Art Journaling 101

How to start an art journal!

"Art journaling is about the [creative process] of pulling together color, words and images as you wish on a page. Unlike many other forms of art, it is not about the outcome."
Tammy Garcia

Welcome to Art Journaling 101! If you are super, duper new to doing art or you are ready to introduce kids & teens to art journaling, you might prefer Art Journaling 101 for Kids, Teens & Beginners. While AJ101 focuses on getting started, there is more emphasis on artist quality art materials and technique. AJ101 for Kids/Teens/Beginners focuses more on student quality art materials, which are less expensive and great for starters.

1. What would you like to do?

Picture yourself working in your art journal at some point in the future. What will you do? Write ideas on a colorful background? Paint in your journal? Create a collage from magazines? Thinking about what you want to do in your journal will help you decide what art materials you'll need.

2. Get some creative books for inspiration and motivation

Spilling Open: The Art of Becoming Yourself by Sabrina Ward Harrison
The Journal Junkies Workshop, by Scott and Modler 
Good Mail Day by Jennie Hinchcliff
1,000 Artist Journal Pages by Dawn DeVries Sokol
Journal Spilling by Diana Trout
Creative Illustration Workshop for Mixed-Media Artists by Katherine Dunn
Personal Geographies: Explorations in Mixed-Media Mapmakingby Jill K. Berry
The Creative License by Danny Gregory
An Illustrated Life by Danny Gregory
Print & Stamp Lab by Traci Bunkers
Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Annie Lamott
The Art Journal Workshop by Traci Bunkers
An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators & Designers, by Danny Gregory

"To be nobody but yourself
in a world which is doing its best,
night and day to make you everybody else -
means to fight the hardest battle
which any human being could fight;
and keep fighting."
~ E. E. Cummings

3. Start with a small supply of materials.

Art journalists use an array of materials. {Find a lot more detail on the materials I use at Art Materials for Art Journaling, Doodling & Beyond.} You can use free things like maps and receipts and to do lists. And you can get art supplies at a craft or art supply store, things like acrylic paint, permanent markers, adhesives and paper.

Here's a list of art materials to get started, with thoughts on quantities:

a. Paper. The key is to use paper that will hold up to what you wish to do with it! Thin paper simply won't work if you want to paint your page, but there are ways to strengthen thin paper (see gesso below). You can use a blank journal hidden in your office drawer, a loose sheet of watercolor paper, an old hardback book, a journal with heavy paper, even the front of a cereal box. I have lots of work in process, including loose pages, hardbacks and catalogs I've altered, etc.

So don't get stuck on paper. Try a bunch of things. It's OK to have a bunch of stuff going on in various shapes and sizes. You can get a flat file box and keep everything together. [More on this at A Collection of Art Journal Pages.]

b. Paint. Get some fluid acrylics (I like Golden) in 1oz bottles, or thick-bodied acrylics (I like Liquitex or Golden) in tubes. In my opinion, better 5 colors of quality paint than 20 colors of mediocre paint. You can mix paint colors with a brush to get other colors. More on color mixing in one of my favorite books, Color Mixing Bible. A great way to lighten your colors (so they become more transparent and lighter color) is to mix them with fluid matte medium or acrylic medium (a clear liquid kind of like clear paint).

c. Markers. Faber-Castell PITT Pens are my favorites - they dry quickly, don't tax my hand, and they're permanent. The journaling in Do Something is in black PITT pen. A lot of art journalists love Sharpie water-based paint pens for writing on a wide variety of journal backgrounds. Be careful though because art journal backgrounds, with all sorts of different textures and materials, can be rough on certain markers. There's a lot of info on pens in Art Materials.

d. Stamps. Stamps are a great way to add unique details to your pages. Alphabet stamps are great for adding words or quotes to your pages (see Adjectives and Happy Life). They're available at craft stores in the Scrapbooking section. You can also make your own stamps, by carving eraser stamps and transforming hardware store finds into stamps. If you go around your house, you'll find zillions of things to use as stamps - lids, medicine cups, cookie cutter molds, old brushes, etc.

e. Adhesive. I use Mod Podge and matte medium to attach paper to my pages. You can also use staples, masking tape or stitch things to your page.

f. Brushes. Buy basic, cheap-o brushes for adhesives and gesso because they will be trashed. I buy average quality brushes for painting. Try a variety of brands, styles and sizes, until you find an assortment you like. I like flats and rounds. For art journaling, really almost any brush will do!

g. Gesso. Gesso is a primer. I use both black and white gesso; see Black Gesso & Stamps + Faded Blue + black.magenta. You don't need to prime watercolor paper, but you will need to paint gesso on thin or rough paper to create a base coat, and you'll need to paint gesso in a hardback you plan to alter. It's great for layering or lightening in your collages. Definitely a core art material.

h. Neocolors. Caran d'Ache Neocolors can be blended with fingers, wet with a brush, sooooo versatile! You can even doodle with them as in Altered Book: orange.peach.

i. Old gift/credit cards. Seems funny to have its own category on the art supply list, but you might as well start collecting plastic cards! These are great for sooooo many things. Pushing paint and gesso around a page, making borders, scratching off layers, etc.

these pages in an altered book have a watercolor background, highlights with neocolors + white markers.

4. Find stuff or make stuff to put in your art journal

Find stuff. Ephemera is a fancy word for stuff you put in your journal... clippings from old textbooks, maps, receipts, recycled stuff from other art projects, product packaging, scraps of scrapbook paper quotes, lyrics, lottery tickets, polaroid photos, grocery lists... 

Make stuff. There are a bunch of ideas for creating your own stuff in Step #574: Create Journal Fodder. More ideas in Psychedelic Batik Cardstock and stamp unique patterns.

5. Find a place to create art

First, I need to say that you do not need to have a dedicated art workspace. I do art on my breakfast room table. I have some shelves for art materials and all of my art stuff is in baskets based on different types of art I might do (watercolor, acrylic, stamping, embroidery, etc.) and I take out the baskets I need and spread out on our table. At night, most nights, I clean everything up! If you have a dedicated workspace, I am happy for you because it will be fun. The more "NEEDS" you put in the way of your art, the less art you will do.

 

6. Find a pocket of time to start your first page or two

Where does art fit into your world and your priorities? We all make choices about what to do with the pockets of time in our days. Creating art wasn't even on my list 7 years ago but now it is crucial to my happiness. Find time in your schedule by doing art while waiting for something, at lunch, on the metro, at kids' activities, while the baby naps. If you truly want to do art, I promise you will find a niche of time.

 7. Do an experimental art journal page

• Take out heavy paper, a paint brush, a cheap brush, Mod Podge, a handful of clippings from the "find stuff" list above and 3 colors of acrylic paint.
• Pick any 3 colors (try choosing with your eyes closed).
• With your paint brush, dab paint on the page wherever you wish.
• Let it dry (acrylics dry quickly).
• Glue some of your clippings to the page with Mod Podge.
• Add more paint.
• Add more clippings.
• Write something. You can make a list of your favorite songs, scents or the flowers you'd like to plant this summer. Quotes are fun too.

8. Nip perfectionism and procrastination quickly.

If you find yourself wanting to start art journaling, but not actually sitting down to do a page, START HERE:

Trick Your Inner Perfectionist
Art Journaling Imperfection
It's Your Art

 

 9. Get involved in the art journaling community

Join Flickr.  It is a fantastic place for inspiration! You can find people who like to do the same type of art that you do. I even wrote a post about why Flickr is fun and inspiring. Flickr is not Twitter. Flicker is not Facebook. Flickr is not G+. It is uniquely about photography and visual art. You can post photos of your art and join groups that interest you. Groups for sharing art journaling and collage include Just Art Journals. Learn about the Flickr groups I moderate at Daisy Yellow Flickr|Twitter.

Join Art Journaling at Ning. This is a great place to ask for help with those questions about gesso or what the heck an acrylic medium is, what to bring in your backpack to do art while traveling. There are free and fee art journaling classes and a lively community.

10. Do creative prompts & challenges

The Official Guide to Daisy Yellow Creative Prompts
The Unofficial Guide to Creative Prompts | Challenges | Inspiration
Creative Every Day, a challenge to create something every day

 

11. Check out these blogs....

• Hanna Andersson
• Traci Bunkers
• Samantha Kira Harding
• Teesha Moore
• Roben-Marie
• Diana Trout
• Dawn DeVries Sokol

 

12. Listen to creative podcasts like The Creative Mom Podcast.

Back to Daisy Yellow!

Art Journaling 101 for Kids, Teens + Beginners

"The artist must possess
the courageous soul
that dares and defies."
~Kate Chopin

"stories"

my daughter created this 9x12" art journal page when she was 8, watercolor paper, neocolors + water

Welcome to ART JOURNALING 101 for Kids, Teens + Beginners who want to learn how to art journal! Hop over and read Art Journaling 101 for Kids [Prequel] for some background info. My kids started doing a bit of art journaling simply by playing around with the art materials out on the table. All it really is - playing with colors and words and images - playing is the key word. It is not about the pretty page at the end! It is about enjoying the part where you create the art. The part where you get thoughts out on your paper.

{click here for the full article}

Click to read more ...

Art Journaling for Kids|Tweens|Teens [Prequel]

my daughter is gessoing the pages of a $1 book we found @ half price books

Art journaling is a great outlet for kids that love... the freedom of a blank canvas, to explore color + images + words, to decorate their thoughts, to get messy with paints.

Thoughts on introducing art journaling to kids|tweens|teens.

1. Why is art journaling important?

Young kids are so free about exploring creatively. As they get older, they often get concerned with what others think, get more critical of their work, less free with their creativity, more likely to worry about "rules" for whatever form of art they are doing. That's why art journaling is important. It focuses on the DOING not the RESULTS. Kids, especially tweens and teens, are more likely to play creatively with freedom from constraints or expectations. For moms who art journal, it's also a wonderful way to stay close and keep the lines of communication open -- arting together!

2. How do kids define art journaling?  I like that my daughters both used the words FUN in their definitions!

my daughter, 8, "It's a fun thing. It's art. On a page you write something and then you do someting fun with it, you play with it, you paint it, you smear the words, it's what you call fun art. You have to put paint or something on the picture, then a design with pastel and then water or paint and it makes it look really cool. You have to draw something that you like before you put the water on the pastel." [pastel here refers to neocolors]

my daughter, 11, "It's like when you have a blank book and you paint gesso and paint then stick on collage stuff and then you paint more and it turns out like a collage on this funky looking background. You need to have some sort of collage clipping there, and it can't be too prim and proper, it's got to have lots of color, you've got to have fun."

Julie K in Taiwan interviewed her daughter Jaylene, 9, an avid art journalist. Jaylene's journal pages are full of color, words, images and joy! Here are some of Jaylene's art journal pages and her responses to the questions. [PS. Kids love to be interviewed.]

a. What do you like best about working in your art journal?

"Making art things and playing with them. It will turn out to be beautiful."

b. What is the hardest part about art journaling?

"Thinking of the background colors and mixing them to colors I like."

c. Where do you get ideas for your pages?

"A little bit by looking at other people's art and a little bit by thinking of my own ideas."

d. What advice do you have for other kids who want to art journal?

Check out Jaylene's art journal advice book!

3. Check out art journals that kids have created.  

Emily's Tell Your Story Pages
The Adventures of Bella & Blythe
At Art Projects for Kids, Kathy shares a number of art journaling projects

4. How do art educators see art journaling?

Stacy Spangler, a wife and mom of 3 girls, teaches art to elementary aged children in her home studio, as well as painting, crafting and blogging at Calling All Sleepyheads and Sleepyhead Designs Studio. Stacy offers art journaling as an activity for the children after an art lesson is finished.

I interviewed Stacy about art journaling.

a. When you introduce art journaling to kids, how do you describe it? Do you show pages as examples?  I’ve always described it as a tool that can help organize their ideas, and a place to try new things and keep track of things that inspire them. I usually show some of my journal entries and some art journaling guide book examples.

b. What type of journals and paints do the kids use?

We use dollar store books with all kinds of mediums - specifically student grade paints like tempera (Dick Blick), watercolor (Dick Blick liquid and Prang pan) and acrylic (Dick Blick). Also gel pens, stamps, crayons, oil pastels, etc..

In the past, I’ve used inexpensive sketch pads from the Dollar Store, and I've also set up a station each week with different papers - the children filed them away and at the end of the year we used the to make year end collages.

c. What do the kids seem to like best about working in their art journals?

They can do whatever they want! Also, they like drawing. I do a lot of lessons with various mediums and not a lot of drawing so they seem to draw a lot in them.

d. What value does art journaling bring to kids' lives?

It’s a safe place - either to express what’s comfortable or to try something new without everyone seeing it.

5. Develop your own way to describe the idea.

At the Art Journal group at ning, there's a discussion about How to Describe Art Journaling to Kids. It's a type of art where you are free to put anything you want on the page. It usually includes images or pictures, words and color. It can be messy. It doesn't have to make sense. You can use art journaling to express your feelings or talk about your life. There are lots of fun ways to do it, but there are no rules and no instruction books.

Next Step: In Art Journaling 101 for Kids | Teens | Beginners we cover the materials and how to get started in art journaling!

Special thanks to Julie K in Taiwan for her generous help!!!

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