Seeing colorful sidewalk chalk art shared on our social media feeds has been a consistent bright spot of quarantine. A second grade elementary school teacher and mom from Saint Cloud, Florida has taken chalk art to a whole new level with drawings inspired by beloved children’s books along with our nation’s gratitude for first responders and essential workers.
Katrina Maassen was inspired by the chalk art she saw on Pinterest and Instagram when she decided to share her own works based on popular children’s books. The drawings place Maassen’s 4-year-old daughter in the midst of a scene in the book. She chose stories based on favorites like Llama Llama I Love You, The Kissing Hand and others she reads with her daughter and elementary school class.
Maassen with daughter Londyn / all images courtesy of Katrina Maassen
“I’ve always liked children’s literature because it inspires children and helps them navigate through issues and their own feelings,” Maassen told New Jersey Family. “I love stories with an underdog who comes out on top and other characters change for the better.”
After creating two weeks’ worth of book art, Maassen went on to draw pictures to honor first responders and essential workers. She has also drawn Doc McStuffins, Trolls and more. Each drawing takes her anywhere from 45 minutes to 1½ hours. She says it’s been wonderful to have something positive to focus on during this difficult time.
“There has been such a positive response that I have wanted to keep going because so many have told me the joy it brings them in the morning seeing them,” said Maassen, who chalks the art on her U-shaped driveway and shares the pictures on Facebook and Instagram. “I’m just happy that it brings smiles to people’s faces.”
Here are some of her amazing works of art:
A thank you to firefighters
A thank you to postal workers
A thank you to police officers
A tribute to Where the Wild Things Are
Llama Llama I Love You
Chrysanthemum
The Paper Bag Princess
The Rainbow Fish
Stand Tall, Molly Lou Melon
The Kissing Hand
Trolls
Doc McStuffins
Londyn as a fairy admiring the flowers
This is one of Maassen’s first works of chalk art. “Londyn was probably the most excited doing this one and she definitely played the role in this.”
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