Ah, the lovely drawings and ceramic work of Brazil based sisters, Nadiuska and Priscila Furtado. They started this collaborative project under the name Uinverso, and this is why:

“As the name means inverted , it is also related to the  universe in physical existence and in the perspective that each species is a universe inserted in another.”

Beautiful. {You can find their work – originals, prints, ceramics, pins – in their shop}

Portraits, ballpoint pen, and embroidery… I could not think of a better way to kick off a Monday. Sigh. This is the work of Spanish artist/illustrator Nuria Riaza. I just discovered her last week via The Sketchbook Project {Brooklyn}… the second I clicked over to her site I went down the rabbit hole and got completely lost in her beautiful navy blue and blush pink world of weirdness. Happy Monday.

Hello Campers! Welcome to day 1 of 15 at AFYE Summer Camp! Here are the ins and outs from this first episode:

Art Project No.1 

Instagram-a-Day:  Take one photo each day, every day for the next week … with a camp theme of course! This way there is a starting place, and no excuse not to do it! I’m even going to give you the theme for each day:

Saturday // Vintage  

Sunday // Wood  

Monday // Make  

Tuesday // Blue  

Wednesday // Boat  

Thursday // Nature  

Friday // Snacks

I can’t wait to see what these prompts conjure up for everyone! If you want to share your work along the way {I’m going to}, just use #AFYEcamp 

Artist Examples: 

As promised, images and links for the three artists I mentioned as inspirational examples of self-directed, daily creative assignments. First up, Lisa Congdon and her “Collection A Day” project from 2010:

… and of course a few pieces from Lisa’s 2016 “Experiments in Blue” weekly project:

And, if you’d like to do Lisa’s exercise from Creative Block this week too, please do:

“Choose one thing you love to draw or paint (and feel comfortable drawing or painting) already (an animal, object, a person, whatever). For 30 days, draw or paint that thing 30 different ways, a different way every day. You can use different mediums, expressions, positions, colors, whatever. Each day, push yourself to do something much different than the day before, but keep the thing the same. See how keeping one element constant (in this case, the “thing” you love to draw or paint), can allow you to break out creatively in other ways.” ~ Lisa Congdon, 2014

So fun! Speaking of which… the absolutely gorgeous results of daily walks taken by Australian artist Leonie Barton:

And finally, the obsessive compulsive {and hilarious} daily drawings of Kate Bingaman-Burt:

Pop a toasted marshmallow in my mouth, and that’s that! Thanks so much to Saatchi Art for supporting the first day of summer camp, and thanks so much to you for listening! AFYE camp continues next weekend.

Other links:

1. Creative Block, by me
2. Secret Lives of Great Artists, by Elizabeth Lunday
3. Lisa Congdon on AFYE : Episode 10 / Episode 77
4. Kate Bingaman-Burt on AFYE : Episode 22
5. NOTE: I said Georgia O’Keefe’s “ex-husband” – I’m not sure they were actually divorced?

Oh, I am so doing this. In fact, my little sketchbook for the Sketchbook Project just arrived in the mail from the Brooklyn Art Library yesterday! Wanna do it too? Yes! We just missed the 2017 cut off, but I’m all in for 2018. Here are the ins and outs of this very cool project (est. 2006):

The moral of this episode … show your work to random people in pubs because it could be life changing. London based artist, and self-described ‘pencil snob’, Nettie Wakefield is my insanely talented guest today. Listen right up there under that polka-dotty birthday girl, or you can subscribe on iTunes.

First, her “Reversed Portrait” series. Absolutely stunning – I cannot imagine getting a pencil to do this. Here are a few of my favorites, and one of them just might be Nettie herself:

Any guesses? Ok, I’ll tell you… that final drawing above is a “reversed self-portrait” of Nettie. Lovely.

Next, “Brandy the Blow up Doll” … she’s lovely too. But in a, hm, different way:

So cool! I love that she pushed herself into the world of sculpture. I’m very curious to see if her sculpture work continues.

Ok, now this is just crazy and surreal. These are a few of the drawings she did at Dismaland. Yes, that’s right… by showing her portfolio to a random guy at a pub, she ended up drawing reversed portraits at Banksy’s Dismaland. What? Who does that happen to? Answer: Nettie.

Unbelievably cool. Speaking of which, look at that close-up?! …… ok, stop looking because I have more to show you. Here’s the piece she did for Context in New York {CONTEXT Art fair NYC / Corey Helford Gallery / Pier 94} :

Sigh. That one might be my favorite reversed portrait in Nettie’s portfolio… well, maybe a close second to Liz:

Yes! This was part of a project in London to honor Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday … and in case you aren’t aware, I  have a strange obsession with images of the Queen. It might be a Canadian thing?

Finally, a lovely photo of Nettie – the front of her, not the back of her head:

Beautiful. Thank you so much to Nettie for telling me her story, and sharing a few chopped out secrets! Thanks to Saatchi Art for supporting this episode, and as always thank you for listening. There will be more art for your ear next weekend.

Other links:

1. Nettie on Instagram
2. Banksy
3. Dismaland
4. Shepard Fairey
5. Art Below

Gasp! Lovely {and slightly eery} drawings submerged in foggy, watery depths… beautiful, and a brilliant use of materials. This series, titled “Dones d’aigua” or “Water Women”, is the work of Spanish artist Sonia Alins. I’d love to take a dip in one of these pieces, but if my foot touched that “seaweed”, I’m not ashamed to say, I would totally freak out.

{found on Brown Paper Bag ; prints available via Sonia’s shop}

Oil pastel on paper. Oh my goodness. These beach-goers, from another time, are the work of a Montreal based artist known as Cluca. Those towels, their skin, the perfect negative space… and of course the woman in a bunny hat / mask being thrown in the air… fantastic! Happy Friday.

I wish I could make my pencil do this. Sigh. These are the latest drawings from Florida based artist Katie Evans. Her work is so quiet and serene, but her women are not:

“At first glance the women in my work may appear meek and docile, lying lifeless or staring blankly into space. The seemingly submissive poses they hold become performances of endurance as they firmly resist their environment. They are immersed within themselves, possessing a quiet, reserved power.”

Indeed, they do. Happy Friday.

Ahhh, a little bit of fashion, a little bit of nature… lovely combination! This is the washy work of Milan based artist/illustrator Marija Verde. Now, who do I speak to about getting one of those bird hats?

Underpants, tropical house plants, and a couple of tigers. Perfection. I don’t think I could choose a favorite from these mixed media pieces by Seoul-born, Brooklyn based artist Dan-ah Kim… BUT, if I had to pick, I’d go with “Fighting Stance” at the top of the post – because if you’re going to fight, you should always fight like a girl. #ShePersisted

{Some of these pieces are available in Dan-ah’s shop.}