It may be a bit unorthodoxed but this session I decided to try letting my students pick the final project!

Okay, honestly…yes I’m perhaps a little stumped for ideas. Or at least maybe ideas that would excite them. I mean the things I paint are the things I choose – the things that draw and excite me. Of course it’s my hope that they will speak to someone else as well but generally that is not my first consideration in selecting the subject of my own creations.

Complete free reign for/with some students does have the risk of establishing chaos or inactivity so in the end we will all be painting the same thing with the usual coaching. This time though I’m running a contest. Our own little “Art Idol” and the kids, for lack of a better description, are the judges!

I searched out some paintings to which I figured I could apply the techniques, etc. that I wanted to cover in the project and that weren’t really difficult to paint. Each student gets to pick their top three and these are being scored on a reverse-order point system (1st choice getting 3 points; 2nd, 2 points; and 3rd, 1 point). The painting that receives the highest combined total score will be the painting we end the session with.

Even for those that don’t end up painting one of their choices I hope that this exercise will instill in them a feeling of freedom and control over their own creativity. It also provides the opportunity to see some art work that they may otherwise not have seen and I’m also hoping that students will be drawn into the process by the excitement and anticipation of the winner’s announcement next class.

Credits:

A. Mama Bear II original artist Collette Schildkraut

B. Whimsical Winter original artist Tammy Tavarone

C. Leaning Birdhouse in Winter original artist Lisa Middendorf

D. Fox Hill original artist Tanya Nuchols 

E. Winter Path original artist Lindsey Sniffin

F. Snowy Bird original artist Molly McEachern

G. Cabin in the Northern Lights original artist Rachel Marshall 

H. Northern Lights VIII original artist Nikki Page

Check back in a few weeks to see the “winning” piece and how the paintings turned out!  🙂

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