Expressive Self Portraits!

I love expressive painting! Sadly, as an artist I wasn't exposed to expressive painters until I was in college. As a result I try to teach as many expressive projects as I can!

 

This week I did Expressive Self Portraits with some of my younger and older students. I like this project because unlike most projects we do, there aren't a lot of guidelines. You just draw your face and paint. The only guideline I gave was to keep your colors fresh and try to avoid over mixing. Enjoy!

 

Materials:

Practice Paper
Pencil
Little or Handheld Mirror (optional)
Bristol Paper
Black Crayon
Various color Acrylic Paints
Brushes

Step 1

Start by drawing your face. I went over simple facial features and placement with my younger students. I had my older students look into a mirror while practice drawing their faces.

 

 

Step 2

Draw your head and shoulders on Bristol Paper, making sure to take up most of the page. Outline in black crayon. Paint using a variety of bright colors. I left traditional colors (peach, brown, and cream) off the palette.