The doors are open! Join the Shiny Happy Art Club!
What’s your Art Fitness plan? Check out your options at www.shinyhappyart.com/getartfit and let’s paint!
#artfitworkout Instagram Challenge
Linda and I were chatting today, about how many months I’d been doing an at-least-12 sketch Demonstration Collection (18!) and thinking up new and fun ways to entice you to join in and get that fabulous ‘I painted that!’ feeling for yourself.
Our lives have changed so much in recent times. For many of us, it’s been a wonderful time to reconnect to our creativity, finding ways to fit art, craft and hobbies into our lives. I hope this challenge encourages you to make time for a bit of Art Fitness.
For the month of November, 2021, I’ll be posting on Instagram to invite you to share your #artfitworkout sketchbook pages. Just seeing that someone else can do it, might inspire one of your friends to pick up a pencil or brush!
How to get involved
Sign up for access to the #artfitworkout Demonstration Collection. There are 4 x15 minute projects there already and this will grow to at least 14 during the month.
Check the hashtag #artfitworkout to see what others are drawing and follow the hashtag to keep up to date.
Share your favourite #artfitworkout sketchbook pages, by posting about them in November, on your public Instagram account. Use the hashtag #artfitworkout in your post so others can find your drawing.
Please be sure to let your friends know so they can join us!
Giveaway and Prizes
There’s also a giveaway to celebrate this challenge. Make sure you’re following me on Instagram to see my giveaway post. This bundle of inspiration will be heading home to one lucky winner drawn on Sunday 7 November.
Let’s get Art Fit!
Sketching out and about
If you’ve ever wanted to the confidence to sketch out and about, here are two tips:
1. Start practicing at home. Draw your own table. Your window view. Your hands. Your favourite coffee mug.
2. Have friends who are happy for you to sketch while chatting/sipping/eating. I don’t sketch every time, but when the opportunity presents itself, it’s good to be ready.
That probably leads me to a third tip:
3. Have your art kit with you most times (‘at all times’ is a bit crazy, huh?)
Anyway, a series of happy and spontaneous decisions saw me at lovely @rosaliehouse today with friends who were very happy for me to paint and chat (and sip)!
It’s been a while since I’ve sketched a whole double page spread!
And delicious spread it was – and I HIGHLY recommend the Rosalie Sparkling, the pork, the corn and the ricotta doughnuts. You’ve got to have the doughnuts.
There we have it – an opportunity to ‘really see’ and a lovely memory captured on the page.
May the Fourth
I’m not a huge Star Wars fan, but I love the challenge of painting or sketching something for May the Fourth Be With You day each year, and seeing the progress in my art.
This year I surprised myself with this sketch, and I can honestly say I have NEVER sketched C-3PO or R2-D2 before – and they’re busy characters! That’s the main reason I decided to sketch upside down – so that I was only looking at the shapes and not letting my mind get in the way by thinking of arms and legs, etc. I really recommend having a go at drawing this way!
May the Fourth 2021
Mooloolaba Surf Lifesaving Club – four ways
What’s better than one #mooloolabasurfclub ? FOUR.
The first was sketched on our first morning at the beach (fun),
the second from a photo that night (a bit staid),
the third on the beach (while my students may have been taking bets on how long it would take me to finish it – 17 minutes), and
the fourth from a photo as a demonstration painting in our main room with (mildly) spherical perspective and only four paint colours.
There’s so much to be said for painting a subject multiple times – and if it’s a subject you love, that’s even better.
Danny Gregory of #artb4bkfst says, “Warhol’s Law: if one drawing of a thing looks okay, ten look AWESOME.”
I agree.
And I think I’m done now.
Anna
What’s so good about a Collection?
Ahhh, what’s so good about a #collection?
- You get to explore a topic, or an art supply, with purpose.
- You create an impressive body of work.
- You have the opportunity to see your skills improve between artwork 1 and Artwork 8 (or 12 or 20 or 31 or 54 or 100)
- You can take a photo of your collection and FEEL THE FEELS of a joyous job well done.
I started deliberately painting/sketching themed collections last May (remember #5minutemay ?) and haven’t looked back. Last month it was #shaaustralia and right now it’s all about #shabridgerton.
I’ve settled on a goal of 12 pages/artworks/whatever each month (because 31 was an uncomfortable stretch!) and it’s all systems go.
What subjects are you interested in? Is there an art collection project in that? How much time do you have? How many would feel comfortable for you?
Don’t want to think? Well just follow along with me. 
All my Demonstration Collections to date are available at https://shinyhappyart.podia.com/
All my Demonstration Collections to date are available at https://shinyhappyart.podia.com/
Remember that one sketch or painting is one thing, but boy, a collection FEELS AWESOME.
Just pick up a brush or pencil and let’s go!
Anna