Week 9 // Making Art Everyday // Year Two • Bardot Brush

Week Nine

After a year-long break from it, I started going back to therapy last week. I tell ya, there is nothing like explaining your whole life to another person to make you realize, HOLY CRAP, I really do take on a lot. Keeping busy is my way of life. Yes, I’m naturally ambitious, but busyness is also my crutch. As some of you may already know, you can only push yourself so hard for so long before you crash. And I’ve had some pretty spectacular crashes over the years.

I know the work I’m going to be doing in therapy will involve learning how to have more grace with myself, and be more comfortable with doing less, being restful, and (eeek) confronting my emotions.

Ok, ok, so what does this all have to do with art and with you? For this week’s prompts, there is a spectrum of ways to approach them, ranging from simple to very involved (requiring planning and dedication). I want you to know how important it is that you choose the avenue that makes the most sense for YOUR LIFE. I see a lot of you in the community who want to take on the most difficult version of the challenge JUST because it’s there. While I genuinely applaud your ambition, it’s ok to take it easy somestimes and go an easier route. You can only push yourself so hard for so long before you crash. I don’t want you to crash. I want you to keep making art and to love the journey.

What to Do

Really think about your approach to art-making this week and what will be the most feasible to you. It doesn’t matter what anyone else is doing. What do you want to do?

February Prompts

Unusual Animals

You ready to party? The idea of this week’s “plus” is to get you to stick to a consistent theme and/or visual style for the entire week. Pick a party theme to use for the entire week. This can be any type of party you can think of. Here are some ideas:

Tea party, pool party, birthday party, toga party, disco, BBQ, bachelor/bachelorette, costume party, holiday party, pizza party, sleepover, cocktail party, MLM Party (Tupperware, Avon, etc.), luau, Mardi Gras, office party

As you may have already guessed, this week your animals are going to party! Here are a few ways to approach this week’s “plus”:

Go Simple: draw the animal in any style you wish, then add a party hat!

Get Theme-y: Draw the animal, then accessorize it with props, clothing, food, or other objects that relate to your party theme.

Plan a Party Scene: Plan out a scene that you work on throughout the entire week. Start today by making a rough sketch of the scene and plan out where each animal will go, along with a rough idea of the background. Each day, draw the different animals and work on the background/environment as you go. I’m sending the prompts out early, so you have time to plan this if you want to go this route! See below for a day-by-day example!

Week 9 | Feb 24-March 1

Party Animals

Mon: ostritch
Tue: seal
Wed: dog
Thu: fox
Fri: monkey
Sat: duck
Sun: squirrel

You can access each week’s prompts at makingarteveryday.com

Making Art Everyday // Bardot Brush

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