Hoping you’re all having a great December, Do Art Nation! I had a peaceful week with family, and now I’m back at it, making art, getting ready to rock 2026! We’re looking at an awesome year of workshops, assemblies, and programs, and we can’t wait to see you there!
All month we’ve been talking about the DO ART CHALLENGE. We’ve been talking about making ART for others, giving and receiving art as gifts. I’ve been very lucky to be on both the giving and receiving end of art like that, but now that Christmas is over I wanted to show you what I made!
As some of you may know, earlier this year my older brother passed away. It’s been a struggle for all of us, especially around the holiday season, and I wanted to do something so that my mom would know that we’re still thinking of him.
I started with a canvas my mom gave me for Christmas a few years ago. I don’t get to paint as much as I’d like, and the quest to create a portrait–which has to have not only physical resemblance but also a mysterious kind of emotional resonance–is always a nervewracking project to start. In years past I’ve messed around with elaborate, chaotic color palettes, but this year the Chicago Bears (my older brother’s favorite team) have been on a winning streak, and the more I build the image with orange and blue the more the resulting picture just felt right.
I ended up working at breakneck pace to finish it on Christmas Eve Night. One of the things about making art for others around the holiday season is that it introduces deadlines you feel compelled to work up against. This absolutely adds to the stress of making art, but it can also be a powerful way to push against the resistance we often feel, the sense that our projects are never “completed.” Eventually, I dipped into the white paint to add highlights to his eyes. Regardless of medium, adding a little highlight to the eyes adds depth and life to them, and when I did that I got a little thrill as I suddenly felt my older brother looking back at me. I won’t pretend that it’s a photorealistic picture but I got the sense that I’d captured just a little bit of his essence.
I gave the painting to my mom on Christmas Day, after we were done unwrapping all the other presents. It brought a few tears to her eyes, and we all embraced as a family. The uncertainty and resistance I’d felt on my way to making the picture fell away, and all that time I’d spent in front of the canvas felt worth it.
So what did you do to make the holidays feel special? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to KEEP CREATING!
