Natalie Anne Volpe: My Childhood Art

1995

Me eating a watermelon

1996

1997

1998 - 2000

2001

2002--That's when I started taking art classes with Sabine. She taught me how to use charcoal for the first time, I also learned watercolor, and I had my own personal projects as you will see below.

My first maquette

My first "fusains"

I had this thing about birthdays. Birthdays and Christmas were very important for me. Not so much for me, but as an avenue to give to others. I just derived so much pleasure in giving, and most especially in creating and manufacturing gifts. I had no regards for the time or the effort it would cost me. I just loved creating to make others happy and I loved giving. Below is a cardboard doll house I made for Terry's birthday.

It was then that I became very fond of ferries, so I would draw and copy them all the time.

Sabine also taught me how to draw cartoons. It never became my style, but I super enjoyed learning.

Here is another present I made for Darren, a sword and a shield. I can't remember if it was for Christmas or for his birthday. My mom helped me make that one. You can see how happy it made him. Mission accomplished!

Some more charcoals...

Attempted perspective...

Some still lives...

Cats...

...and more cats!

Some watercolors...

Portrait

Perspective

Snowman

Home made card for mother's day

Little girl made with cloth

I also started doing lots of "copy" work

Sea shell design, on Durban beach with Lisa

2003--I started to get quite prolific I must say. I continued learning different techniques with Sabine, but my mom also was teaching me and doing arts and crafts with me in my free time. My darling grand-parents bought me an assortment of sanguine, mine comté, pastels, pencils, so I could really go to town with it. And I also got into building 3D models, most of the time as presents for my friends, but it was so much fun making them. So many ideas would pop into my mind, I couldn't help myself and just had to create.

Sanguine

Mine comté

Auto-portrait

Thank you card I drew for the theatre who gave us free tickets to see "Lac des cygnes"

Watercolor

Christmas angel--pastel and gouache

Doll house back side

doll house dwellers (see the cat?)

stairs to doll house

Another doll house

Fairy heaven

Flower fairies

Sea at Hibberdene

Fusain and pencil

Birthday card for my grandpa

Painting on cloth (Pillow case)

Sea shells composition

Silk painting

Pastel

Me and my doll house

Pencil

Fusain

Pencil

Indian village

My first attempt at digital art--creation of a 4 page Christmas card --my favorite subject!

2004--I got to learn how to do flower arrangement!

Birthday card for Amber

Final product!

Sketches of my friend Natalie at ballet class

The big five--sanguine and pastels

Cloudy Valentine

Pastel

Football bear for a football fan's birthday

Another pillow-case--cloth painting

When Amber and Andy got married, I made the bride and groom out of pipe cleaners, for their wedding cake decoration.

Now here's my horses series

Another pillow case

Watercolor

Birthday card for my sister Stephy

Knit bear (beginning of a new passion)

Here's the beginning of another new passion (mmmh am I too passionate?): costume design. My friends and I were putting up a play and I took on the job of designing the costumes. Here's Julie's dress.

My niece Petra

Christmas 2004: My stained-glass window Event Calendar.

2005--That was my "Lord of the Rings" period, and when I started to develop a fascination for calligraphy.

Calligraphy--"Lord's Prayer" in Elf language

Ink

Pastel

Mine de plomb

Pastel

My first oil paintings... My mom had become my official art teacher by then (that must have been after Sabine Rich got a promotion and moved to another country), and she taught my whole class how to oil paint. So fun!