Emoji Art Offers Opportunity For Friendships

Kids wrap up their emoji project and wait for the paint to dry. Photos by Sarah Brown

Jen Castaneda wants children to make connections through friendly faces, and one creative way to assist in that endeavor was through a craft project she hosted at the Sweet Home Public Library.

On Wednesday, July 31, Castaneda invited kids of all ages to paint an emoji expression, be it an established icon found online or a personalized one made up by the artist themselves.

Lorelei Renoud, 6, paints teeth onto her happy emoji face.

“Basically we’re just getting together to paint something that’s kind of a common theme, such as emojis,” Castaneda said. “Most people really do identify with emojis. They get to share their fun and their time with their friends, and meet new people. It’s a great way to just do an ice-breaker before school starts.”

Watching her granddaughter go through school, Castaneda realized many kids don’t know each other when they reach junior high and there is a lot of bullying. She decided she could help by creating opportunities for kids to meet new people before the first day of school so they can see a familiar face when that day arrives.

Jen Castaneda and Freya Lacey, 7, search through emoji stickers while Anni Lacey, 9, in the foreground, paints a straight face.

Castaneda, who said she’s been working with youth for 24 years, operates Rabbit Hole Arts out of her home offering free paint parties and selling designs. She dreams of running a studio as free art space for teens some day.

“My major goal is to help prevent teenage bullying, suicide, adult bullying, all that, and just the goal of bringing kids together without necessarily that message,” she said.

Through gathering together and creating paint projects, such as emoji faces, Castaneda sees a window for conversation to happen.

“A lot of times, emotions are hard to talk about,” she said. “If you put the emotion part out on the table for them, you’ll see that they will do it themselves and you can kind of just listen, and you can encourage and foster with everybody else those types of connections.”

Just making a safe space to talk about anything makes a difference, she added.

Phoenix Martinez, 4, smiles next to his painted smiley face emoji.

“And we don’t let people dim lights here, because the only way our light’s gonna shine is if you let someone else shine too.”

While the ultimate purpose for her craft event may seem weighty, the path there was just a small, fun step forward. Children painted smiley faces, straight faces, and some had crazy faces.

When asked about the polka dots on his original emoji, Maximus Dodson, 5, said they indicate a feeling of “exciting, because the birthday. This is just little confettis.”

Alexis (8) and Maximus (5) Dodson select different tools and paints to complete their project.

Next to him, his sister, Alexis Dodson, 8, also created an original emoji face, which she decided to agree with an adult that it was the “before coffee” face. She said she’s had coffee herself, to which Maximus chimed in, “Coffee’s disgusting.”

Anni Lacey, 9, created a “stare look” face.

“It’s where you look someone straight in the eye when you look at someone doing stupid stuff,” she said.

But it’s the little things, like emoji faces, that open opportunities for discussion.

“We need to try and find little in-roads to help make connections where connections may not ever be made,” she said. “That is putting them together in something common that they tend to like, and you go from there. When they show up at school that first week, they may not know a whole lot of people, but they may see someone from an art class or from an event; it’s just a little nice to have somebody.”

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