Art Night and Psalm Coloring

Elise Carey is a missionary with YWAM and long-time family friend.  Some of my most favorite childhood memories include her.  She taught my sisters and I amazing skills like how to whistle through a straw, how to make an around-the-corner spit-ball shooter, she introduced us to the "Ben and Jerry's Party" (everyone gets a flavor, devours for a minute, timer goes off, pass to the right...until you feel like you're going to die from sugar shock....love it!)  and she instilled within our family a love for Duke basketball.  She has been a missionary all over the world and is now serving in Latvia.  When she was home in the States one year, I had her come speak to a couple of my art classes.  She posed a question to my students that I still ponder from time to time and it is this...

How can Christians use the arts to build the kingdom of God?  

Elise is a out-of-the-box thinker who uses her creativity and passion to bring others to a saving knowledge of Jesus.  Her answer?  A little get-together she calls "Art Night."  She invites both Christians and non-Christians, and anyone else they want to bring- to come to her apartment once a month for the purpose of creativity and fellowship.  Guitar playing, singing, painting, drawing, and of course, eating.  She even has theme night like Chocolate night, where they not only eat chocolate, but draw with it!  She's had a Mexican night, a free-trade night, and an art night by candle light.

I have always loved this idea and knew it was something that I wanted to start in my own home.  And last night was our first Art Night, and I hope there will be many to follow!  I invited a few students, alumni, and teachers on facebook.  I told them to bring anything they wanted to work on- knitting, painting, drawing, photo editing, coloring books- whatever! I made tea squares and homemade chai.  The downstairs was spic and span and I plugged in some extra lights to make sure the room was properly lit for optimal creative endeavors.  We listened to christian music via iTunes and the wonderful Christian radio stations they provide.  One student and one teacher came, but despite the lack of attendance, I think it was a complete success.  It started at 7:00 and was supposed to end at 9:00, but they stayed until 11:00, and would have gone later if the student didn't have a cinderella license.  Why why WHY did I not take pictures to share?!?!  Because I was too busy coloring, talking, laughing, and being a hostess.  The student said it was, "the best night of her entire school year."  Have I mentioned how much I miss students?

If you are a creative person, you know how important it is to surround yourself with creative people.  I miss the fellowship of the art building in college.  The critiques, the hot chocolate breaks, the encouraging comments, the urgency to create art on a deadline.  It's been a long time since I've been "an artist" rather than an "art teacher."  Two thumbs up for Art Night.

So what did I make?  I wanted to work on a project for a friend, but after the discouraging realization of  how out of shape my drafting skills have become, I opted for some good old fashioned coloring.  But not with crayons or markers.  My magnificent 132 count Premier Prismacolor Color Pencils.  I am an art geek to the core, and I LOVE my Prismacolors.  They are magic when you mix their rich waxy pigments together to form new colors over top of each other.  I sharpen them with an exacto knife and sanding block just so they will last longer.

I always wanted to add a little color to my Psalms Illustrated journal, and last night I colored 4 illustrations.  Originally, I wanted to keep the drawings black and white because I thought if I put too much stress on myself to bring them each to a finished colored state, I would never do many of them.  But as I go back and revisit them, I am finding it so much fun to add the colors that I have always imagined were already there.  I have reposted some of my colored illustrations under the "color" label to the right if you want to take a look.

I can't wait for next month's art night.  :o)  I am still buzzing from creative juices... or maybe its from the chai.