April 16, 2020
My sister, Amy, and I have been pushing each other artistically over the past few years with different art-themed challenges. The word “challenge” might sound stressful, but we make up the rules, so it is definitely something more fun to do than difficult or arduous! My sister Amy lives in St. Louis, where we grew up, so this has provided a way for us to connect in our distance and time zone-challenged lives.
Three years ago, we started our first art challenge. Each week, we both had to do a pencil drawing with the same theme, and then we would post the drawings on Instagram each Sunday. There are 52 weeks in a year, thus giving us the name of our Instagram account: @fistersistersart52. We actually finished a full 52-week challenge last year and, given the uncertain times we have recently found ourselves in and the orders to stay at home, we decided it was time to start another as a way to stay close and stay positive (and hopefully provide a few laughs between scrounging for toilet paper and listening to too much news)!
While researching projects for the Studio ACE website, I came across a donated book by Stephanie Corfee called “Creative Doodling & Beyond” that included a challenge for “sparking creativity” called “The Mix n Match”. You can see this challenge and others from Stephanie by clicking here, but here is the gist (along with a “twist” that Amy and I added):
Make a list of 20 adjectives, 20 verbs ending in “ing”, and 20 nouns in three numbered columns. Then randomly select three numbers—these numbers will correspond to the adjective, verb, and noun you pick, which will be your doodling prompt for you to create an artwork with that description. The twist we added is that each week my sister picks three numbers for me and I pick three numbers for her for our prompt. In another twist, Amy had her family choose her adjectives, verbs, and nouns—a choice she says she now regrets! Ha ha ha, sorry, Amy! 😊 But as you can see, you can have some fun with it!
We decided we can use any medium for our artworks and have so far used pencil, colored pencil, mixed media, watercolor, and quilling. We have found that most of the time the words will help you find the medium!
The first week gave me the prompt “Crazy Singing Cupcake” and Amy got “Ugly Stirring Sunset”. She got creative and used the “stirring” story of the Easter Island moai against a sunset, but I’m not so sure she hit the mark with “ugly” …her artwork is beautiful if you ask me!
Another challenge I received was “Yellow Knitting Cookie”. I was inspired by artist Christoph Niemann, who had knitted the Eiffel Tower, so I switched my challenge up a bit to knitting a yellow cookie! Hey, artistic license, right? Amy’s challenge was to create a “Green Winning Mouse”. He looks like a winner to me!
Amy nailed it on Easter by creating this beautiful scene of a “Cold Driving Vegetable”, while I had fun with an “Artistic Slurping Pencil”! This challenge can get quite ridiculous, which is exactly what we need right now to take our minds off our troubles.
Amy is a great watercolor artist, and I enjoy dabbling in this medium as well…but we’ve both decided that neither of us are illustrators—boy, is it hard! Regardless, for a couple of hours a week, we find ourselves lost in silly drawings and loving our time connecting. We are still missing each other, but we know that art continues to bring us closer together, no matter what life throws at us.
The artist James Hubbell wrote in a poem that “love walks the earth.” I find that this love can be in the form of family and friends, and in finding moments of joy or peace. In these times of sorrow or worry, whatever we do, we should do it together. I also find love in ART, in whatever shape or form we enjoy it. So, I encourage you to stay connected, find your love, and share it with those around you.
From all of us at Studio ACE, we want you to know that we are here for you as a resource to stay connected—whether you are in need of a stronger community to connect with or you have a good network and just want to connect with us and share—to all of you, I say PLEASE DO SO!! Send an email and we will set up a weekly challenge, comment on a social media post, and we will comment back, send a direct message, whatever you need. You are not alone. And remember, no matter what, make sure to constantly be on the look out for your Love that Walks the Earth. I promise you, it is there!
Warmly,
Julia Fister, Executive Director
