I have been wanting to start this big project for a few months but have not organized it enough to build something solid. In order for that to happen I need others to work with me... but how are they going to volunteer if there is no source available to refer to? Thus my reason for writing this post... "Awareness through Creativity" That is the goal and main reason behind putting this project together. In this post I shall attempt to highlight the main ideas and thoughts related to this project... so that anyone interested in volunteering or participating any amount of energy and creativity can refer back to this. WHAT IS IT? Creative awareness is a project (soon to expand into a group) focusing on using creativity to promote awareness of the harm and danger that some species are in. IUCN has been kind enough to put together the Red List of various conservation statuses for all kingdoms of Earth. Our focus is to promote awareness for these lists in the hopes that awareness shall result in action (help). Although we are going to be focusing on awareness we are going to do another cool thing: artists shall create art of the Red Listed species in the style and medium they choose. These art creations shall then be auctioned off (some online while others in person) with all of the funds going towards that species (or kingdom if general). We are going to slowly start by promoting awareness, in that time gaining the interest of many artists and supporters. During this time I am going to focus on contacting organizations and groups that are already working on awareness and support of Red Listed species through different methods. The goal would be to work with these groups and organizations in helping the species survive and flourish. Not all art created for this is going to be auctioned off! All we are doing is making art - by making art we are showing others just how beautiful these species are and mentioning they need help. Humans would then appreciate your art and in turn wonder why such a beautiful species is in danger... then start digging and doing research... thus our goal of awareness getting accomplished. We are going to do auctions for those artists who want to make art that directly contributes to Red Listed Species. Auctions are totally different from the awareness aspect of this project. WHY WOULD WE DO THIS? As an artist I realize that I have a tool that most other professions might not: the ability to inform in a fun way. I can inform others in a creative way that they can enjoy and learn from. As such I think it should be simple if artists focused on just making other become aware of the harm and lack of life that is increasing day by day. By using creativity to help us, we can make the awareness not look like advertisements - the awareness we create is not advertisements! We are not gathering money to give to corporations or for us to use to party with - we want to use our abilities, talents, and passion to do a good cause for our planet. By doing something we already love with just a slight twist we can really make a difference! PROJECT GOALS These are the goals that I hope this project can achieve by March 2018 (in no particular order).
TO DO LIST Grand list of things that need to be done in order for this project to take off.
YOU WANT TO DO SOMETHING?
If you want to help in any way possible then please do not hesitate to contact me through the contact page on this blog, or any other social networks I am on. Things that you might be thinking about but are not sure if they are important in sharing with me... but trust me they are important.
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Intro: These are side works that I created while working on challenges and projects. All are currently available for trading...and there is quite a mix.
What I created: There are 6 inchies (1"x1") and each one is different as the themes are different.There are also 5 mini artist tiles (1.5"x1") that are all zentangle focused with some henna inspiration behind the designs. I used puffy paint to add some solid lines (randomly) that I wanted to work around. I wanted the design to work off of something that was already there and thus came up with the idea of putting bold lines down without planning. Then lastly are 2 ATCs (2.5"x3.5") that are both part of an experiment. I was experimenting painting using tea as the medium. This was done with the background of the Couples 01 ATC. Along with that I wanted to focus on simple posters (WWF Panda Poster) made with bold contrasting colors with some muted tones for background. I ended up blocking out the white parts of the panda then just going to town with all of the muted colors that I had available on my pallette. I used the splatter technique to lay the colors down. Once it was dry I used the Le Pen Marker to fill in the black parts then adding some decorative parts to the white. I used a white gel pen to do the same decorative lines on the black parts. Further thoughts: I do think that I'll have more art in the Animals series coming up as I have already done sketches for an owl and a lioness. I would say the tea painting experiment was a total fail as I did not use washes. I simply laid down the tea then added water on top... which is not the proper way to paint using tea. I might try this again in the future but I feel that I would rather use brown India Ink instead. Inchies have become an addiction... I have already cut up a bunch of inchies plus these mini tiles from leftover watercolor paper. I think they are great for using as goodies to send to hosts or even artists that I trade with. Intro: Just catching you guys up on recent art that I have traded already. I specifically made these for personal trades set up on ATCsForAll.
What I created: All of them were made using watercolor, Le Pen marker, and white roll gel pen. The Stained Glass Rose and the Heart inchie both have puffy paint used for outlining. I made three ATCs (2.5"x3.5") and 6 inchies (1"x1"). Further thoughts: I was recently feeling very inspired by Art Nouveau stained glass art and had decided to create a bunch of ATCs and postcards that a similar style. I already knew I was going to be using puffy paint as a replacement liner (gutta) for the stained glass art and Chinese watercolors due to their stained look. So far I was not exactly pleased with what I created due to the tip of the puffy paint bottle not behaving properly. I am going to get a fine tip liner bottle and try again to see if I am able to get better results. Intro: I decided to use the rest of the page that I created my works for the Valentine Twinchies Swap. I ended up making eight more twinchies and three domino tiles.
What I created: The twinchies continue the theme of Valentine's Day and hearts from the swap. I used Valentine themed cookies as inspiration for the hearts that I made. I also created rose flowers on three small sections that were left over (1"x2"). I have been wanting to dedicate art to the Beauty and the Beast story from Disney for a few months now but just could not come up with what to create. Seeing as I had practiced making a rose using a tiny brush already on one of the twinchies I decided to create just that... the rose given by the evil fairy in the story. Because I already had three tiles that I randomly put down gradient colors on I decided to paint the same rose in different colors on the other two. The hearts are a continuous part of the Valentine 2017 Series as I might still continue to make more art with that theme. Note: All of these are currently available for trading/swaps except for the red rose tile. I might end up using a few of these to create a cover page for a journal but in the meantime everything is available. Domino Tiles: A little bit about Domino Tiles... First here is an example of domino tile art found on Etsy. When referring to domino tiles it can mean work created right on top of a normal domino tile or a tile that is domino tile sized. The dimensions should be 1"x2" in order for it to be considered as a domino tile. Some artists even complete a collection and create Domino Books. I'll be writing more about this when I create a Domino Book of my own but for the moment I leave you with just this information. Feel free to Google Domino Books if you want to know more about them. YouTube also has tutorials on making them too. Status: For details on this challenge please read this intro post. Status so far on this challenge...You can also view these any of my two galleries with details. Below is what I have created so far since January 01, 2017 for this challenge. 3D works & sewingATCs for TradeATCs for SwapsInchies for SwapsIntro: I recently purchased an air dry clay that I have used in the past for a senior inquiry project (college). This clay is a little different from the other air dry clay you can purchase in-store (not counting the online clay) because you can mix the colors while the clay is wet and it is extremely flexible, even after drying. I wanted to make something from this clay to test the durability (Amaco Cloud Clay) and also to see if the pigment added to the clay had to be something specific to last longer... so I used Simply Art Acrylic Paint and Jacquard Dye-Na-Flow to see if the durability changed depending on the medium used to add color. What I created: I decided to make something for every-day use to test the durability of the clay on a small scale... So I created custom hair pins by adding air dry clay flowers to bun pins. I made a pink and purple flower using the dye to give color to the clay (I purchased only the white clay from Jo-Ann Fabrics); and for the green I made two different sections, one using the dye and the other using acrylic paint. I also used beads as the center to add some shine to the flower as the colors were pastel... even after adding so much medium to just a small amount of clay. In Summary: I wore each pin for a whole day (roughly 10 hours) so far and there is already a difference showing in quality. The petals made with the acrylic paint mix did not even last that long, perhaps because I was not bending the petals to see just how flexible they truly are before reaching the snapping point. One petal broke off just an hour after wearing and the other fell off just as I was removing the pin at the end of the day. As you can see in the images below the petal did not come off from the core (where it was attached to the flower) but just in half where the clay was the thinnest. The pink flower is doing great so far...it has lasted a whole day at work and even some hours at home. To make it clear: the pins were placed in a bun and I did not touch the pins after placing them in my hair (except to remove them again at the end of the day). I actually even had my head covered with a veil while having the pink flower on for a few hours. I did not have my head covered while keeping the purple flower pin in. Closing thoughts: I am thinking about further trying to make these flowers with DAS Air Dry Clay, perhaps using an acrylic sealer for more durability. I want to for sure now using the dye create a larger flower to see if the clay spread out on a bigger scale is weaker or not. I'll be posting a tutorial at a later date on how to make these quick and simple flower pins. Any ideas on what else could be used...? At any rate I enjoyed making these...and wearing them (while they last). |
Author: RejiI used to be a digital artist but switched back to traditional art as I feel more connected with the art I create this way. Currently, I create art whenever I can for art trades and commissions. I have worked with clay (earth clay to modern forms like Polymer, Sculpey, even Air Dry clay) along with watercolors, acrylics, oil paints, pastels, charcoal, pen and pencil drawings, India ink, Chinese Colors, wires, felt fabric, yarn, weaving, basket making, and the list goes on and on. I am currently working on exploring nail art, make-up, dress making, scrapbooking, and small canvas art. Archives
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