Art Journal Idea: Animal Totems

Choose an Animal Totem

To do this two page spread, you can copy the dictionary definition on to your art journal page. For the main imagery, think about an animal that best represents your word. You do not have to be a great illustrator, as you can probably trace a clip art of your animal. I chose an elephant since she  represents determination which is a popular synonym for “purpose.”

Relate the Collage to your Animal Totem

For the background, I used magazine pages. I tend to favor Somerset Studio as it has some of the best and largest photographs of mixed media art. For this spread, I used an article on circus themed art. Obviously, this correlates to my animal totem. You can choose magazines that correlate with your word, but it is not essential as it forms a very subtle texture layer.

Journaling as Meditation

Usually, I use paint pens to fill the negative spaces. If you don;t have one or if yours are dried up like mine were then you can use a ball point pen. I didn’t mind how long it took me to hatch in the background since I use art journaling as a form of meditation. Why do you like to art journal?

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