Earlier this month I announced that I had begun the process of writing and illustrating a children's nonfiction book.⁠ This week I want to share more about this project, what inspired it and my vision for where it fits in the world. ⁠ Have you ever gone in search of a certain book, knowing it MUST exist...that someone MUST have written it? One day this summer I went looking for a book that addressed contemporary bi-racial, indigenous artists of color (BIPOC artists for short). I sought to introduce more of these artists in my classroom, hoping to give my students more context by introducing sp ..read more

This post is the second in a series exploring the evolution of my teaching practice since I began teaching in 2018. The first post can be found here. As many teachers experienced during distance learning imposed by COVID-19, teaching over the computer left a lot to be desired for our student’s learning. I spent a great deal of my student’s work time reflecting upon what shifts needed to happen in order to really meet student’s needs. Self-reflection is a key aspect of any teaching practice, so towards the end of our 2020-21 school year I began to ask myself these questions: “What do I want my ..read more

I took the last week off of blog posting and it was a lovely little break. I am glad to be back at it this week though, I always feel weird when I am not prepping a new post on Sundays! This week’s featured artist is Sofie van Schadewijk. Schadewijk knew from a young age that she wanted a creative job. After studying graphic design (which left little time for drawing) and working for a few years she realized that she missed creating by hand. She began drawing and eventually took the time to learn about printmaking methods like silkscreen and relief printing. Schadewijk lives and works in the N ..read more

This post is the first of a series that explores the evolution of my teaching practice since I began teaching in 2018. Teaching art in the public school system did not seem like an attainable dream when I graduated with my bachelors in printmaking back in 2006. I knew that I would need more education to become a teacher, but that was not available in the area my future husband and I settled in. To further complicate matters, we ended up having children pretty soon after (our three kids were born in 2008, 2010 and 2011). I spent the next several years sporadically making art, all the while dre ..read more

Beth S. Robertson is an amazing ink and relief print artist living in Scotland. Also known as @End.Grain.Prints on Instagram, Beth’s work is a unique blend of modern and antique aesthetics. Her compositions are absolutely mesmerizing! Roberston also uses her printmaking work in stop motion animations. These are sure to captivate and ignite the imaginations of children and adults! Little Bits of Me I Would Flutter All Around You Nous prepares the bath Pandora’s Message Got Lost Like Rats Fleeing a Sinking Ship ..read more

Priyanka Parmanand is an abstract artist based in Washington. In addition to being an artist, she is the founder of Crimson Canvas Arts. This after school arts enrichment program for children grades K-5 has 10 locations delivering this vital programming for children. Parmanand’s work is colorful and full of movement, a testament to her skill with the palette knives she loves to work with. While her subjects tend to be floral arrangements, Parmanand’s style can be seen applied to everyday objects like the Heinz bottle below, lending the same vibrancy to such a seemingly mundane object (though ..read more

I can’t believe it has been so long since I posted in here! I have been busy with our return to hybrid education in April, then the end of the school year. As of last Friday, we are finally on summer break! I have been using a lot of time the last couple of months to dream up where I want to take Curated for Kids, and how I can help the process of sharing art by BIPOC and female artists as seamless and sustainable as possible. To that end, I will be developing a guide for talking to kids about art, which will be available for free to all subscribers to my email newsletter. I hope to have this ..read more

Durba Sen is a painter living in the San Francisco bay area. Originally from India, Sen is deeply inspired by the rich colors of India, and has found that her experiences visiting India as an adult have helped her develop the colorful abstract art she now creates. I wanted to share excerpts from her artist statement here, as I find it is always best to read the artist’s own words whenever possible! Sen says, Brushes, palette knives, and my hands are some of the tools I use to create my vision. Having grown up in the East, I love the color, smell and fragrance of spices, flowers, the celebrati ..read more

A Tale of Knowledge A Tale of Knowledge, Detail Exploration (Octopus) Human Tide (Polar Bear) Mojito Neon Night Neon Night, Detail All photos courtesy of Stephanie Kilgast   Stephanie Kilgast is a French artist who uses bright, cheerful colors to bring attention to a serious issue - humankind’s destructive qualities. She sculpts vibrant nature scenes from polymer clay and attaches these to discarded objects. In her artist statement she speaks to the effects that humans are having on the earth through trash and other polutants. She says: Humans are a part of nature, which we often ..read more

A ..read more