Inspiration

I searched for “joy and animals” and linked to the National Geography Kids slideshow of animals with happy expressions. This group of camels looks to me like the one on the letter left is telling a joke and the other two are laughing. It made me smile.

https://kids.nationalgeographic.com/explore/moment-of-galleries/moment-of-joy-2/?cmpid=org=ngp::mc=social::src=twitter::cmp=editorial::add=twkids20200804-smile&sf236524112=1#/MOJoy_Camels.jpg

I assumed that camels would not be an endangered species since domesticated camels are used as pack animals. Not true, however. There are several species of camels that are endangered.

Camels have evolved with several qualities that make them very good at surviving dry conditions.

Creation

This was a fairly simple project. The camels’ bodies are simple shapes. Mixing brown and yellow to make tan provided some variety in color and gave me some practice mixing. I painted background and bodies first and was a bit anxious about whether I could capture the expressions. I’m pretty satisfied with the results.

Insights

• after two months of brown and gold, I ready to use other colors.
• Feel the anxiety and then work patiently and look carefully.
• I researched the facts about camels and water while I was writing, but perhaps knowing that camels are desert dwellers influenced my choice of metaphors.
• I wish I had painted the sky in a more intense blue so the contrast between tan and blue was more evident.
• Humor, laughter, and joy are found most easily when we are in group.