Van Gogh chimes in:
“Great things are done by a series of small things brought together.”
Can’t make it to the art museum? Well, create your own museum, outdoors, better yet!
And all you need is space, inexpensive sidewalk chalk, a box of chalk pastels in a lovely range of colors…and a bunch of friends.
What’s great about this project is that you get to own an original installation of art until you decide to have the artists close the exhibition with a few squirts of the hose!
Step 1
Prepare the surface using inexpensive sidewalk chalk. We used white because Van Gogh’s sunflowers are bright.

Step 2
Draw what you see. This is a terrific opportunity to practice observation skills.

Step 3
Color in the negative space (the background). Begin with colors slightly darker than the painting you are copying. This will add depth to the finished work.

Step 4
Begin to fill in the details. As you do, be sure to experiment with colors. Don’t use a single color. Use a range of analogous colors (colors that are neighbors on a color wheel to simulate the rich layering that a painter such as Van Gogh might use.
Step 5
Layer and layer until your composition is complete.

—Kim