Woody and Christmas Tree

In continuation with growing as an expressive artist, I painted some simple paintings of moments that stood out to me recently. These are 30min-1hr paintings so nothing visually impressive but more an exercise of expression :)

I watched Toy Story 3 again and there is a scene at the end where  Andy is getting ready to leave for college and is donating his toys to a little girl. He explains thoughtfully to her to take good care of him and says "The best thing about Woody is that he never gives up on you." The trust and faith that Woody had in Andy was something I really liked in the movie so I decided to paint that scene where Andy looks down at Woody thoughtfully before handing Woody over to the little girl. :)

I have a client (I work with children with autism) who doesn't like Christmas. Things that come to life, Santa Clause, Christmas tree, nutcrackers...anything that has to do with Christmas triggers a fear reaction in him. When Christmas season rolls around, his stress level goes up and his fears affect his everyday life. Shopping in stores become difficult. He doesn't want to walk through the front door because there's a tree in the living room. In order to help him keep Christmas from affecting his everyday activities and also in hopes that one day he might actually find enjoyment during the holiday season, we have been working over the last several years for him to learn to tolerate Christmas related things. In one session, we played games where we took turns putting ornaments on a tree. It was hard for him but he did it! I painted this after going to that session. Each of the colors in the background represent someone who was helping with the process- the mom, dad, and behavioral interventionist. He has made lots of progress over the years and it is a commemoration of his successes, growth, perseverance and love from his family and staff as well as a reminder of the struggles in their everyday lives.