kerstin klein & kerstin klein

when i conceived of the portrait party scavenger hunt, i included "an enemy" as a way to draw the contest out and/or get some good stories about friends who used to be enemies or enemies who made friends for the sake of the contest. i'm surprised that i didn't predict kerstin's solution to the challenge: she counts herself as her own worst enemy. so, she swapped portraits (above and below) with herself.

i understand the whole evil twin thing. so, i'm counting it.

kerstin klein & siblings

can siblings count as friends or peers? because kerstin klein (portrayed below by her sister, tamara; her brother, hans; and her brother, alexander respectively) convinced her three siblings to help her with the scavenger hunt.

and here (below) are kerstin's portraits of tamara, hans, and alexander.

(i have to say that i love how kerstin's portraits have progressed over the year. these are fantastic.)

kerstin klein & rita klein

kerstin (portrayed above) had a hard time pinning her mom down for a portrait. like my mom, mrs. klein was busy taking pictures or taking care of things. nonetheless, kerstin used a giant marker to do this two minute drawing of her mom (below).

aaliyah klein & kerstin klein

kerstin's daughter, aaliyah (portrayed above just out of the bathtub), usually draws her mom as a fairy or a queen (below).

for the portrait party, kerstin also asked if ~ just this once ~ aaliyah would draw her without the wings or crown. she did!

kerstin klein & benjamin stein

because december was so hectic and her family was all sick, kerstin (portrayed above) didn't want to compete in the portrait party scavenger hunt. in the past few days though, she found time to draw some of her family. here is her portrait of benjamin (below), her husband.

until 2008...

the portrait party is going on vacation until the new year. we'll be back on january 1st with LOTS of new swaps and the results from the portrait party scavenger hunt. please continue to send your submissions to the contest (and any other swaps you've drawn). i will add them to the site when i get back and, as long as i get them before the new year, they will count towards the scavenger hunt. right now, jennifer lee has a slight lead over julie oakley but you can catch up with them; the holidays are a great time for drawing your family and friends.

mrs. rama hughes & mrs. steven weissman

steven weissman surprised christine and me with this portrait (above) of her defeating my favorite superhero: spider-man. i was excited to return the favor. below is my portrait of his wife, charissa, as one of his comic book creations: kid medusa.

to see another yikes! drawing i did (of li'l steven as cow-boy), click here.

christopher diaz & steven weissman

chris (portrayed as a youngun' above) and steven (portrayed on film below) left it up to me: will photography be welcome at the portrait party? i feel like i'm walking a slippery slope when i say "i guess so?" we'll see. but if you crash the place, i'm callin' the cops.

amy garlick & ansley

amy (portrayed above) intimidated ansley (below) with her doe eyes and artistic talent. they met in 1991 but you can read the details below!

tracy wilkinson & jon huck

thanks to portrait swaps with tracy (portrayed above) and many others, jon (below) is learning that he has a very long head and he really enjoys drawings. i'm so glad to hear it, jon!

jennifer m. lee & richard osaka

this portrait swap between jennifer (portrayed above) and her illustration teacher, richard (below), is my favorite of the scavenger hunt so far. it says a lot about jennifer and about her teacher that they respect each other enough to trade drawings.

mister osaka even threw in an extra portrait of jennifer (below).

jennifer m. lee & alexis

alexis (portrayed above) drew jennifer (below) a couple of years ago. jennifer returned the favor just in time to count alexis as the child in her portrait party scavenger hunt. any excuse is a good one in my opinion!

jennifer m. lee & dad

jennifer (portrayed above) also managed to convince her dad (below) to draw her. (her parents look like a literary couple.)

jennifer m. lee & mom

jennifer (portrayed above) just completed a bunch of portraits for the scavenger hunt. the first was with her hero, her mom (below).

julie oakley & shulay

while she was away for the weekend, julie (portrayed above) checked another portrait swap off of her scavenger hunt list. she and shulay (portrayed below) did each other the favor of a ground rule: neither artist would worry about flattering her subject.

madking & witness

portrait party in spaaaaaaaace! madking (portrayed above) and witness (below) take us there.

julie oakley & robin oakley

julie (portrayed above) may be unintentionally winning the current portrait party contest. she already convinced a child to draw her. her significant other, robin (portrayed below), sends her to the head of the pack with this portrait swap. it's his first attempt at drawing since he was in school.

teri c. & forever young

teri (portrayed above) and forever (below) participate in a weekly art challenge called Monday ArtDay. the challenge this was week was to draw a fellow participant.

thanks to the wasserman for encouraging them to share their drawings here.

julie oakley & xavier oakley

here's a proud moment: julie (portrayed above) convinced her baby boy, xavier (below), to trade portraits with her.

ryan white & france belleville

ryan (portrayed above) took another shot at his portrait of france (below). you can see his first attempts here.

craig thompson & jen wang

craig and jen crossed pens in portland but it was more of a party than a duel. jen drew craig (above) and craig drew jen drawing him (below).

Scavenger Hunt (A Portrait Party Contest)

the first portrait party contest went so well. i'm excited to offer another one.

i will trade portraits with whoever wins the following portrait party scavenger hunt.

contestants must complete a portrait swap with the following subjects:

a parent
a child
a sibling
a significant other
an old friend
a peer
a teacher
a hero
a stranger
an enemy

here are the details:

1. a portrait swap means that the contestant draws a subject and the subject draws the contestant. swaps won't be counted until BOTH portraits are submitted to the site. click here to share your portraits.

2. to be counted towards the scavenger hunt, be sure to include a sentence or two that explains who the subject is: a parent, a child, a sibling, et cetera.

3. i will trade portraits with the first person to complete all ten swaps. to take full advantage of the upcoming holidays, the deadline for this contest will be January 1, 2008. if no one completes all ten swaps, i will trade portraits with the person who collects the most swaps before the deadline.

4. when the winner is announced, i will contact you about trading portraits. when our swap is complete, i will frame my portrait of you (like this) and mail it to your favorite address.

if you have questions, just let me know.

doug clarke & devon

doug, also known as liquidmethod (portrayed above), and his friend, devon (below), used colored pencils and computer paint for their portrait swap. i like the fact that both mediums capture personality and likeness so well. it argues the point that art is more about how we see than how we draw.

christine castro & rama hughes

christine (portrayed above) got this hat a few weeks ago. ever since she put it on, i've been aching to draw her in it. when we finally had the time this weekend, she returned the favor. i can't help but laugh when i look at her portrait of me. in my hat (below).