My friend, Catholic artist and iconographer Elizabeth Zelasko, was generous enough to share her knowledge of iconography for my YouTube channel. I initially envisioned a short 10-15 minute interview geared towards K-12 students, but it ended up being so in-depth it was hard to edit!
I decided to compromise and release TWO videos. Today’s video is a “short and sweet” version of our interview and next week will premiere the full-length interview.
Elizabeth is very knowledgeable and incredibly talented. She learned Russian Orthodox Iconography from the Prosopon School of Iconology and has created original works of art for Catholic publications and institutions. You can see more of her work at elizabethzelasko.com and follow her on Instagram.
In today’s tutorial, I will walk you through how you can use watercolor ground to paint and draw with any kind of pen in your journaling Bible without it bleeding through the pages.
(Note: Amy Heyse Art is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.)
In today’s tutorial, I walk you through how to draw Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton step-by-step. We use simple lines and shapes and you can color her with your favorite art supplies.
(Note: Amy Heyse Art is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.)
For the last few years, instead of picking a New Year’s resolution, I have liked picking a “word of the year” instead. The idea is to pick a word for a year and see how God is speaking to you through that word.
In the past, some words I have picked have included “be” and “discover.” For 2022 my word of the year was “teach,” which ended up playing out with me teaching Catholic inspired art tutorials on YouTube.
There are different ways to discern your word of the year, but my go to method has been picking a word at random using Jen Fulwiler’s Word of the Year generator. To me, it takes the guess work out of deciding my word or at least gives me a place to start and further discern my word in prayer.
I thought with 2023 right around the corner, it would be fun to do a Word of the Year inspired craft tutorial. I used Jen Fulwiler’s Word of the Year and Saint’s Name generator to randomly select a word and a Saint and I used a bead kit I found at TJ Maxx to create a matching word beaded bracelet.
(Note: Amy Heyse Art is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.)
Happy May! The month of May is often the time families honor Mary with flowers, so I thought it would be fun to offer a video tutorial of how to draw Mary with a flower wreath crown. All you need are a pencil, paper, and something to color with. I used colored pencils, but you can use any media you desire! The nice thing about this project is you can change up the colors however you would like. Perfect for budding artists and the young at heart.
I did this project with my 4 year old and 7 year old. My oldest, Holly, gave Mary a flowing veil and depicted her surrounded by angels. My youngest drew her twice.
If you have children who are too young to draw along but like to color, I have a copy of the line art listed below that you’re free to print and use for personal use.
Feel free to tag me on Facebook or Instagram and use #artwithamyheyse so I can see your finished Marian masterpieces! You can find a few more drawing tutorials on my YouTube channel. I also have a St. Lucy painting tutorial available in my Etsy shop.
Sometimes a project is just meant to be. My dear friend, Elizabeth Zelasko, got me in touch with a lovely lady named Anne who felt called to commission an artist to create an original piece of artwork. The idea for this image was of a priest holding a lamb and Jesus guiding the priest. She knew the title would be “We Shepherd Together.” The image had been on her heart for years, but not being an artist herself she wasn’t sure where to begin. Elizabeth was one of the artists she got in touch with, but when she was unavailable to create the image, she got Anne in contact with me.
On the phone, I had a pretty clear idea of the direction I wanted to take for Anne’s piece and the sketch came together very quickly. In my personal experience, I have always found that there is a certain rhythm and flow to a project when it’s meant to be. It’s like my hand is drawing or painting faster or with a skill level I shouldn’t have. Though it’s hard to know for sure, these moments definitely feel guided by the Holy Spirit.
We Shepherd Together sketch
After I sent Anne the final image for her to approve, I can remember the feeling of elation I had when she said, “You nailed it!” It felt good to be part of the process of collaborating together to create a piece of art meant to inspire our clergy. If there’s a will, then there’s a way, and God always will find a way to make it happen.
Prints of “We Shepherd Together” are now available in my Etsy shop.
For the Pianos About Town 2019 season, I had the opportunity to paint my third piano for the city, “How to fold a paper crane.” I had always loved origami growing up and wanted to make a nod to my Japanese heritage. I love that the pianos encourage spontaneous music making, so I thought combining two art forms together would be a fun take.
This is one of my favorite pianos to date and I hope that people enjoy trying to follow along with the directions.
I’ve been busy creating a lot of portrait pieces to celebrate weddings and other occasions. I even had the opportunity to paint some custom cornhole boards for a reception.
I love it when I’m asked to create portraits whether it’s for a wedding, anniversary, or other occasion. I truly believe that art is a ministry, so being able to paint something beautiful to be shared in the home of a family is really a blessing.
Many of the podcasts I have been listening to lately have discussed the theme of beauty. It is so important to be surrounded by beauty because it shapes our souls and it shapes our culture. I’m so thankful that I get asked to be a part of the process
A goal of mine had been to paint close-to-lifesize portrait paintings of my two daughters, Holly and Mayumi. In 2018, the completed painting of my daughter Holly was finished and was accepted into a regional fine art show. I started working on the painting of my youngest, Mayumi, a little over a month ago.
The painting depicts 18 month old Mayumi in her velvet and tulle Christmas dress. You can practically hear her saying “Cheese” as you look at her toothy toddler grin. A lot of nights were spent painting chubby toddler fingers, her sweet little face, and the different textures of her dress.
Even when the painting was in the early stages, just a sketch on a piece of paper, Mayumi recognized herself. She would proudly point to the painting and say, “Me” throughout the process. She was excited to see the finished product which I will be hanging up on the wall next to Holly’s portrait. I’m hoping to enter it into the National Fine Art Show at the same gallery later this season.
It took a little over a month, but I finally did end up finishing my koi transformer cabinet for the city. I’m really happy with how it turned out and I’m thankful that the weather cooperated during the last few weeks.
When I first started the project, it was incredibly hot. So hot that I got sick one of the days I was working on it. The following week, it was so cold that I had to wear long underwear and two coats for shorter painting sessions. That’s Colorado for ya!
I’m so thankful that I had this opportunity to create art for the city and the friends/family who supported me by visiting, bringing me cookies, and helping assist. You can see photos from the process below!
