Art Education

Life Imitating Art

I challenge you to recreate a work of art with objects (and people) in your home. Choose your favorite artwork. Find three things lying around your house.⠀Recreate the artwork with those items

You can find the many, many recreations on social media under various hashtags: #GettyMuseumChallenge or #BetweenArtandQuarantine are the most common. But if you are a FIS student and post it on social media also tag #fisstories

This is one that I created with the help of my daughter. We did this on in March 2020 while we were in lockdown for COVID 19.
It is based on Frida Kahlo, Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird
1940 Oil on canvas, 61.25 cm × 47 cm Harry Ransom Center, Austin, Texas
Did you know the hummingbird is a symbol of hope and that is one of the reasons why I choose this painting?
I also thought it would be fun to make a unibrow and teach my Zoom classes with the unibrow all day!

Behind the scenes

Here are some behind the scene images. I edited the photo to adjust the color and crop to the correct composition. The butterflies in my hair were cut out paper by my daughter, 2 stuffed animals cats, a wooden hummingbird hangs around my neck along with a wooden necklace and lavender branches from my garden.

Here are a few tips from The Getty Museum:

Enlist a pet. Get your dogs, cats, bunnies, and even ferrets into the mix. Here’s an example of a furry companion pretending to be a fox, complete with her toy used as a prop, and here’s a very attentive pup bringing a classic composition into the iPod era. Bonus if you have an acrobatic cat.

Make a face, strike a pose. If you’re interested in re-creating a portrait or group scene, pay attention to the facial expressions—they really make it. Here’s an all-out scream and a sassy glance. If you’re reenacting a scene with multiple figures, pay attention to the poses. These high school art history students show how it’s done.

For a family activity, look for a domestic or dinner scene. For inspiration, here’s a great Van Gogh tribute.

Pay attention to lighting. Try to imagine where the light in the artwork is coming from, and orient your composition so a window or lamp is casting similar light onto the scene. In bright daylight, windows offer a blue-tinged light, while most lamps cast a warmer glow. Here’s a beautiful example of thoughtful portrait lighting.

Think abstractly. If you’re having trouble re-creating an artwork’s appearance, try focusing on shapes over colors. For example, did you know you can suggest the Venus de Milo, one of the greatest sculptures of ancient times, with a Boost bottle and a torn Subway receipt? You can, and Wendy did it!

Make it snackable. Edible art counts too. Why not make a Magritte on toast or even a pancake? Or how about a sculpture out of strawberry?

Need more inspiration, check out these amazing links:

My Modern Met

PBS Famous Paintings come to life in these quarantine works of art

Life imitating art: Quarantined people remix famous paintings with household items