We were given a sketchbook assignment that was entitled "Food". We just had to do a series of sketches of food, in any form. Anyone who knows me, knows I didn't go far to find my inspiration. I just opened up my fridge! I can see that I have some places where I need to get more shading and contrast in there, but otherwise I am satisfied with the results.

The kids and I were at Manito Park when I was drawing the bananas, which were laying on a park bench. We kept being dive bombed by the seagulls, which we put up with for a while, but when the bees started after us, we ran to the car! The half eaten banana is my breakfast the next morning.

I am most happy with the tomatoes and the garlic. I feel I captured the light hitting the tomatoes, although if I had used a different charcoal, I may have gotten an even more velvety texture on them. I love the papery texture of the garlic.

Does someone out there recognize this thermos? Thanks again! We enjoyed gahwa (coffee) and chocolate on a rug in the front yard on one of our sunny days. : )

Getting ready to make vegetable soup. Yummy!

A few Spring projects...

Well, I'm back off to classes tomorrow, so it will be a while before I will post again. In the meantime, I want to put up a few more pictures of the projects I did over my break. This is a journal that I had bought quite some time back. It was a plain brown journal, with brown pages. I liked the idea of the rough brown paper at first, but found it was uninspiring after a while, so I decided to decorate up the cover. I used collage and stamping, finishing up with a little paint, and a sealer so that I can throw it in a bag and take it with me where ever I go. I love it now, and when it is not traveling with me, I leave it on the coffee table to look at!

This is a small painting I did of an Arabic coffee pot. I did it quickly, as I was trying to get the feel of the paints, and therefore I didn't put much time into the background. I was surprised at how well I liked the finished project!

These are some boxes I painted for art storage. It's a great way to recycle shoe boxes, and have some pretty storage!

In both cases I did the painting, and finished off with a sealer for protection.

In this one, I also added some texture under the paint.

Charcoal drawings

These are some of the drawings I did last quarter for my "Intro to Drawing" final critique. I am quite happy with how they turned out.

I tried to use a slightly different technique for each picture, but all are done in charcoal. This is the first time I had ever played with charcoal, and I love it!

I drew upon my life in the Middle East for my drawings. I enjoy the play between past and present, and look forward to doing more projects with this theme.

These are the next two plaques I did. The little girl pattern turned out just a little darker than I had planned, but it does have a real antique feeling to it, which I love. The coffee sign is destined for my kitchen. My family knows that I don't function well until I have had my first cup!

Tension Relief

I was getting ready for final exams a couple of weeks ago, and I had a bunch of projects that needed doing for both my 'Color & Design' class, and my 'Intro to Drawing'. I was getting a little frustrated, because it seems that one of the teachers wasn't going to be happy no matter what I did, and so I started a series of little wooden plaques in mixed media to relieve my stress. This little guy was my first attempt, and I was hooked!

Becoming a "real" artist

A while back I made a vow to myself that I would be a "real" artist by Feb. 14, 2010. I say "real" artist, because on some level I have always thought of myself as an artist. I have sewn clothes, designed and sewn crafts (dolls and such), I have painted my walls and designed and made things to hang on them, and I have been a quilter for over 17 years. All of that takes color and design, and good craftsmanship, and a sense of artistry to accomplish.

Yet, the fine arts have traditionally been comprised of paintings, sculpture, and architecture. Craftsmanship, however fine or beautiful, has been viewed as the poor cousin. I am here to blur the lines. I want fine crafts to be seen and viewed, and valued, as art. What is a handmade doll, or a wonderfully woven basket, if not sculpture? Why is a beautifully toll painted chest of less value than a painting meant to hang on a wall?

This blog is to document me, Aisha, Becoming a "real" artist. So here I am going after my AFA. I will post both the work I do in my classes, and the projects that I do in my own time. I have started with some drawings that I did in my last class, and some mixed media projects that I am doing during this Spring break. I hope that you enjoy them.