GETTY ART CHALLENGE

Tips for the Quarantine Challenge

1. Find Great Art You Like

The only tools you need for this activity are your imagination and a picture of a work of art you like or find interesting. Browse our online Getty Museum collection and search the keyword field for ideas (for example, “portrait” or “dog”). If you have a certain unusual item that you think would work well, you can start by searching for that, too.

Many museums have great online collections with images available to download and use for free: try LACMA, The Met, Cleveland, Indianapolis, the Art Institute of Chicago, the Walters, or the National Gallery.

And of course, you could try a Google Image search for “painting [keyword],” “sculpture [keyword],” or whatever else you like. You might even try a reverse image search: upload an image of yourself or your object to Google Search and see what it thinks it looks like. (It’s often way off, but let that be part of the fun.)

Pose 3 Objects, Pets, or People

Now that you’ve found your inspiration, pick the objects you’d like to use. Any objects are fine: from a blank piece of paper to your most elaborate hat. You can stick to 3 and see what you come up with, but you’re welcome to use as many as you like.

Here are a few tips:

Enlist a pet. Get your dogs, cats, bunnies, and even ferrets into the mix. Here’s an example of a furry companion pretending to be a fox, complete with her toy used as a prop, and here’s a very attentive pup bringing a classic composition into the iPod era. Bonus if you have an acrobatic cat.

Make a face, strike a pose. If you’re interested in re-creating a portrait or group scene, pay attention to the facial expressions—they really make it. Here’s an all-out scream and a sassy glance. If you’re reenacting a scene with multiple figures, pay attention to the poses. These high school art history students show how it’s done.

For a family activity, look for a domestic or dinner scene. For inspiration, here’s a great Van Gogh tribute.

Pay attention to lighting. Try to imagine where the light in the artwork is coming from, and orient your composition so a window or lamp is casting similar light onto the scene. In bright daylight, windows offer a blue-tinged light, while most lamps cast a warmer glow. Here’s a beautiful example of thoughtful portrait lighting.

Think abstractly. If you’re having trouble re-creating an artwork’s appearance, try focusing on shapes over colors. For example, did you know you can suggest the Venus de Milo, one of the greatest sculptures of ancient times, with a Boost bottle and a torn Subway receipt? You can, and Wendy did it!

Make it snackable. Edible art counts too. Why not make a Magritte on toast or even a pancake? Or how about a sculpture out of strawberry?

Photograph and Post

Use a smartphone camera or a digital camera to take a photo (if you’re posing, have a member of the household do it for you; if you live alone, use the front-facing camera on your smartphone, or the camera on your computer). You may want to do several and pick the best one. Then share with your family and friends the way you enjoy best!

If you use Twitter or Instagram, share your creation with the world there using the hashtags #artsmartSMUSD.

If you want to unite the two photos—the original and the re-creation—into a single image, you can use photo-editing software like Photoshop (here’s an online tutorial) or use a phone app like PicCollage (an example).

-FROM THE J.PAUL GETTY MUSEUM