I often wonder at times, "What would life be like without ________?"
Lately, it's been honey-do lists and fixer-upper projects I have questioned the most. Seriously, what would life look like without those? Weekends would be so boring, wouldn't they? Nothing to do but sit around. Relax. Curl up with a good book. Snuggle with the fam on the sofa and watch a good movie. Invite a few friends over to watch some games and bar-be-que. Pfft...
Did I mention I am still living in a construction zone? Yes, I am. BUT, I am so so excited to tell you we are really seeing the light at the end of the tunnel here - pretty sure it is NOT an oncoming train. We dug in like you wouldn't believe over the past couple weeks and got to chiseling away at this project. This weekend we completed laying the tile in the bedroom - YAY! Still more to go, but hoping to reach my deadline of having the bedroom complete by the end of September.
I have also wondered what life would have been like without comics and cartoons. I don't know about you, but they were a staple to my growing up. And the Peanuts have always been one of my favorites. And clearly I am not alone. Besides entertaining me and millions of others over the years, Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and the gang also inspired other cartoonists over the years, including the creators or Garfield the cat, Calvin & Hobbs, the Simpsons, and Captain Underpants.
Charles M. Schulz was born on November 26, 1922 in Minnesota. He knew from a young age he wanted to be a cartoonist. After returning from WWII in 1945, he came home to make that dream a reality. After creating 1-panel comics of "Lil Folks" for a few years, Schulz presented a 4- panel comic to another syndicated paper, which they loved. As a result, the "Peanuts" comic debuted in 7 newspapers nationwide on October 2, 1950. And the rest is history.
The Peanuts characters have certainly gone through some changes over the years, but over their nearly 50 year run, the characters and their personalities became very developed and loved by all. To celebrate the 71st anniversary of the Peanuts debut, I thought it would be fun to create some Peanuts art of our own.
I would recommend using a reference photo to start, practicing drawing Schultz's characters first. Once you get the hang of this artist's style, try creating a character of your own. You may want to create you as a Peanuts character, along with your siblings. Maybe you want to draw your pet, too!
Schulz style is very simple and minimalistic. As a result, this project is perfect for all ages and skill levels. Youngers will lover breaking their drawings down to simple shapes. Olders and more advanced artists will enjoy creating a project with less detail, a great reminder that sometimes "less is more".
For this project, you will need pencils, erasers, a pencil sharpener, and paper (I used my mixed media sketchpad). Charles Schulz was known for using ink, so you may want to try some ink pens, even ball point pens for the lines. Otherwise a black marker will work wonderfully, too, just check that your paper won't bleed. If you would like to use color, you can use markers, colored pencils, crayons, etc. If you choose to use watercolors, be sure to use a thicker paper and make sure your ink is not water soluble.
Here is the link for the video. As always, if you need any help, please let me know. I am SUPER excited to see your creations for this project. I hope you enjoy getting creative this week. Have fun, all, and happy arting!