Me, Myself, and I: 10 Days of Selfie Sketches

1. Introduction: Your mission should you choose to accept it, is to do 10 self portrait sketches in 10 days, in under 30 minutes. Why? Because portraits are a thing. They can be intimidating for a lot of people. What better way to overcome something that you're afraid of that to do it in the supportive structure of this byte-size class. It would be as easy to say, "Well, I can't draw faces because there's no one around or I don't want to bother anyone." This is why our class is focused on self portraits. No excuses friends, wherever you are, there you are or so I've heard. How's this going to work? Everyday set your timer for 30 minutes, then watch one of the following videos which will give you a specific prompt for each selfie sketch. By the end of this class, you'll have a collection of 10 sketches and you might be surprised what you learn about your art and yourself in the process. It's magic. Ready, come join me for day 1. 2. Day 1: K.I.S.S.: Day 1, KISS, as in keep it simple selfie. We're going to start this adventure with selfie gesture drawings, which means no peaking. So look straight into a mirror, put your pencil, pen, marker or crayon on the paper and draw without looking down. Now, each sketch should only take about 30 seconds. Do it three or four times. There are a few things about this technique that I love. Number one, it helps me feel the direct connection between what I'm seeing in the mirror and how I'm translating that into a physical experience with my writing instrument on paper. During this process, although I'm not looking at my sketch, I'm very aware of how my hands feel, the texture of making long strokes versus short ones, smooth versus rough. I invite you to lean into the experience. It's a powerful exercise in being present. The second thing I like about it is that I'm completely detached from the outcome. I'm not looking so I'm not expecting to make a great masterpiece, which of course gives me permission to have fun. This isn't about what I'm making as much as the process of making it. It's quantity versus quality folks. So again, lean into it. Just be in the moment. Third, this is practice. Anytime you spend with the pencil or pen in your hand is time that you're fine motor skills are being owned. If you make it a habit to do this, maybe not every day, but often, you'll find that you're much more confident about where you place your pencil and how you move it. This is pure process. As my ceramic artists friends tell me, you are not making the pot, the pot is making you. Or in this case, the sketch is making you. After you've done a few, pick the one you like the most. Share your sketch in the gallery and how it felt to do this exercise. What did it if feel like not to look? 3. Day 2: MIRROR, MIRROR: This time you can look. Set your timer for 30 minutes and draw your mirror image. You can get as detailed as you want. Add your mirror selfie to your project in the gallery. How did this process feel compared to yesterday? Easier? More challenging? In what ways? 4. Day 3: TBT: It's throwback Thursday, or whatever day it is that you're actually watching this video. For today, find a picture of yourself as a child and use that as your inspiration for your sketch. Today's prompt is different than the last two days because you're not observing yourself and capturing your likeness as you draw your subject. Day one and day two, you're both observer and observed, simultaneously. Note how it feels to sketch the person in the image. Does it still feel like you? What feelings come up for you as you render this version of yourself from years ago? 5. Day 4: I (HEART) ME: Our next prompt takes us back to the here and now. Pick your favorite picture of yourself and sketch it. What is it about this image view that you love? Is it a particular feature, expression, hairstyle, or is it the occasion, memory or place? 6. Day 5: MIX IT UP: We're at the halfway point friends, are you ready to mix it up. You're probably aware of your default process. For me, it's that trusting mechanical pencil or litho crayon. There's something to be said for mastering a medium, but there's also something magical that happens when you try something new. The intention behind this prompt is to see how medium affects your process. Of course, fluid mediums forced me to loosen up, to not be so exacting and precise and in my case, that can be a really good thing. Watercolor or gouache is also fast and you can cover areas quickly. What happens when we push ourselves beyond our default and play with the new medium? If you've been drawing your selfies, paint one, if you've been painting, draw. Trade in the pencil for a brush or collage or stamp, or even needle and thread. Have fun with this. 7. Day 6: I AM...: As you reflect on the last five days of sketches, is there a feature that is most noticeable to you or others? Is there something about your face that is distinctly yours? Think of Barbra Streisand news or Alfred Hitchcock's profile as you sketch today's selfie in whatever medium you choose, notice at what point you begin to recognize yourself in the drawing. 8. Day 7: MY AVATAR: Are you ready to draw your own avatar? Today's prompt calls for stylizing yourself. Build on what you learned yesterday about a feature that really stood out to you. Have fun with it. If you made a cameo appearance on The Simpsons, what would you look like? 9. Day 8: INSIDE OUT: It's day 8 and I'm so impressed by how wholeheartedly you are embracing the prompts. I know you'll be up for this one, which is specifically to focus on your feelings. Interpret as you wish. You could choose to capture your current mood, you could add colors strategically to help you convey a particular emotion, or you can go for your general orra. How would you capture how you feel in the world? Or how do others feel when they are in your presence? 10. Day 9: MY SAFE PLACE: When we feel safe, it's easier to take bigger risk. For today's selfie, in your sketch, place yourself in an environment in which you feel safe. Maybe your happy place is the beach, or on top of a mountain, or on your couch. It can be a place from your present, past, or future. It can be entirely in the realm of your imagination. The important ingredient is that it evokes a sense of safety and security for you. 11. Day 10: REFLECTION: It's our last day together. I'm inviting you to review your collection of self portraits. For 10 days you've quite literally shown up for yourself in different ways. You've looked into your past and your present. You've looked at your inner landscape, as well as that of your imagination. Ask yourself, which prompt felt best? Which self-portrait did you really connect with? For today's prompt, you are taking the reins. In what direction do you want to push yourself now that you've explored so much? With your collection of self-portraits, you join the long lineage of artists who have drawn and painted themselves. Rembrandt, Picasso, Van Gogh, Kahlo , and so many more. There are practical reasons why the masters made self-portraits. Then Gogh said, "I purposefully bought a mirror good enough to enable me to work for my image in default of a model, because if I can manage to paint the coloring of my own head, which is not to be done without some difficulty, I shall likewise be able to paint the heads of other goods souls, men and women." Frida Kahlo painted 55 self-portraits. She said she did them because "I was often alone and because I'm the subject I know best." I think you learn a lot about people when capturing their likeness. So the act of sketching one's own face is also a powerful opportunity for heightened self-awareness. I hope you continue this practice in the same vein as the masters. When you're without a handy model or uncertain about a technique, you can try it out on yourself. I encourage you to do so with the compassion and acceptance you would give any subject. All right, friends go out and make things. Thank you so much for being here. I hope you had fun, and I hope that you learned something about your process of capturing portraits and yourself.