find a publisher for her children's book, she is also available for commissions  (nat@nataliehughes.co.uk). With TYT she speaks about her favorite creatures, never getting bored and why it is fun being allowed to act like a kid. 

http://www.nataliehughes.co.uk/

I adore your crowd of creatures. How do you create your favorite creatures? 

Natalie: Thank you so much! I start off by doing a bit of research.. looking at lots of photos, making a few sketches and getting an idea of its basic shape. Next I draw out the character in my own style, scan it in and add colour and texture using Photoshop. Since uni I've been collecting/creating scanned in textures which I collage together.

What is the best part about being an illustrator? 

Natalie: The best thing about being an illustrator is never being bored. I always have something to do and a new illustration to plan. The other best thing is being allowed to still act like I'm a kid...being an illustrator means you can use your imagination... writing stories and designing characters is always fun. I have a valid excuse for still reading children's books !

Where do you get your inspiration from? 

Natalie: Travel is my main inspiration. When I can't go travelling I day dream about travelling.. the thought of all the endless possibilities out there, all the different people,cultures and places to see. I'm really inspired by the natural world too.I had a really nice childhood surrounded by pets and trips to the countryside, I think this had a massive impact on me. When I need a bit of inspiration I watch movies..I'm obsessed with movies!

Do you have favorite illustrators you'd like to collaborate with? 

Natalie: I've got quite a few collaborations in the works..including a charity colouring book called the Oh GOSH Project.  Off the top of my head some mega talented illustrators who I'd love to work with are James Burlinson or Bart Aalbers . I'd love to collaborate with an animator too, it would be great to see my characters come to life! In my dreams I'd work with Shaun Tan or I'd go back in time and collaborate with Charley Harper or Edward Gorey!

Can you remember the first creature you ever illustrated?

Natalie: I can't really remember, but I do remember the first drawing I did which I was proud of. I did a drawing of a wicked witch, with shelves behind her piled up with bottles of colourful potions. I wonder if I still have it..... and I wonder if I saw it now whether I'd recognise any of my style in it!

http://www.nataliehughes.co.uk/

http://www.nataliehughes.co.uk/

http://www.nataliehughes.co.uk/

Deborah Champion "Art is a process"

Deborah Champion is an illustrator from Southampton. With tradeyourtalent she speaks about artistic influences, self employment and why she likes Andy Warhol.

http://www.deborahchampion.co.uk/

Where do you get your inspiration? 

Everywhere really! I guess this was always true but particularly these days. The modern world is saturated with images and ideas.

I was on a forum and the debate was if you should use your doll in art. I have dolls and they are inspiration for me but some people thought if they were sculpted by someone else you had no right to use them. And they said that if you were a good artist, you would only draw things that came from your own mind. It sort of goes against hundreds of years of still life and life drawing and stuck me as odd because it assumes your ideas are solely your own, and not influenced by all the things you had seen and forgotten, just because you hadn't used them overtly as a reference point.

I've started a little inspiration blog over at tumblr where you can collect images you like, though a lot of it is still my own work because I feel wary of reposting other peoples work, so folks don't like it.

What are your current projects about?

Posters, currently, I have become interested in that era when posters were first about and they were really something special, just because there weren't so many images in the world. I like to imagine strolling along a Parisian street and coming across a work by Lautrec. Advertising generally is quite interesting. I like typography, and I'm working on some posters advertising things that don't exist, and nursery rhymes, with the empathis on the lettering. I'll be reissuing some of my old favorites though too, the quotation prints were always popular.

What are the up and downsides of being an artist? 

Just the regular difficulties of self employment, I suppose, and people think you don't work if you are self employed. I'm always getting asked if I want to me a teacher, my husband is a teacher. Of course I don't! I love printing! Every day I get up and I do things I like and I spend money on artist materials which is my favorite it's all tax deductible and I earn more than I would working part time and I go on big adventures with my little boy the rest of the time and I'm happy. Money is not terribly important to me, provided we have the essentials and a few trinkets to live by.

Who are your favorite artists? 

I think the living artists have inspired my most... Elizabeth Magill.. I love the wide open oilscapes. And Megan Chapmans work.. I love those abstract pieces. I know her from the website blipfoto.com. But I like very graphic work too. I am just learning that just because I like a style, I don't have to do it in my work. I can still enjoy it as a spectator, still appreciate what's in the Tate modern and what's on the billboard in the highstreet. And art is a process really, the painting at the end is a by product. There's room for everyone. Andy Warhol. I like some of his ideas about art- why shouldn't it be affordable? Why shouldn't we all have some? I've heard all sorts of criticisms of his work by people that have never seen an exhibition of his. A lifetimes work and they've condensed it down (if you forgive the pun) to a tin of soup and Marylin Monroe. Some of his work is very interesting.

Did you ever want to do something else besides art? 

Well I have a PhD in geochemistry so I suppose that I had some inclination to do other things!

http://www.deborahchampion.co.uk/

http://www.deborahchampion.co.uk/

The Paper Raincoat "Curiosity is the key"

Brooklyn songwriters Amber Rubarth and Alex Wong are behind the band The Paper Raincoat. Even though they are a young band, their debut EP was released in July 2008, Alex and  Amber  already have many supportive fans. Their music was even placed on the film "The Last Song", based on the novel by Nicholas Sparks. With tradeyourtalent Amber and Alex speak about curiosity and discovery.

On your website you write that your are an imaginative collaboration. What do you mean by that? 

ALEX: The idea of exploration and imagination is central to the concept of this band.  The whole idea for the project was born out of a creative improv exercise we decided to try one day.  We started describing a world filled with certain characters and the beginnings of a storyline, and let those elements guide a lot of the song ideas.

Has it been a difficult path? 

ALEX: We started the project at the beginning of 2008 and played our first band show June 2008.  Honestly I think we've been really lucky with people wanting to help us and opportunities coming our way.  All independent music is "difficult" at any level but I've definitely had it rougher in other projects, than we have with this project - so thanks everyone!!!  

What was the best thing a fan ever said about your music? 

ALEX: There was a couple in Colorado that told me they got engaged to our song "sympathetic vibrations" in their kitchen - which i thought was pretty awesome... but i think the time i remember the most was a lady in Kansas who said "your music makes me want to like myself more."

What does creativity and inspiration mean to you? What inspires your music? 

ALEX: i'm sure Amber has her own take on this, but for me, it means asking questions. Curiosity is the key to creativity for me.  It's much less about needing to supply an answer than just asking good questions.  As far as song ideas, i think they always come from things i'm wondering, things i don't know.

AMBER: I feel like in this project especially, the inspiration has come a little differently - it's not as much self-reflection or coming up with an idea and playing it out, but more exploration into stream-of-consciousness activities of writing our story-line and then feeding that into the music.  It's a lot of fun and feels like a discovery more so than a creation in many ways.

You are still a young band, but you've got many fans already. Are you sometimes overwhelmed by that? 

AMBER: We've been really fortunate to be able to tour with artists we really love who've introduced us to their fans. We opened early on for Vienna Teng quite a bit and that's been amazing, she has really helped us be able to do a lot of the live shows in front of fantastic audiences.  

What have you planned for your spring tour? 

AMBER: Not exactly sure yet, we're mostly writing right now and working a bit on individual solo projects as well.... we want to have some new recordings to share before hitting the road again, so finishing that up first.  We do have a NYC show Feb. 25th @ Highline Ballroom, and a show in Ann Arbor on April 22nd @ The Ark.

                                                            For more on Amber and Alex

                                                         www.thepaperraincoat.com

Illustrator Emily Grandin "Littering their imagination in a multitude of mediums"

Emily Grandin is an illustrator from Sweden. Her projects focus on the adorable characters Zoe and Dante, but she also developed some new characters while participating in Picture Book Idea Month (PiBoIdMo). With tradeyourtalent she speaks about exploring fantastical spaces, the unforgettable experience of taking part in the Sketch Book Project and why she doesn't really feel like an "artist from Sweden".

Emily Grandin: http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/

Your work looks really multifaceted. How come?

I don’t know, I guess it’s because I just draw what I love. My illustrations are filled with the things I want. I want to explore fantastical spaces and go on adventures, on the way there will be patterns and details and there will always be room for despicably sweet rabbits. I could bring up my studies in geology and architecture which have definitely played their part but when you get down to it, what I find irresistible is looking at something mundane and thinking how can I add adventure to this?

You are participating in the Sketch book project. What does this project mean to you?

I enjoy seeing how creativity thrives in the confines of limits, if for no other reason than to see how it drives people to stretch those limits. Some told stories, some took their books apart in a metamorphosis of sorts and some just filled them with all the delightful things that were littering their imaginations in a multitude of mediums. And to think it all started with a simple empty sketchbook! Beyond the obvious reasons like exposure, projects like this are great because at best they’re mini workshops, and like with workshops it’s an opportune way to find and connect with fellow creatives.

Where do you get your inspiration from?

When I was little I treasured the cross-sections in Barbapappa and Stephen Biesty's books, I would stare at them for hours. Later frank Miller and Tove Jansson’s art entered my life and I thought I want to draw like that. These days I still eye a lot of books but my resources of inspiration are more than I could justly name not least of all the wonderful wealth of art out there on blogs and digital portfolios.

What's it like being an artist in Sweden?

I like this question, right away it strikes me I don’t really feel like I’m an ‘artist in Sweden’. I assign much of my freelancing to the internet and the extraordinary ways it allows me to feel the pulse and connect with my market on an international level. That I live in Sweden feels like a footnote.

                                          Emily Grandin: http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/

 Emily Grandin: http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/

Emily Grandin: http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/

Emily Grandin: http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/

For more on Emily visit:

http://escapeprocess.blogspot.com/