Art Inspiration
Optional Elements
Image of your hero
Artifacts (documents or items related to the story)
Geography (map or country or other mention of place)
Quote (from your hero or written by you)
Examples from Irena Sendler's Story
Images of Irena Sendler
Artifacts and Icons
Irena's Obituary
Image of a jar
A woman wearing a Star of David armband
Irena's code name in the Zegota
Standing in line at a soup kitchen in the ghetto
Maps
Poland in 1933
Map of the Warsaw Ghetto
Quotes
“Heroes do extraordinary things. What I did was not an extraordinary thing. It was normal.”
“The world can be better if there’s love, tolerance and humility.”
“You see a man drowning, you must try to save him even if you cannot swim.”
Artists for Inspiration
Rob Draper
1. TEXT | TYPOGRAPHY
Find a quote from your unsung hero or write a sentence that captures their story or heroic qualities. Look at Rob Draper's work for inspiration on how to incorporate it into your piece.
Loui Jover
2. DECONSTRUCTION
Look at how Loui Jover deconstructs and then reconstructs his portraits. Is there a way you can add an unexpected twist to the portrait of your hero? Photocopy their image in black and white, trace over it with markers or highlighters, or cut out elements and then rearrange them.
Radcliffe Bailey
3. STORY ELEMENTS
Look at Radcliffe Bailey's work and how he utilizes repeated elements that are part of his family's history/story. Is there an icon(s) you can draw, cut a stencil, or paint that will tell as aspect of your hero's story?
Arghavan Khosravi
4. ARCHITECTURAL DETAILS
Look at how Arghavan Khosravi uses cut-out architectural details to add a sense of place to her work. Notice how she sometimes uses strings or 3D elements to tie the elements of her stories together. Is there a way you can incorporate a significant place (such as a house or a country) to your project?
