The cover image for the March 2021 issue of Stone Soup is incredibly striking. Aiyla Syed’s photograph “Sensation” (pictured above) perfectly captures a moment that feels familiar and playful in a visually compelling way. FRANCE. Paris. Place de l’Europe. Gare Saint Lazare. 1932. The composition of the photograph is wonderful. While the main attention in the foreground is Aiyla’s brother jumping in a puddle, the line of the road in the background and the horizon line provide a pleasing frame for the action. And the shadow provides a doubling of the subject that gives the image a really nice sense of symmetry. For me, this photo reminds me of Henri Cartier-Bresson’s famous 1932 photograph of a different puddle jumper (pictured right). In “Sensation,” there is also an interesting tension between the stillness of the surroundings and the sudden movement of the splash that Aiyla’s brother is making. What sounds do you think were happening as Aiyla was taking this photo? In addition to being an interesting piece of art, this photograph could be an excellent starting-off point for a story or a poem. The Activity For a writing or art activity, try to capture a moment where a silence or sense of peace is suddenly broken. You can do this with words or through a visual medium. What does the scene look like while it’s quiet? And what is it that suddenly disrupts this peacefulness? Maybe it’s a happy disruption, like a sudden laugh, or maybe it’s more serious, like an alarm. In any case, explore the sensation that occurs when the disturbance takes place.
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Art Activity: Telling a Story with Multiple Perspectives in a Single Image
Procreate Emi Le’s artwork, “Invisible to Human,” is one of those deceptively simple pieces of art that reveals more, and poses more questions, the longer you look at it. There are so many intriguing things about it. Its title makes me stop and think as I focus on the strange, many-limbed creature on the right. Maybe the human astronaut can’t see it, even with their flashlight apparently focused on it, but I get the feeling it can see the human–the subtitle could be “Visible to Alien”! I find my eye constantly drawn into that big, single eye with its blue center, one of the only colorful things amid the different shades of gray. Looking at the whole image, I love the way Emi has used diagonal planes of light and dark to illustrate what is visible to each of the figures, and what is not. The alien’s tentacle vanishes into the blackness of the human’s experience, while the human steps forward into what they perceive as lonely darkness, somehow behind and unable to see the presence of the creature the viewers are so aware of in the foreground. The different degrees of dark keep the mood somber and somehow secretive. One of the things that gives the image power is the strong sense of a story behind it. How did either of the creatures get here? Will the astronaut walk behind the alien, or right into it? Will the alien turn around and move those tentacles around the astronaut, or will they just glide past one another, the alien remaining forever “invisible to human”? It’s mysterious, and just a bit sinister. The Activity Click on the link to see a higher resolution version of “Invisible to Human”. Spend at least 5 minutes studying the image, observing the details discussed in the paragraph above and noting your own thoughts about the use of color, perspective, dark and light, the outlines, the shapes. How does the image make you feel? What story is it telling you? What is it about the way the image is made that makes you feel those feelings or understand that story? Think, too, about the impact of the medium on the art. Emi used a program called Procreate, which is a piece of digital drawing software for iPads. There are many other digital art programs, some of which are free of charge. If you have access to one of those devices or programs, use this project as a chance to experiment with what you can do. If not, use your favourite pencils or pastels to make your work. Imagine your own scenario in which a human and an alien encounter one another. What happens? Think about who can see what (the human, the alien, the viewer of the art), and try to show the different perspectives. Tell your story and create your mood with your use of line, color, perspective, and light.
Writing and art activity: using Ballet as inspiration for creative writing and art
Ballet is an art in which adults partake in a fantasy world that is more often associated with children’s stories. Nobody speaks in a ballet–the classic story ballets are performed silently–although there is a sign language that one starts to recognize after watching several ballets. But no preparation is really required to fall into the magic of the ballet theater–besides, as with the great fairy and fantasy stories, an ability to let the world as we know it fall away as a fantastical world of magic takes its place. In the world of ballet, chickens (La Fille Mal Garde) and swans (Swan Lake) dance, fairies good and bad cast spells (Sleeping Beauty), pirate kings find true love (Le Corsaire), and Roman gods come to life (Sylvia). Watching ballet helps break through barriers between reality and fantasy. It is an art form that can speak to children and inspire young writers to let the dream-world that is in so much ballet enrich their stories. The digital world gives everyone access to some of the great performances of classic ballets. To get you started, we’ve added a few links below to You Tube videos of the UK’s Royal Ballet performing some of the ballets mentioned above. You’ll find many more yourselves. Have fun with the beauty of the movement and the music, and see if a balletic release into a fantasy world can help to get your creative juices flowing! Some simple exercises to try: Story-telling. What story might be conveyed best through dance? Is it an epic tale of fairies and unicorns, or a simple forest walk? Whatever the story is, which styles might you use tell that story? Many of the ballets below are based on full-length novels, or on short stories. Many people identify poetry in the movement of ballet. Once you know your story, and have written your story or poem, perhaps you could write it again in a different way–say, by writing a plot summary for the imaginary program given out in the theater. Art: What might your ballet look like? What is the scenery like, and what to the characters look like? Are they all human, or might they look like something never-before-imagined? Perhaps you can draw the sets, or the characters in their costumes. <iframe width=”560″ height=”315″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/rryxZjqLtNs” frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen></iframe>
Art Activity: imagining, planning and drawing complex imaginary worlds
This art activity by Olivia Joyce is built around 8-year-old Li Lingfei’s Artist’s Portfolio, published in Stone Soup’s March 2018 issue. Use the link to open the portfolio in a separate window and look closely at the images as you read Olivia’s responses to Lingfei’s work, and think about her drawing activity ideas. Stone Soup publishes many intriguing and entertaining submissions of poetry, short stories, and book reviews. While the writing is often incredible, the artwork Stone Soup publishes is especially fascinating to me. I love seeing how artists express themselves and take on specific styles in their art. The work of the artist Li Lingfei, age 8, stood out to me in particular for its style and imagination. Li Lingfei’s portfolio was published in Stone Soup’s March 2018 issue. It included watercolor paintings of entire worlds that she had imagined, as well as a construction of a house in the shape of a cat. This piece, titled “Cat House,” caught my attention first because of its unique geometrical design and patterns. Lingfei mentions that “Cat House” is inspired by a famous building in Spain, called Casa Batllo. Some artists might feel concern about using other art for inspiration, but I find that this is one of the best ways to create something new and unique! “Cat House” and Casa Batllo might bear some similarities (Casa Batllo’s roof resembles a dragon, and “Cat House” resembles a cat), but their look and style is markedly different from one another. As I looked more closely at all of Lingfei’s work, I saw that the bright indigo and yellow color scheme appeared in her paintings in addition to “Cat House.” The similar colors provide a thread that connects all of her work together, making it feel more united and whole. When I examined each of Lingfei’s paintings individually, I saw that they told stories and included images of multiple people and creatures. Even now, each time I look at one of her paintings, I observe something new. For example, in “My Chinese Dream,” I noticed the most obvious images of two planets and a rocket first, but the second time I looked at it I noticed the Octopus King waving from the corner, and the yellow mist that surrounds each planet. In this way, Lingfei’s artwork is dynamic, providing depth and leaving room for many interpretations. It is clear to me that Lingfei let her imagination guide her when creating these works, which I felt was essential to creating something interesting and beautiful. My favorite of her paintings is “Sky City.” It shows a city inside a jellyfish, floating in space. Aliens or people fly in a squid spaceship outside of the city, and within the bubble, hamburger hovercrafts and ice cream rockets zoom around mushroom- and jar-shaped buildings. The more I look at this painting, the more curious I become about it. Can the city move across the galaxy, or is it more like a planet with an orbit? Is the mushroom building really a mushroom, or just shaped like one in the way “Cat House” is shaped like a house? Would people be happier if they lived in “Sky City,” or on Earth? I think that it is important for art to raise questions and spark curiosity, and Li Lingfei’s artwork did exactly that. As a response to Lingfei’s work, I’d like to ask our readers to try, in a single image, to create a world as complex and detailed as Lingfei has created in each of her images. To do so, you should plan ahead. You might begin by writing out a brief description of the place you’re imagining—and then drawing it. Or maybe you just want to tell your mom or your dog about what you’re planning to draw. Either way, have a plan in mind so that you make sure to have room for everything you want to include in your drawing! Once you’re ready to begin, remember to use the full range of colors and to fill up the entire page—and then submit to Stone Soup! We can’t wait to see your masterpieces! Author Bio: Olivia’s favorite books are the Harry Potter series, which she has loved since elementary school, but she also loves The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman, and anything written by Sharon Creech. She is in her third year at UC Santa Cruz where she studies literature and writes poems and stories. At schoo,l you might catch her eating too many chocolate croissants or sprinting to catch the bus.
Art Activity: imagining new worlds with ‘Planet With Five Suns’, by Vika Sycheva, 8
Introduction to this Stone Soup Art Activity Russia is a country with a rich tradition of folk stories and fantasy. Some of this wonderful tradition is reflected in this beautiful painting by Vika Sycheva, 8, where colorful birds and an eight-legged animal walk on a planet with five suns. This is a world from fairy tales, dreams, ballet. A world of rich fantasy. Let your imagination roam free when you look at this picture. You might even want to make up a story about it. Where are the birds going? And the red animal with all those legs—what is it? Are those flowers in its mouth? Are they a gift? And if so, for whom? Project: An Imaginary Planet Imagine a world where the sky is very different from ours—maybe there are five suns or eight moons. Maybe the sky is red rather than blue, and the moon purple rather than white. Perhaps the stars are all different shapes and colors, and a ring, like Saturn’s, crosses the sky. Create on paper a world with a fantastic sky. And create fantastic animals to match the sky—animals that are doing something, like dancing, playing, jumping, or running. I’d advise using paint, pastels, oil pastels, crayon, colored pencils or felt pens for this picture. If you use pastels or oil pastels, it can be effective to draw your picture on colored paper. And remember, like Vika Sycheva, to use the entire page and all the space on it to tell in shape and color the story of this imaginary planet with its wonderful sky and exotic animals. From the September/October 1986 issue of Stone Soup Planet With Five Suns, by Vika Sycheva, age 8, Soviet Union
Writing and Art Activity: fully imagined fairy tales in words and pictures with “The Enchanted Egg” by Bertrand C. Jackson, 13
Introduction to this Stone Soup Writing and Art Activity “The Enchanted Egg” is a delightful story that plays with ideas and characters commonly found in fairy tales (and in cartoons of fairy tales). This is not a profoundly original story, but it is well written, beautifully illustrated, and fun to read. As you read it you might even try to make a list of all the predictable elements you find. For instance, the toad is ugly (of course!), the owl is wise (of course!), and the third attempt to cure the town of rats succeeds (of course!). What is remarkable about “The Enchanted Egg” is how thoroughly imagined it is. What I mean by this is that Bertrand doesn’t just quickly jot down that there is an ugly toad nobody likes. Both in the writing and in the illustrations, he takes care to make us see the toad as an interesting character and not just a flat cartoon figure. Project: Write and Illustrate a Fairy Tale In its original form, Bertrand’s story has thirty-three illustrations! The text and the pictures were created to go together and make a picture book. I want you to do the same thing. You might start in the library reading fairy tales. Once you have those toads, kings, poor fishermen, mermaids, magic table-cloths, and other fairy tale images clearly in your mind, select a few to put together in your own way. Whatever your story turns out to be—funny, sad, a fight between good and evil, or a wandering adventure—do your best to make them come alive in both words and pictures. The Enchanted Egg By Bertrand C. Jackson, 13, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada Illustrated by the author From the March/April 1986 Issue of Stone Soup Once upon a time, many years ago, in a far-off land, there dwelt an ugly toad. His shriveled green skin was dotted with horrible warts. His eyes bulged from his wrinkled head, and his misshapen feet protruded awkwardly from his stout body. Because of his repulsive appearance, the poor toad was mocked by all the other animals—all except the wise old owl, who understood the toad’s kind nature and felt sorry for him. Life was beginning to be unbearable for the toad, although he tried to make the best of the ridicule and harassment. The owl often attempted to comfort him, but it was to no avail. The toad was intent on leaving his familiar forest to make his fortune in a large nearby city. Before he departed, the owl presented him with a magical egg and told him that it would aid him in time of need. He added that, as the egg was enchanted, it would follow the toad wherever he went and would assist him when called upon to do so. The toad was astonished at the strange spectacle of the egg floating in mid-air but listened carefully to the owl’s explicit instructions. The wise old owl then bade him goodbye. The toad gave one last glance at the owl and turned to start his journey. He trudged sadly toward the city with the egg floating faithfully in back. It so happened that this city was the capital of a vast kingdom. He missed his friend the owl very much, but the thought of the enchanted egg tagging quietly behind him helped to lighten his heart. He had never seen a city before and wondered what it would be like. The toad was not very agile, and therefore had much time to think. As he waddled along, a large dog came running toward him. It eyed the plump toad greedily and hoped to make a dinner of him. The toad saw the ravenous creature just in the nick of time. In a panic, the frightened toad bounded into a ditch by the edge of the road, and the egg followed. They both remained there until daybreak. When he awoke, it dawned on him, as he sat covered with mud staring at the suspended object above him, that he could have used it to repel the menace that he had encountered the previous day. It was too late now, and, as the dog was not to be seen, and as the sun was shining brightly, he recommenced his long journey. Suddenly, after many long hours of walking, he saw off in the distance the highest towers of the city. As the toad approached, he was spellbound at its massive size and splendor. He had been travelling for quite some time and was pleased to be there at last. Its imperious walls tapered upward as far as the little toad could see. It made him feel very insignificant indeed. At the wide stone gates two sentries stood at attention. Because of his small stature, the toad slipped through unnoticed. He was amazed at the unfamiliar sight which met him within. He marvelled at the huge castle which loomed up behind the small shops and half-timbered houses of the townspeople. He walked forward so as to obtain a better view of the odd structure which was not blocked by buildings and heads. As he advanced, he had to watch out for garbage which came flying down from the windows along the road and the large awkward feet of the clumsy people. He thought how absolutely dreadful it would be if he were squelched by some unobservant pedestrian and mashed in between cobblestones. He shuddered at the very idea. The toad turned about and gently grasped the egg. Holding it in his hand, he summoned its powers. The toad asked politely, just as the owl had commanded, to be lifted to the magnificent castle. All at once, he ascended into the air and glided forward in the direction of the palace. Along the way, he had a wonderful view of the entire city and the environs beyond. Soon the palace came into sight. Its highest turrets almost seemed to touch the clouds. Protruding from the front of the marble building was
Art Activity: exploring the power of strong colors with ‘Fishing’ by Halima Said Ali, 6
Introduction to This Stone Soup Art Activity Halima’s colorful picture is made in felt pen. It is so completely colored in it looks like painting! But because it is made with felt pen, it is the kind of painting that is easy to do at home or at school. What makes this picture so wonderful to me are the colors. Halima approached the task of coloring her scene with great courage. She said to herself, “I am going to make a bright, strong picture, a colorful picture that makes me think of cool water and the bright hot sun shining on fishermen at the beach.” And then she went ahead and did it! Look at the picture closely, and look at it from a distance. Notice the effect of the bright colors. Look carefully at the black lines—at the faces and fish and nets. One might say that, with colors, Halima tells the story of the bright hotness of the day. And, with lines, she tells another story—the story of the fishermen and the fish they caught that day. Project: Make a Picture That Tells Two Stories Using lines, tell us what some people are doing outdoors on a clear bright hot summer day. Using color, tell the story of the weather, the story of that brightness and hotness that make certain summer days so special. Using pencil, lightly draw the basic shapes of people, some details of their faces and clothes, the buildings, cars, trees, whatever you need to tell the story of what your people are doing. Then, using felt pens, colored pencils, or paint, boldly and courageously transform your sketch into a brightly colored painting. Use color to tell the story of heat and brightness. You may discover that in some cases the “right” color to use is not the real color that you seem to see with your eyes. For instance, let’s say the day is very hot and the sky very blue. What color sky will best give the idea of a hot day? It might be blue, but it might also be red, orange, or some other “hot” color. So, in choosing your colors, be brave, and experiment! Go with all your senses! Follow Halima’s example and make your picture exciting as a carnival! From the May/June 1986 Issue of Stone Soup Fishing, by Halima Said Ali, age 6, Oman
Art Activity: Capturing activity in image with ‘Collecting Wild Hares’
Introduction to this Stone Soup Art Activity Hares are a bit like rabbits, and this picture from Hungary by Katalin Kiss, 13, shows a group of people hunting hares for food. Look carefully at the picture. There is a lot going on! There are thirteen people, nine hares, four houses, four trees, bells, bags, sticks, a fence, clouds, and there is even a well. This picture is in one color only, but look at all the detail in the men’s clothing. Some men wear hats, some don’t. There are a couple of styles of trousers, of boots, shoes, shirts. What is most amazing to me about this picture is the way each figure is posed. Everyone, including the dogs, is doing something. The characters are frozen in time, in the midst of moving, as we might see them in a snapshot. Project: Capturing an Active Moment Like Katalin, make a drawing in one color. Katalin’s picture is a linoleum print or lino cut, but you will probably use pencil or pen. For a subject, choose something where lots of people (at least six) are doing something active. Following Katalin’s example, capture the movements of each person in the scene at the moment you freeze the action. Examples of subjects you might choose where you could “catch” a number of people in interesting positions are in sports, people working together building or repairing something, a family working or playing together, chefs in a kitchen cooking, all the different activities in a railway station or airport, or people buying groceries in a supermarket. In this last example you could show someone leaning over a shopping basket dropping something in, a couple of people walking down an aisle, a child reaching out to touch something on a shelf, and a worker unpacking boxes of cereal. The more people you can show making different gestures, the more interesting your picture will be. Whatever subject you choose for your picture, follow Katalin’s example and use the entire paper for your scene—from the top of the paper to the bottom. From the March/April 1986 Issue of Stone Soup Capturing Wild Hares, by Katalin Kiss, 13, Hungary
Art Activity: Depict being in the center of the game with ‘Soccer Game,’ by Brett Penman, 10
Introduction to this Stone Soup Art Activity This picture is from New Zealand. Brett Penman, age 10, shows us what it feels like to play soccer when the ball is moving fast and both teams are on the run. To get across the tension, speed, and emotional feelings of being on the field playing a hard game, Brett depicts the players as big, bold, and wild. The boldness of the picture matches the boldness of the game. Project: An Exciting Moment Most pictures of sports show athletes from the point of view of the spectators—the people standing outside watching. For a change, make a picture, like this soccer picture, that shows what it feels like to be involved in an athletic activity at an exciting and challenging moment. In baseball, this moment might be when you jump up to catch a fly ball; in jumprope you are doing doubles and the count is 85; in hopscotch you are on one foot reaching for a rock that is almost too far away and you are doing everything you can to keep your balance. When making your picture, make strong shapes, show bodies stretched and distorted in unusual ways. Don’t be afraid to show the world upside down from the point of view of a person who has fallen down and is winded or from the viewpoint of a person turning cartwheels. Make your picture as exciting as the sports event you are depicting. From the September/October 1985 issue of Stone Soup Soccer game, by Brett Penman, 10, New Zealand
Art Activity: Making pictures of your community, with ‘Local Houses’, by Khaled Abdulaziz Ateeg, 12
Introduction to this Stone Soup Art Activity This city in Yemen, Saana, is similar in architecture with the painting, below, of a town in Saudi Arabia. This photograph is of Sanaa, the capital of Yemen. The buildings are made of brick or mud brick with white decorations made of white paint. This architecture is similar to that depicted in the painting of Al Aflaj, Saudi Arabia made by Khaled Abdulaziz Ateeg, 12. Khaled’s painting was made in the 1970s. Judging by images that I find online I think that this is not what the Al Aflaj looks like today. In the painting, the town is still a city of traditional buildings. They will have been smaller than the ones you see in the photograph of Sanaa. And they will have been of adobe–of mud bricks. What is remarkable about Khaled’s painting is that the architectural style is clear–and at the same time he has had the courage of an artist to present the town as richly colored. Realistic. But also imaginative. Project: Make pictures of the part of town where you live, and pictures of the part of town where you shop. Include in each drawing the important details that make your community recognizably unique. Some of these details are the different shapes of the buildings, the spaces between the buildings, and the patterns the windows make. Also important might be the type and placement of trees and gardens, telephone poles, street signs, advertisements, traffic lights, street lamps and parked cars. Notice in the drawing of Al Aflaj the distinct shape of the minaret tower. If your town has a church or other distinctively shaped building or landmark you might want to include it in your drawing. You don’t have to finish your work in one day. In fact, you probably can’t. So take your time to make a picture you can be very proud of. Like Khaled, allow yourself to be free of the constraints of your community’s real colors. Saudi Arabia is a very hot place. If Aflaj had painted the buildings their authentic brown color the image would have looked drab. What the color achieves is giving the place a sense of brightness–and a desert town is bright even if it is brown. The colors also make the town look welcoming which a brown town might not have seemed. In other words, Khaled used color that wasn’t really there to convey impressions and feelings that he felt looking at his town. As you think of your own town, think of how you might change how it actually looks to get at a deeper feeling about how it looks or feels to you, that is then conveyed to the people looking at your picture. From the January/February 1985 issue of Stone Soup Local Houses, by Khaled Abdulaziz Ateeg, 12, Saudi Arabia
