Beautiful Birdhouse

This was one of the best projects yet! It turned out so much better than I thought it would! I was able to use the wood working machine (with much assistance from my father of course) to cut the walls and roof into equal pieces. Next, my dad and I put an intricate sun design on the front door because my dad can be just as detailed as I can, and we wanted to make our bird house feel like a home! After that we nailed the walls together and attached the roof at the end. It took us a few hours to do, but it was a really fun project and the first I attempted with someone else. This was a special project because I got to find a hobby I share with my dad. My dad and I have never really had much in common but I always knew he had a pasison for  building and art projects so its nice to be a part of that side of his life and find a new connection. I feel that art does that, brings people together and connects them even under the most unlikely of circumstances.

                                                           Vanessa Kiedrowski (2017)


Some of the limitations with this project was my lack of prior knowledge using wood working tools such as a saw, hammer, and nails. It is one thing to experiment with painting and having zero experience but it can be dangerous and nerve racking to use machinery that was new. Another challenging part was working with a partner in general. As much as I loved the experience with my dad it could be challenging to compromise on the vision we had for the house. We would often disagree on what we wanted to include as his skills made him want to have much more detail than I was able to produce at this time. However, the pros outweighed the cons and I formed a new bond over an art project. Overall I am excited about this project because I feel that I am giving back to the environment that has given so much to me, I will hang this bird house with the bird house village my dad has created in the back yard and I am excited to see what new visitors I will have :)

How can I help?

Hello everyone! I have been thinking a l about what I would like to do for my last piece of art and I feel I want to do something completely different than the last two pieces I've done. I have always known that the environment is crucial to our survival on Earth. The environment and what it provides is at the root of everything that humans have needed and produced on this planet. I feel that I was taking from nature for my own exploitation for the last two pieces so I thought, why not contribute to nature in a meaningful way with art? There were a variety of ideas I brainstormed but I felt the most realistic option was to build a bird feeder or a bird house. This way I can make an interesting art piece which also contributes to my local ecosystems. 

Here are some websites I checked out for different ideas:

32 Bird Feeder Crafts:

http://happyhooligans.ca/32-homemade-bird-feeders/

Building the $2 Bird House:

http://www.instructables.com/id/Building-the-2-Birdhouse/

I've decided that the project I am most interested in will be a bird house because I can contribute more creativity to it and birds can always find food, but sometimes its hard to find a place to stay for the night! For materials I am going to need wood, wood working tools, and paint to decorate it! This will likely be a challenging project because I do not know how to use wood working tools and I am bad with precise measurements. So to avoid losing a finger to this project, I'm going to work on this project with my dad! He has had lots of experience building things, plus art is always more fun when you do with other people :) This is the kind of bird house I am looking at doing:

http://www.publicdomainpictures.net/view-image.php?image=110820&picture=-bird-house

It is simple but takes a lot of concentration and skill (plus I'm going to add lots of colour to it!) so I am looking forward to how it turns out. Stay tuned for how it goes :)

Night Sky

Another project has been finished! This one has surprised me the most of all with how successful it was. In my last post I discussed how I have always been fascinated by the Northern Lights and wanted to see if I could paint a picture that represented such a beautiful phenomenon. This picture looks a lot different then the one I originally planned to make but I  feel it is much more unique than the other one.

Vanessa Kiedrowski (2017)

I have zero painting experience so I am so proud of the result of this painting. Part of my fascination with nature is the night sky, I think it is the most beautiful and calming thing to look at. The night sky is still and endless and when I look at it I am able to stay present in my own life. This project took me 2 hours to complete because the sky took so many different layers. First I painted the entire page dark blue then used a sponge with pink, white, light blue, and grey to add the star dust and constellations. After those had dried I used a used tooth brush and flicked white paint on to get the stars and then I mixed colours to create the greenish turquoise of the Northern Lights. Finally, I painted the bottom black and painted the forest. I followed a step by step design by the Art Sherpa who I had never heard of previously but will definitely continue to use her classes because they were detailed and easy to follow. Here is the link if you want to give this painting a try too: 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yF5NpDdI4Q

Some of the challenges I faced included the fact that I did not have some of the proper painting supplies that this project required. For example, I had to mix colours to paint the Northern colours and it did not turn out as bright as the Art Sherpa's because she had turquoise paint. However, many of the materials were able to manipulate (i.e. switching a painting sponge for a dish sponge to create the same effect). I am realizing how much I enjoy painting because it helps me stay present as I mentioned earlier. I find it so difficult not to get caught up in what I should be doing or what I have to do later that I just worry my lfie away. Focusing on one project helps me stay here and focus my attention and the result was amazing! Can't wait to share my next ideas with you guys!