Chalk Art: Drawing from Nature, History, and Science

​When I was in grade school, my teachers taught us language arts, math, and history from blackboards. Lots of writing and chalk dust. Rarely was there any drawing, or use of any color other than white. But I actually look fondly back at those times - it was part of my childhood. 

When I became a teacher and I had my own blackboards to use, I remember being deeply and humbly moved, knowing I was in the company of those wonderful souls who were my mentors and role models. However, having trained as a Waldorf teacher, I regarded the chalk as more than a form of communicating verb tenses and long division, it was a medium for creating art.

These large scale drawings were created during my time as a teacher, finding inspiration from the curriculum with my students. I drew from nature, history, and science - beauty and art were present everywhere.  Most of my drawings were over four feet by six feet, created from between three hours (like the Cupcake drawing) and twelve hours (as with the Last Supper drawing). Thank you for visiting!

​Rick Tan

get my 2017 calendar of chalk drawings