Art

Disco Snail

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My entry is a hand sewn plushy of a beige snail. it has a zipper embedded in its muted jade green shell which hides a colorful florescent pocket of life within. My submission is about how hand sewing helps me to refocus and anchor myself back down to the earth whenever I get overwhelmed or stressed. The muted tones on the outside of the plush represent the stress, pressure, and tiredness that daily life brings, while the bright inside contrasts by showcasing the creativity and childish joy that lays hidden and dormant throughout a person’s life until they relearn to anchor themselves and live life in the moment rather than as a spectator.

Feeling the Melody

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When I saw the “Find your Anchor” monthly prompt, I thought about how much I enjoyed listening to music when I felt down. I thought of the song “Sunday Best” by Surfaces and drew how I felt when listening to that song. I ended up with a sunny background with music notes around my character. In the drawing I am wearing a purple cropped shirt, baggy black pants, a jean jacket, and an off-white pair of shoes. I also have on a pair of red-black spotted earbuds to make it clear that I am listening to music. I chose for my character to be jumping downwards as listening to music is a rush of happiness that is pleasant to me.

Light in the Dark

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In this piece music is my anchor. Intricate melodies help me find the light when I feel stuck in the dark. Music gives me hope. Hope that whatever problem I am facing will soon be resolved. That is why I have chosen music as my anchor.

Runner

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With this piece, my goal was to show a runner escaping a cluster of chaotic things. Running has been my “anchor” over the past few months, so I decided to have the person running away from the sort of nonsensical, disorganized madness that, without an anchor, can really leave people detached from what matters. I painted the runner fairly small because it allowed the overwhelmingness of all of the stuff behind it to show through, while also setting them in front of the objects to give the idea of an escape. I also used night and day to represent the more chaotic aspects of the right side of the painting and the calm of the left.

Where I Want To Be In Fifteen Years

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My entry is about the job I want to have in the future. I hope to become an architect and create many buildings in this world. It would be fun to design houses and bring that creation to life. Architecture is something I would love spending the rest of my life doing.

Promising Future

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I wanted to show myself as I am now, holding the lime green ribbon representing mental health. For my future, I thought about action statements that would help me become the best that I can be. All of that ends at the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, which would be my successful future where I’m happy, healthy, full of hope and loved.

Pieces of Myself

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Dear Future Max,
Don’t forget to take some time out to care for yourself! You can care for yourself when you lose yourself in music, when you are a part of nature and forget about all your worries when you’re playing soccer!
Love,
Max

Hobbies Should Be Habits!

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Dear Future Ava,
You should encompass your hobbies of painting, meditation and healthy cooking into daily habits so you could always feel self love!
Love,
Ava

My Bright Future

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Kaylie created this drawing to show who she is now, and who she plans to be in the future. Her 2022 self holds the green ribbon of mental health to show she cares about her mental health. The drawing of her 2027 self is wearing all lime green- she wanted people to know she will follow her own action steps to good mental health to be the best she can be! Her goals are clearly designed to set her up for success- she wants to graduate high school ready to live her best life.

Focus On You!

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My drawing represents an image of me reading and drinking water which shows how I am taking care of myself to cope with mental health. I have a dog named Benji on my side with the Mental Health Awareness Green Ribbon around his neck to represent how much my dog has increased my happiness. While taking my time into this drawing, I learned how much I’ve improved my mental health, I realized I was happy and not stressed as much.