if you want some really fabulous artwork to hang on your walls, there's no need to go to some fancy smancy gallery or spend doodles of dollars....just keep a stack o six by six squares of bristol board and an bin of art supplies handy and ask everyone who walks in the door to draw a self portrait of themselves. at first they'll say...no i don't have time i am not an artist i can't draw a straight line with a ruler....you know - all those things people say when confronted with the possibility of havin to be creative. but you can talk em into it in a nano second...'specially after you gotcherself about six or so hanging in a lil temporary spot and see how incredible they look when smooshed together. once you get really goin with this lil project you'll be hooked for sure and won't ever take no for an answer!
but let's say you have the snooty sort o friends stoppin by on a daily basis that aren't gonna wanna join in the fun? well...don't fret cause there's lots of other ways to get this art going. like...next time you have a birthday party, have all the invitees draw a self portrait or everybody do up some art of the guest o honor. a couple o years in a row i even had each child at mini's school do a self-portrait and then i scanned em & put em all together in a poster that was sold for one o those fund raisin affairs they seem to be always havin. of course, my all time favorites are the ones mini has drawn depictin her version of me durin her life - these are the ones i used to make the quilt i blogged about just about a year ago.
if you like this idea you're gonna be delighted with all the ways you'll end up wantin to use this original art. i have printed big pieces o fabric with it, repeatin it over and over, as well as printed it out to use as gift wrap paper and envelopes and have even decoupaged bits of em on boxes and furniture. if nothin else, at least get your family members to do one up of themselves and the way they see everyone else in your family about once a year and then just put em away until later. when the day comes that you pull em all out, you're gonna be beside yourself with joy that you took on this assignment. and...it's never too late to start!
