3.19 The Art Badge
The Art Badge truly feels a long way from The Drawing Badge. This episode has layers of detail and individuality is expressed by all of the characters.
Badge Design
A portrait shape with art materials.
Episode Summary
Opening Squirrel
Betty playing in her homemade rocket.
Start
Duggee and the Squirrels are outside. Tag and Norrie are making a daisy chain, Betty is reading, Duggee is reading the newspaper, Roly is writing and Happy is blowing bubbles for Worm.
Set-Up
Tino the artistic mouse arrives with some artistic friends. They are putting up a sign for an art show. Tino is inviting everyone to enter. He is looking for art with passion, that speaks to him and comes from the heart. The Squirrels want to make some art for the show. They struggle for inspiration but luckily Duggee has his Art Badge.
Story
Inspiration can come from many places. Perhaps from the materials you use such as:
- A fine pencil drawing of Betty.
- A painting of Happy.
- A print of Tag.
- A chalk drawing of Roly.
- A collage of Norrie.
You can also find inspiration by looking around you. Norrie looks out the window and finds inspiration in nature. She produces a collage, covering Duggee in snips of paper and glue as she does.
Duggee suggests they might be inspired by their passions:
- Hatsu is inspired by her passion for teapots which she paints in blue and white. Blue and white pottery has been popular throughout the ages because the blue pigment is able to withstand the high temperatures of the firing process better than other colours.
- The rabbits are inspired by carrots. Their work is reminiscent of Damien Hirst‘s pickled animals.
- Naughty Monkey is inspired by bananas. He has dressed as Andy Warhol to present his pop art print.
Roly finds a rock and paints it to look like a potato. He is passionate about potatoes. Duggee gets covered in brown paint.
The other Squirrels still need inspiration so Duggee suggests they look closer to home.
- Ethel follows her knows to come up with a Banksy.
- The artistic bear makes art out of balloons.
- Hennie uses her body to make art.
Betty is inspired and recreates Botticelli‘s The Birth of Venus using her whole body and a few farm animals. Duggee is covered in more paint and feathers.
Inspiration can come from looking at yourself, someone else or something else.
- Chicken gains inspiration from looking at herself, like Frida Kahlo. Kahlo is better known for painting self-portraits but Chicken takes a photograph of herself.
- Mr Crab is inspired by his husband Nigel. Their Greek sand sculpture is influenced by the work of Sudarsan Pattnaik.
- The penguins are inspired by ice to make a giant ice sculpture.
Tag is suddenly inspired to paint an impressive Droste effect painting. Duggee is covered in more debris.
Happy is still stuck but Duggee has more suggestions.
- King Tiger’s painting is realistic. It is a copy of Leonardi da Vinci‘s Mona Lisa.
- Chew Chew’s painting is abstract, possibly a Picasso inspired piece.
- Lord Fingal’s tapestry is neat like the paintings of Piet Mondrian.
- Hyena’s messy painting is in the Jackson Pollack style.
- Colonel Ant’s tiny pencil drawing of an acorn.
- Eugene’s big neon light show.
- The squirrel has taken his inspiration from Edvard Much‘s Scream.
- Frog has recreated Tracey Emin‘s My Bed.
- Someone has also re-made Dali‘s Lobster Telephone.
Happy is inspired to create something from the heart and he hearts water. His painting has similarities to David Hockney‘s A Bigger Splash. His painting splashes Duggee with blue paint.
Duggee has finished too, just in time for the show. Tino is impressed with all the art and congratulates everyone on their talent. Duggee reveals his painting is a self-portrait inspired by Coolidge‘s Dogs Playing Pool. Tino crowns Duggee the winner but not for his painting. Duggee himself is living art created by all of the Squirrels.
Bridges
Duggee art:
- Warhol style print.
- Gustav Klimt‘s Portarit of Adele Bloch-Bauer I.
- Picasso style portrait.
Close and Credits
The Squirrels have earned their Art Badge.
Duggee’s painting comes to life.
Supporting Cast
- Tino
Outfits
Duggee wears his artist’s smock and beret.
Get Your Art Badge
Practice your art using different materials. What inspires you?