of 2011, and I can't honestly say that I'll miss this year. Usually I have a "year in review" wrap-up post with blogs, but let's use this as a placeholder for now. Cause honestly, even though I really would love to sit and pound out my views of 2011, I have to shower, run errands which include the dreaded DMV where I'll FINALLY update my driver's license to reflect the married name.
Why go today when it has taken me over a year? Cause I hate the DMV, dur, but it has to be today since I start a brand-spanken' new job first thing 2012! No, don't need it For the job, but my time to go to the dreaded DMV is closing to an end.
So, yeah, placeholder til I have a moment to dedicate to one of the best commisions of 2011 and the year in review posts.
Friday, December 30, 2011
Monday, December 12, 2011
Christmas Crafts
I stumbled upon a cute idea on how to upcycled those wonderful holiday cards last year so I carefully saved the cutest/most sentimental in order to make one this year. It's a simply theory:
Gather your tools. Preferably an exacto (or sharp scissors) a pencil (to trace out possible designs on the interior as guides) glue stick, ruler, cutting mat, hole punch, ribbon and coffee (optional)
Take your old cards, cut the front off or a cute holiday themed shape from the design, punch a hole and then viola! Banner.
Takes waayy more time than that, and you should probably take the time to organize the cards and think of what designs/shapes/covers will be next to each other.
I measured a length of ribbon to about 10', just to keep the banner manageable, and estimated to tie the cut cards about every 10". Mine happened to come together from sheer coincidence, but I did end up with 5 extras that didn't fit at all. For now they sit in my tree.
A 10' length drapes nicely when pinned midway, or you can pin a VERY long ribbon every 5'....though folding/storing the banner may prove messy and create knots.
And, of course, for the current cards I simply pin them to a length of ribbon that frames the hall entrance for our enjoyment.
And now I leave you with a very rough, very quickly whipped together holiday greeting in order to work on this year's actual holiday greeting.
Gather your tools. Preferably an exacto (or sharp scissors) a pencil (to trace out possible designs on the interior as guides) glue stick, ruler, cutting mat, hole punch, ribbon and coffee (optional)
Take your old cards, cut the front off or a cute holiday themed shape from the design, punch a hole and then viola! Banner.
Takes waayy more time than that, and you should probably take the time to organize the cards and think of what designs/shapes/covers will be next to each other.
I measured a length of ribbon to about 10', just to keep the banner manageable, and estimated to tie the cut cards about every 10". Mine happened to come together from sheer coincidence, but I did end up with 5 extras that didn't fit at all. For now they sit in my tree.
A 10' length drapes nicely when pinned midway, or you can pin a VERY long ribbon every 5'....though folding/storing the banner may prove messy and create knots.
And, of course, for the current cards I simply pin them to a length of ribbon that frames the hall entrance for our enjoyment.
And now I leave you with a very rough, very quickly whipped together holiday greeting in order to work on this year's actual holiday greeting.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Breaking Boundaries
A Great Close Friend, aka "Brother" even though we share no blood, once told me that in order to make "art" you have to break boundaries. It's not enough to make a pretty picture or something creepy or something pretty in order to really rip into the viewer and unveil the ugly truth of emotion and life. He even says the word "art" in quotes to seperate it from the highly skilled creatives he knows who do make livings from their illustrations, their tattoo skills, their paintings and such. He means fine art. The art that is supposed to bring a subject to the harsh revealing light of scientific disection to reveal the base motivation and emotion.
Break boundaries.
So I thought. And remembered. And sketched. And, of course, had another beer, because most of our mad conversations revolve around strong black coffee or cheap beer (mainly because we are a poor folk of writers and artists....)
I thought about all the random stuff I've been collecting through the years. The broken white plastic horse that either belonged to a little cowboy or little girl's carosel. Of the tiny doll hands, which I'm still not sure where they came from. Of the little tins, screws, nails, broken bits of jewelry. The preserved insects and bones that I've collected from railroad ditches. The pretty eggshells from my friend's mother's farm-raised chicken eggs.
And my creative brain gestated.
At some point, the brain started birthing little images; little solutions for all the random things in my collections which might break the boundary of the third dimension to illustrate some memories held a little too close. Some could fall back on the story of "illustrating old sayings" if I felt too closed to explain my real motivations. You see, the main reason I embrace commercial art more readily is because I don't like defending and explaining myself. I got pretty sick of it between the ages of 11-21. Hard freakin' 10 years, if I don't say so myself. Towards the end of that period I essentially gave up trying to explain myself in words and turned toward actions or radio silence. If I was interrupted in a conversation, if I was mocked, if I was over-shadowed, I just closed up and closed off the communications. There were few people that recieved the full treatment, but even they would sometimes instill a silence.
Jump ahead 5-6 years; I'm explaining how I feel and why...and people are accepting it. I'm explaining my plans, with trouble, but sometimes my point is getting across. I grow a little bolder in announcing myself to the world.
Jump to my brother's unspoken dare to break boundaries and you're met with "Walking on Eggshells,"
the first installation of the series but not the first in the chronological sense of memory. I actually have two pages of rough sketches that I return to and flesh out in order of material availabilty and time.
Tonight I wrapped up the next installation which would actually fall a little further down the timeline "Unspoken, Flayed Open, but Unbroken"
I started this piece a little late due to another commission, but even so, I also mis-calculated the amount of time it would take to build a ribcage from paper. It took twice the time to just glue things, nevermind sculpting the shoulders/head from polymer clay and to securely fasten it all to the backing of purple velvet fabric, a remenant from a skirt I made an eon ago. Everything in this piece (minus the frame...but since it's a little beat-up you can stretch the imagination there, too.) Everything means something, no matter how cliche it is for someone in long black skirt to use. Below is the summation I sent to my Brother, after we had an artists' argument about the usage of pages from 1984.
"1984 exemplifies the bindings and restrictions I felt for a very long time. During this time I was also drilled, tortured and questioned about every action, reaction and response I had with life. I felt the Eye of Big Brother every day under two prominent men for a majority of my developmental phases. It's taken less time to regrow my skin, but the scars of such flaying, the social quirks and the lock on my heart still remain to this day.
Like a moth to the flame, I never strayed, always circling and getting singed. Until the flame was extinguished.
Once that wind came, I flew away as quickly as my wings could take me."
I don't share this in the hunt for pity, as you don't know the full details of what went on. I don't share this to make those parties who ARE privey to the details feel guilty, or sadness, or anything negative. I share this information, this inspration, because I kindof made the decision to share my words along with my images.
Yes, I thrive with commercial illustration and design. But I also embrace words and the more abstract meanings that fine art lends itself to.
I didn't have an easy time executing this piece. The elements came together just fine. The idea, the sketch, the feather and moth, the key and ribbon. But the figure, the doll which represents myself, was difficult. That's why it was pretty awesome when I picked up a scrap of 1984 to sign my name and date and realized the words printed on it were "...and with some difficulty, ..."
Yes, with some difficulty I persue this action of exposing my innermost feelings, memeories, growth and thoughts.
But, here they are.
I hope you enjoy them. And I hope you're able to come to Marathon Village, 1305 Clinton Street, this Friday, December 9, 2011 and see what my little crappy phone camera hasn't captured. The event is free, the booze, wine and refreshments are free, and the other 70+ artists hanging alongside are so remarkable that even if you hate mine, you'll find something to love.
Break boundaries.
So I thought. And remembered. And sketched. And, of course, had another beer, because most of our mad conversations revolve around strong black coffee or cheap beer (mainly because we are a poor folk of writers and artists....)
I thought about all the random stuff I've been collecting through the years. The broken white plastic horse that either belonged to a little cowboy or little girl's carosel. Of the tiny doll hands, which I'm still not sure where they came from. Of the little tins, screws, nails, broken bits of jewelry. The preserved insects and bones that I've collected from railroad ditches. The pretty eggshells from my friend's mother's farm-raised chicken eggs.
And my creative brain gestated.
At some point, the brain started birthing little images; little solutions for all the random things in my collections which might break the boundary of the third dimension to illustrate some memories held a little too close. Some could fall back on the story of "illustrating old sayings" if I felt too closed to explain my real motivations. You see, the main reason I embrace commercial art more readily is because I don't like defending and explaining myself. I got pretty sick of it between the ages of 11-21. Hard freakin' 10 years, if I don't say so myself. Towards the end of that period I essentially gave up trying to explain myself in words and turned toward actions or radio silence. If I was interrupted in a conversation, if I was mocked, if I was over-shadowed, I just closed up and closed off the communications. There were few people that recieved the full treatment, but even they would sometimes instill a silence.
Jump ahead 5-6 years; I'm explaining how I feel and why...and people are accepting it. I'm explaining my plans, with trouble, but sometimes my point is getting across. I grow a little bolder in announcing myself to the world.
Jump to my brother's unspoken dare to break boundaries and you're met with "Walking on Eggshells,"
the first installation of the series but not the first in the chronological sense of memory. I actually have two pages of rough sketches that I return to and flesh out in order of material availabilty and time.
Tonight I wrapped up the next installation which would actually fall a little further down the timeline "Unspoken, Flayed Open, but Unbroken"
I started this piece a little late due to another commission, but even so, I also mis-calculated the amount of time it would take to build a ribcage from paper. It took twice the time to just glue things, nevermind sculpting the shoulders/head from polymer clay and to securely fasten it all to the backing of purple velvet fabric, a remenant from a skirt I made an eon ago. Everything in this piece (minus the frame...but since it's a little beat-up you can stretch the imagination there, too.) Everything means something, no matter how cliche it is for someone in long black skirt to use. Below is the summation I sent to my Brother, after we had an artists' argument about the usage of pages from 1984.
"1984 exemplifies the bindings and restrictions I felt for a very long time. During this time I was also drilled, tortured and questioned about every action, reaction and response I had with life. I felt the Eye of Big Brother every day under two prominent men for a majority of my developmental phases. It's taken less time to regrow my skin, but the scars of such flaying, the social quirks and the lock on my heart still remain to this day.
Like a moth to the flame, I never strayed, always circling and getting singed. Until the flame was extinguished.
Once that wind came, I flew away as quickly as my wings could take me."
I don't share this in the hunt for pity, as you don't know the full details of what went on. I don't share this to make those parties who ARE privey to the details feel guilty, or sadness, or anything negative. I share this information, this inspration, because I kindof made the decision to share my words along with my images.
Yes, I thrive with commercial illustration and design. But I also embrace words and the more abstract meanings that fine art lends itself to.
I didn't have an easy time executing this piece. The elements came together just fine. The idea, the sketch, the feather and moth, the key and ribbon. But the figure, the doll which represents myself, was difficult. That's why it was pretty awesome when I picked up a scrap of 1984 to sign my name and date and realized the words printed on it were "...and with some difficulty, ..."
Yes, with some difficulty I persue this action of exposing my innermost feelings, memeories, growth and thoughts.
But, here they are.
I hope you enjoy them. And I hope you're able to come to Marathon Village, 1305 Clinton Street, this Friday, December 9, 2011 and see what my little crappy phone camera hasn't captured. The event is free, the booze, wine and refreshments are free, and the other 70+ artists hanging alongside are so remarkable that even if you hate mine, you'll find something to love.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
What do Boxing Turkeys Have to Do with Thanksgiving?
Nothing, really. But imagine where the loser is!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope you're comfortably full and surrounded by people who enrich your lives.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
PewPewPew. Random stuffs=Laser Gun
I should probably be entered into a "Worst Blogger in the World" contest; I'd win hands down. I intended on writing about my Day of the Dead mask and the laser gun for my brother-in-law's Dr Horrible costume last month, but time slipped away silently. Now, we rest on the cusp of Thanksgiving and I'm writing about Halloween garb in between the greeting card illustration I'll be sending out Thursday.
Below is the base toy gun I used for Dr Horrible's laser. I found it for dirt-cheap at Goodwill and the bottom bar of the handle was perfect to re-fab...
it needed to be moved to the back, of course, but that just took a little elbow grease, a hacksaw and a lot of plastic dust.
After digging through my storage closet for a box (ended up being a chocolate box) and the White Drawers of Randomness, which include quater machine bubbles, spools from wire, cigar containers, etc., then decoupaging with a leftover cell phone manual, I was left with this rough looking beauty:
I enjoyed the patterns that the text offered, but Dr Horrible's gun was black and silver, so I pulled out the spray paints and went to work (on the porch, otherwise the cat would've gotten high on fumes.)
Of course, like any nerd, my brother-in-law was SUPER PSYCHED to recieve such epic awesomeness.
And, like any artist would do for a family memeber, I accepted payment in Blue Moon beer.
I decoupaged my own mask using the same cellphone manual, first molding the paper around the the brow and nose from a cheapie little Zorro mask, letting it dry overnight to ensure the shape would hold as I built layers upon Layers upon LAYERS of paper using a model skull to keep the shapes and symetry correct. It took three days between employment, drying glue and making sure I liked the shape. Below are the process photos (featuring the super helpful studio cat, Mr Copper!)and the final product and costume, pictured with my awesome husband as Captain Hammer (Dr Horrible's nemisis.)
Below is the base toy gun I used for Dr Horrible's laser. I found it for dirt-cheap at Goodwill and the bottom bar of the handle was perfect to re-fab...
it needed to be moved to the back, of course, but that just took a little elbow grease, a hacksaw and a lot of plastic dust.After digging through my storage closet for a box (ended up being a chocolate box) and the White Drawers of Randomness, which include quater machine bubbles, spools from wire, cigar containers, etc., then decoupaging with a leftover cell phone manual, I was left with this rough looking beauty:
I enjoyed the patterns that the text offered, but Dr Horrible's gun was black and silver, so I pulled out the spray paints and went to work (on the porch, otherwise the cat would've gotten high on fumes.)
Of course, like any nerd, my brother-in-law was SUPER PSYCHED to recieve such epic awesomeness.
And, like any artist would do for a family memeber, I accepted payment in Blue Moon beer.
I decoupaged my own mask using the same cellphone manual, first molding the paper around the the brow and nose from a cheapie little Zorro mask, letting it dry overnight to ensure the shape would hold as I built layers upon Layers upon LAYERS of paper using a model skull to keep the shapes and symetry correct. It took three days between employment, drying glue and making sure I liked the shape. Below are the process photos (featuring the super helpful studio cat, Mr Copper!)and the final product and costume, pictured with my awesome husband as Captain Hammer (Dr Horrible's nemisis.)
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Take a tour.
Just a mini update between the freelancing and Halloween creating and the general chaos that life seems to offer. Today was lost in the manic re-arranging of the studio, thanks to aquiring a new shelf for the novels and moving around more shelves for the husband's massive trade comic collection. I ended up with about 5 extra feet of space, so I quickly moved in to move crap around and make it disappear.
I forgot to take a "before" photo of the studio, but this was the basic workplace, with the 7 foot black shelve, but with some shelves/storage where the monitor/computer are currently:
I didn't have the wonderful bottom shelf full of my paper stock, the computer tower and scanner hogged that area, and the middle had the monitor and printer. Functional for the space/furniture I had at my disposal, but not the best layout for a smooth workflow.
But now! Now I have "workstations" fleshed out a bit better...well, maybe they're more like "storage stations" but I'm able to reach most of my frequent needs with my awesome little rolling chair. My monitor now sits on a stack of milk crates that serve as storage for the magazines for decoupage items, office-related and research books (like thesarus & spanish dictionary.) A wonderful friend, Red Marie, gave me an acrylic display that now houses my folders, adhesives, varnishes and other items...along with being the base for my Tower of Awesomeness. White drawer with more fun toys (tools that aren't the garage hardware, that's in the kitchen.) with the many tiny drawers that hold the found objects for my Florid Findings and other dimensional projects.
I also have a large brown box housing my matt board drops, a large white drawer holding a TON of random things...very random. You'll find out HOW random in the next post when I show you what I pulled out to make a freeze ray gun. I saved that space to store my finished work, sketches, and random materials. I like that corner now...kinda hated it before today.
The shelf/storage that used to be next to my desk was moved to the far wall, still houses the same materials, but I'm able to keep the books I plan on using in art (not to read, really) on the bottom with my books on various artists in the larger shelf above. Next is the new combined shelving for the novels and Novel Shelf #2 with Mr Smith peeking over the silk and dried flowers.
And then we have the final studio wall with Novel Shelf #1, flanked by storage for spray paint, printer ink, random stuff, my sewing kit, and more random stuff.
Storage is god in this studio. Well, random stuff is god, storage is the church.
Now I can bring my easel in, or spread a million fascinators on the floorspace, or stop accidentally buying supplies for a second or third time cause I lost the can of fixative (though you can't have too much of that stuff.)
Thanks for flicking through my studio! See you with the process photos of the freeze ray gun for my brother in law's Halloween costume and my Day of the Dead mask.
I forgot to take a "before" photo of the studio, but this was the basic workplace, with the 7 foot black shelve, but with some shelves/storage where the monitor/computer are currently:
I didn't have the wonderful bottom shelf full of my paper stock, the computer tower and scanner hogged that area, and the middle had the monitor and printer. Functional for the space/furniture I had at my disposal, but not the best layout for a smooth workflow.
But now! Now I have "workstations" fleshed out a bit better...well, maybe they're more like "storage stations" but I'm able to reach most of my frequent needs with my awesome little rolling chair. My monitor now sits on a stack of milk crates that serve as storage for the magazines for decoupage items, office-related and research books (like thesarus & spanish dictionary.) A wonderful friend, Red Marie, gave me an acrylic display that now houses my folders, adhesives, varnishes and other items...along with being the base for my Tower of Awesomeness. White drawer with more fun toys (tools that aren't the garage hardware, that's in the kitchen.) with the many tiny drawers that hold the found objects for my Florid Findings and other dimensional projects.
I also have a large brown box housing my matt board drops, a large white drawer holding a TON of random things...very random. You'll find out HOW random in the next post when I show you what I pulled out to make a freeze ray gun. I saved that space to store my finished work, sketches, and random materials. I like that corner now...kinda hated it before today.
The shelf/storage that used to be next to my desk was moved to the far wall, still houses the same materials, but I'm able to keep the books I plan on using in art (not to read, really) on the bottom with my books on various artists in the larger shelf above. Next is the new combined shelving for the novels and Novel Shelf #2 with Mr Smith peeking over the silk and dried flowers.
And then we have the final studio wall with Novel Shelf #1, flanked by storage for spray paint, printer ink, random stuff, my sewing kit, and more random stuff.
Storage is god in this studio. Well, random stuff is god, storage is the church.
Now I can bring my easel in, or spread a million fascinators on the floorspace, or stop accidentally buying supplies for a second or third time cause I lost the can of fixative (though you can't have too much of that stuff.)
Thanks for flicking through my studio! See you with the process photos of the freeze ray gun for my brother in law's Halloween costume and my Day of the Dead mask.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Dimensional Memories
Hello to the new followers :waves: It's always neat to watch the number of followers increase, so I hope you enjoy the journey.
The past few weeks have ended up mashing together so quickly that I wasn't able to upload process photos of the dimensional piece I put into the 20th anniversary show for Untitled, so here's the review blog for it.
I was so back-logged with freelance work that I wasn't able to start production until the weekend before the show, when I invaded fellow artist Scott Hoerz's studio to use his woodworking tools to make my shadowbox. I came across a problem trying to find a store-bought shadowbox at least 2" deep to allow room for the eggshells...and I'm poor and couldn't fathom spending $45 at Hobby Lobby for a pre-made. But, Mr. Hoerz graciously did the work of pulling apart my box, measuring and cutting a groove for glass to slide in and protect my work. He also invited me to return next time I need one, since there will be 3-4 more pieces. I watched him so closely that I'm pretty sure I can do it on my own again :) I'd get the tools myself, but between the Dremel and band-saw I'd be laying down more than I have to spare, heh.
But! I had the box, and proceeded to stain it to give the already sealed pine a distressed and aged look while the unsealed wood stained deeply, lending to a wonderfully organic result.
I then cut a sheet of paper to fit the inside for a loose template sketch of the painting, then did a dry fit for the eggshells with the template in place, which gave me a good idea about how large to make the doll.
Making the doll was time-consuming. I wanted to mix of simple form and anatomical detail on certain parts, but making hands and similar in size and slightly anatomical is a true test of that "attention to detail" description on my resume. Shaping her took about half an evening and then maybe another 4 hours to finalize the part shapes and clean her up for baking the next day. The jump rings to attach the parts together were baked into the clay to ensure durablity...and probably took up half the time spent on the doll before baking.
While my oven was preheating I gathered all the paint and other supplies I'd need to distress her, the background painting and the box.
A wonderful friend, Clarissa, works in a framing store and is generous to donate all the "drops" from each matting job. The drops are essentially the center of the matt, perfectly good pieces of board but of no use to the shop. They are Perfect to paint on, so I trimmed out a piece to fit my box and began the background sketch while the doll was in the oven.
While checking the fit of the sketch within the box, I decided that the walls, needed to have more interest, so I started digging in my supplies. I came up with an interesting sand textured gesso that I piled onto the side walls to dry while I painted. It's supposed to dry clear, but the areas where I really piled it on ghosted up a bit and stayed a little tacky. I knew I wanted to add screen on top, so I didn't sweat that too much, but if it would affect your project, I'd suggest many thin coats to add that texture.
I started laying the basic colors in thin layers for the background painting while the doll was cooling off. I didn't want the blue background to be too flat of a shade, even though there would be tree silouhettes to add, so I chunked in three shades of blue and mixed in a little purple, keeping the area near the moon light lend a sort of halo effect.
After she was cool and ready to paint I alternated painting background and doll, frequently checking the colors under my desk lamp which is fitted with a bright white light which promises to not alter colors. My overhead lights are a bit too warm and have hidden color inconsistensies before, and I definitely wanted this to "come out right." I used an alligator clip to hold the doll parts that needed to be painted in a uniformly (the head and torso) and hung the rest on paper clips since color changes between the tips and center would enhance the look I was going for.
After the body was painted and glossed with a crackle effect sheen, I used gunmetal jump rings to put her together for another dry fit in the box. Perfect.
Now, I had a doll who needed a home.
This was the stage to fix painting in place and tack the screen around the edges, making sure to not scratch the board. The tackiness of the sand gesso helped keep the screen in place while lending a dirty visual affect when inspected close. I affixed the shells in place using E6000 (being VERY careful to not press too hard on them) using the photo of the dry run to guide where the larger pieces would go and I added more tiny shell pieces to keep things from looking too sparse. I was very excited to be able to use those shells in something. They were left over from some amazing farm-fresh eggs from my brother-in-law's girlfriend's parents' chickens, and the shells were too interesting to just toss. You could almost say keeping those shells planted the seed of this project.
Getting the wire to the right length to hang the doll, then wiring the parts in the correct position felt awkward, but not difficult, and I learned what to do slightly different for the next piece. I kinda love learning along the way, makes me feel clever.
My favorite part of a project, though, is turning it around to show the complete piece to my husband, who has this awesome reaction face that says "wow, that's really cool. heh, my wife just made a kick-ass piece." Try as he may, and he does try sometimes to make me feel better about difficult ideas, he can't fake that face. And when he doesn't make it I know that the idea/piece/process needs tweaking or trashing. That night, his face told me it was perfect.
Now, the story.
During the Untitled show I recieved so much awesome feedback and personal interpretations from the viewer that I knew I hit the mark of "telling my story while being able to pull out one from the viewer." Some felt terrible for telling such horrible stories after seeing my piece, but I was thankful to them for opening up.
This isn't a totally positive piece, as the doll is obviously being threatened by the rabid, fuming jackal in the background. My abridged story was about how sometimes no matter what you do, how you change or how lightly you walk on eggshells to keep someone happy, you'll always end up breaking some shells and igniting a fight. There is more to it, but I have to hold it a little to the chest since that's the main aspect of the final piece in the series....and it'd be like titling the last Spiderman run "Death of Spiderman." Giving away the plot twist and leaving the climax a little "eh." (i say this without actually reading that run, but husband has and I've listened to iFanboy's review of it...so there's trustworthy nerd-dom behind it.)
Anyway, thanks for hanging in for possibly the longest blog to date. I'll try to make future reviews a bit shorter...but hey, compact writing isn't my forte ^_^
The next installments to this series will be displayed during Cadillac Tramp's "Saratoga's Revenge" show at Phat Bites on August 20th and No Egret's "Let Them Art" in Clarksville on August 27th. I'm going to try to debut the final piece at "Let Them Art" so the entire story can be seen in one spot, and soon.
The past few weeks have ended up mashing together so quickly that I wasn't able to upload process photos of the dimensional piece I put into the 20th anniversary show for Untitled, so here's the review blog for it.
I was so back-logged with freelance work that I wasn't able to start production until the weekend before the show, when I invaded fellow artist Scott Hoerz's studio to use his woodworking tools to make my shadowbox. I came across a problem trying to find a store-bought shadowbox at least 2" deep to allow room for the eggshells...and I'm poor and couldn't fathom spending $45 at Hobby Lobby for a pre-made. But, Mr. Hoerz graciously did the work of pulling apart my box, measuring and cutting a groove for glass to slide in and protect my work. He also invited me to return next time I need one, since there will be 3-4 more pieces. I watched him so closely that I'm pretty sure I can do it on my own again :) I'd get the tools myself, but between the Dremel and band-saw I'd be laying down more than I have to spare, heh.
But! I had the box, and proceeded to stain it to give the already sealed pine a distressed and aged look while the unsealed wood stained deeply, lending to a wonderfully organic result.
I then cut a sheet of paper to fit the inside for a loose template sketch of the painting, then did a dry fit for the eggshells with the template in place, which gave me a good idea about how large to make the doll.
Making the doll was time-consuming. I wanted to mix of simple form and anatomical detail on certain parts, but making hands and similar in size and slightly anatomical is a true test of that "attention to detail" description on my resume. Shaping her took about half an evening and then maybe another 4 hours to finalize the part shapes and clean her up for baking the next day. The jump rings to attach the parts together were baked into the clay to ensure durablity...and probably took up half the time spent on the doll before baking.
While my oven was preheating I gathered all the paint and other supplies I'd need to distress her, the background painting and the box.
A wonderful friend, Clarissa, works in a framing store and is generous to donate all the "drops" from each matting job. The drops are essentially the center of the matt, perfectly good pieces of board but of no use to the shop. They are Perfect to paint on, so I trimmed out a piece to fit my box and began the background sketch while the doll was in the oven.
While checking the fit of the sketch within the box, I decided that the walls, needed to have more interest, so I started digging in my supplies. I came up with an interesting sand textured gesso that I piled onto the side walls to dry while I painted. It's supposed to dry clear, but the areas where I really piled it on ghosted up a bit and stayed a little tacky. I knew I wanted to add screen on top, so I didn't sweat that too much, but if it would affect your project, I'd suggest many thin coats to add that texture.
I started laying the basic colors in thin layers for the background painting while the doll was cooling off. I didn't want the blue background to be too flat of a shade, even though there would be tree silouhettes to add, so I chunked in three shades of blue and mixed in a little purple, keeping the area near the moon light lend a sort of halo effect.
After she was cool and ready to paint I alternated painting background and doll, frequently checking the colors under my desk lamp which is fitted with a bright white light which promises to not alter colors. My overhead lights are a bit too warm and have hidden color inconsistensies before, and I definitely wanted this to "come out right." I used an alligator clip to hold the doll parts that needed to be painted in a uniformly (the head and torso) and hung the rest on paper clips since color changes between the tips and center would enhance the look I was going for.
After the body was painted and glossed with a crackle effect sheen, I used gunmetal jump rings to put her together for another dry fit in the box. Perfect.
Now, I had a doll who needed a home.
This was the stage to fix painting in place and tack the screen around the edges, making sure to not scratch the board. The tackiness of the sand gesso helped keep the screen in place while lending a dirty visual affect when inspected close. I affixed the shells in place using E6000 (being VERY careful to not press too hard on them) using the photo of the dry run to guide where the larger pieces would go and I added more tiny shell pieces to keep things from looking too sparse. I was very excited to be able to use those shells in something. They were left over from some amazing farm-fresh eggs from my brother-in-law's girlfriend's parents' chickens, and the shells were too interesting to just toss. You could almost say keeping those shells planted the seed of this project.
Getting the wire to the right length to hang the doll, then wiring the parts in the correct position felt awkward, but not difficult, and I learned what to do slightly different for the next piece. I kinda love learning along the way, makes me feel clever.
My favorite part of a project, though, is turning it around to show the complete piece to my husband, who has this awesome reaction face that says "wow, that's really cool. heh, my wife just made a kick-ass piece." Try as he may, and he does try sometimes to make me feel better about difficult ideas, he can't fake that face. And when he doesn't make it I know that the idea/piece/process needs tweaking or trashing. That night, his face told me it was perfect.
Now, the story.
During the Untitled show I recieved so much awesome feedback and personal interpretations from the viewer that I knew I hit the mark of "telling my story while being able to pull out one from the viewer." Some felt terrible for telling such horrible stories after seeing my piece, but I was thankful to them for opening up.
This isn't a totally positive piece, as the doll is obviously being threatened by the rabid, fuming jackal in the background. My abridged story was about how sometimes no matter what you do, how you change or how lightly you walk on eggshells to keep someone happy, you'll always end up breaking some shells and igniting a fight. There is more to it, but I have to hold it a little to the chest since that's the main aspect of the final piece in the series....and it'd be like titling the last Spiderman run "Death of Spiderman." Giving away the plot twist and leaving the climax a little "eh." (i say this without actually reading that run, but husband has and I've listened to iFanboy's review of it...so there's trustworthy nerd-dom behind it.)
Anyway, thanks for hanging in for possibly the longest blog to date. I'll try to make future reviews a bit shorter...but hey, compact writing isn't my forte ^_^
The next installments to this series will be displayed during Cadillac Tramp's "Saratoga's Revenge" show at Phat Bites on August 20th and No Egret's "Let Them Art" in Clarksville on August 27th. I'm going to try to debut the final piece at "Let Them Art" so the entire story can be seen in one spot, and soon.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Hello, hello
Creatives get all sorts of weird quirks. Bizarre outfits. Weird social skills (or none.) UInique sleep patterns. Sometimes sleep becomes a long-forgotten friend to me, and in those evenings (luckily, it's only lasted as long as 4 nights and I was spared the hallucinations :knock on wood:) I generally try to "Be Productive."
This consists of whatever I am able to finish, depending on what's sitting on my plate. Currently my plate is full of the usual items that would be equal to nasty veggies to a child: Clients who want things yesterday and want more for less, three on the burner that have waited patiently an embarassing period of time for a product, a store that's waiting for inventory, and a partrige in a pear-tree.
Wait...that's not right. Art shows. 3 before the end of August, to be exact.
However, sometimes even the most diligent workers need a small amount of down-time, so even if I couldn't sleep, I took half of that option. I was able to update my site, which felt like a nice progressive step. While I love the pieces I made in art school, I wasn't the most diligent student, so some projects fall in the "Less Than Professional" catagory. I've also taken a crash course in freelancing, so I've grown leaps and bound in the last 6 months. However, I did order items for a client. Brainstormed for another. Brainstormed for myself.
The only thing inducing catholic-guilt, though, is the series if pieces I need to develop for those 3 shows.
I have a wonderful idea that explores terrain I've never touched on with my art. I have most of the supplies, however I also have a superstitious feeling that if I work on this project in the spurts between commercial endevours then it will fail. Weird, especially considering my commercial art training, but it's also a little reflective of my past. I truly feel that anyone can infuse something with their essence if given the right attention & focus. That's why some people are great artists, and some are mediocre. The difference lies within the passion and focus the individual gives the piece as their creating it. It sounds....out there...but I feel like people infuse themselves into their work, even if it's a bland ad for the Yellow Pages. Passion and creativity lies in the creator, not the creation.
heh, I'm just going to apologize now for this post. I was struck with the "unsleepiness" and reached for a beer to beat the brain back. I'm now 5 into the process...hence the ramblings.
But, it's 4am, and most of my clients are daywalkers, so it may have been necessary.
And, as you can tell, this entry has been a random rambling, with minor updates.
Every girl deserves one of those :D
But the series I will hopefully create and infuse will happen sometime within the next week. With the perfect exploration in the third dimension, along with symbolism, to create what I hope is a story the viewer can read on their own without my weak verbal influence.
I'll, of course, post previews and shallow explanations of items here as production goes on.
Until then, though. Enjoy my 4am, insomniac artist rambles :huge grin:
This consists of whatever I am able to finish, depending on what's sitting on my plate. Currently my plate is full of the usual items that would be equal to nasty veggies to a child: Clients who want things yesterday and want more for less, three on the burner that have waited patiently an embarassing period of time for a product, a store that's waiting for inventory, and a partrige in a pear-tree.
Wait...that's not right. Art shows. 3 before the end of August, to be exact.
However, sometimes even the most diligent workers need a small amount of down-time, so even if I couldn't sleep, I took half of that option. I was able to update my site, which felt like a nice progressive step. While I love the pieces I made in art school, I wasn't the most diligent student, so some projects fall in the "Less Than Professional" catagory. I've also taken a crash course in freelancing, so I've grown leaps and bound in the last 6 months. However, I did order items for a client. Brainstormed for another. Brainstormed for myself.
The only thing inducing catholic-guilt, though, is the series if pieces I need to develop for those 3 shows.
I have a wonderful idea that explores terrain I've never touched on with my art. I have most of the supplies, however I also have a superstitious feeling that if I work on this project in the spurts between commercial endevours then it will fail. Weird, especially considering my commercial art training, but it's also a little reflective of my past. I truly feel that anyone can infuse something with their essence if given the right attention & focus. That's why some people are great artists, and some are mediocre. The difference lies within the passion and focus the individual gives the piece as their creating it. It sounds....out there...but I feel like people infuse themselves into their work, even if it's a bland ad for the Yellow Pages. Passion and creativity lies in the creator, not the creation.
heh, I'm just going to apologize now for this post. I was struck with the "unsleepiness" and reached for a beer to beat the brain back. I'm now 5 into the process...hence the ramblings.
But, it's 4am, and most of my clients are daywalkers, so it may have been necessary.
And, as you can tell, this entry has been a random rambling, with minor updates.
Every girl deserves one of those :D
But the series I will hopefully create and infuse will happen sometime within the next week. With the perfect exploration in the third dimension, along with symbolism, to create what I hope is a story the viewer can read on their own without my weak verbal influence.
I'll, of course, post previews and shallow explanations of items here as production goes on.
Until then, though. Enjoy my 4am, insomniac artist rambles :huge grin:
Friday, June 17, 2011
2 Months?!
Have two months really passed since I took a moment to collect the thoughts running around the art? Insane.
May was absolutely PACKED between freelancing and inventory building.
I was able to finish the inventory of Florid Findings and Heartworks and I fleshed out my display options for the Flatrock Festival on May 28th. A friend lent me his wooden walls to hang some orginal art, I borrowed a couple of 3'x3' tables and finally bought a little EZ tent for my very own. Being an outdoor event the tent was a necessity, as the husband and I are very, very sensitive to the sun. Unfortunately I didn't even think about the sun peeking around the sides, as it in the photo below, and we kept trying to escape it as the day wore on. Husband was burnt on his left side since he didn't hide as well as I, but I'll bring something to hide with next time.
Getting the inventory was a torrent of activity for about a week combining freelance, craftiness and trying to keep the husband from feeling too ignored. I was able to make many things at once since I've honed the steps to make certain items into an art.
Below are the uber-complex work stations for Heartworks. To the left is the cutting board with the various impliments I use to manipulate the clay into my little beauties. It's a portable station that I usually set up on the couch with Hobbit so we can at least be within the same space while I work.
To the right is the painting set up I use to paint and gloss numerous paintings and keep them seperated. It succeeds as long as Mr Copper, our cat, doesn't get too possessive and claim them as his toys.
I slowly built up the stock of fabric flowers over the past few months since those took the most time to create for the Florid Finding pendants. Once I had about 50 sewn I started collecting the shiney findings, jewelry bits and assembling the pendants.
Currently I'm chugging on with freelance projects and sketching new ideas for upcoming shows. I have a new series in the works and wanted to include one piece in the 20th anniversary show for Untitled on July 22nd and then in it's entirety in two group shows in August, "Saratoga's Revenge" Aug. 13th and "Let Them Art" Aug. 27th. I'll be posting sketch previews and production steps along the process. I'm severely excited about these pieces because they have traditional roots in subjects that artists reach into when creating fine art stuffs. At least, I'm consciously using those roots to draw inspiration instead of unconsciously.
Exciting stuff. Especially since this marks midway through 2011 and it's vow to get my art up, alive and earn a living from it. I haven't been able to work at CF in a while and my finances haven't suffered from it...which feels absolutely wonderful on my little art brain.
May was absolutely PACKED between freelancing and inventory building.
I was able to finish the inventory of Florid Findings and Heartworks and I fleshed out my display options for the Flatrock Festival on May 28th. A friend lent me his wooden walls to hang some orginal art, I borrowed a couple of 3'x3' tables and finally bought a little EZ tent for my very own. Being an outdoor event the tent was a necessity, as the husband and I are very, very sensitive to the sun. Unfortunately I didn't even think about the sun peeking around the sides, as it in the photo below, and we kept trying to escape it as the day wore on. Husband was burnt on his left side since he didn't hide as well as I, but I'll bring something to hide with next time.
Getting the inventory was a torrent of activity for about a week combining freelance, craftiness and trying to keep the husband from feeling too ignored. I was able to make many things at once since I've honed the steps to make certain items into an art.
Below are the uber-complex work stations for Heartworks. To the left is the cutting board with the various impliments I use to manipulate the clay into my little beauties. It's a portable station that I usually set up on the couch with Hobbit so we can at least be within the same space while I work.
To the right is the painting set up I use to paint and gloss numerous paintings and keep them seperated. It succeeds as long as Mr Copper, our cat, doesn't get too possessive and claim them as his toys.
I slowly built up the stock of fabric flowers over the past few months since those took the most time to create for the Florid Finding pendants. Once I had about 50 sewn I started collecting the shiney findings, jewelry bits and assembling the pendants.
Currently I'm chugging on with freelance projects and sketching new ideas for upcoming shows. I have a new series in the works and wanted to include one piece in the 20th anniversary show for Untitled on July 22nd and then in it's entirety in two group shows in August, "Saratoga's Revenge" Aug. 13th and "Let Them Art" Aug. 27th. I'll be posting sketch previews and production steps along the process. I'm severely excited about these pieces because they have traditional roots in subjects that artists reach into when creating fine art stuffs. At least, I'm consciously using those roots to draw inspiration instead of unconsciously.
Exciting stuff. Especially since this marks midway through 2011 and it's vow to get my art up, alive and earn a living from it. I haven't been able to work at CF in a while and my finances haven't suffered from it...which feels absolutely wonderful on my little art brain.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
April Showers?
Lately April has been full of art and some pretty severe storms here in the South. Luckily my area of TN has been saved the worst of it all, but I did have to work about 3-4 hours in candlelight last Monday after our power went out for a while. It was interesting, but only minimally slowed things down. I had to put all the design work on hold, but started the final piece of the Twins for the Untitled Spring show (yes, yes, drop off for that show was only two days after the storm...but I've been busy with freelancing!)
So above we have the ancient original sketch and the recent study (in purple) above the current larger version in gray. At 16"x20" this version of Twins was the largest squiggle to date, so while working by candlelight I laid in the basic shape and position of the heads, the ribcage, spine and a few major drips and stretches. You might still be able to see some of those original pencil marks.
After I was happy with the basic shape, I started shading in the larger basic areas very lightly with a Bic Ballpoint. Those are probably the only pens I can achieve this level of shading with, and would just cry if they were pulled from the market.
I try not to even think about what I'm shading if it's not a vital section, like the head/torso/spine, because the more I think about shading the area, the less organic it becomes.
Every once in a while I set the drawing across the room and seriously just cock my head to the sides and stare at the piece, judging the shaded areas and comparing them visually with what will become the highlights. Pretty much just weighing the visual balance.
After my little brain is happy with the shading process I then attack the highlight areas with a white colored pencil, when go back into a few places to push the darkest areas even darker.
Most squiggles will also get a background treatment of colored pencil a shade or two off from the paper, but I was really digging the monochromatic image and smooth texture of the paper, so I let it be.
Not only is this method a little theraputic with it's slightly brainless execution, but I really enjoy people looking up close and HARD trying to discern what instrument I used. Twins was really well recieved at the Untitled show, and even if the title block reflected the wrong piece, people got a kick out of the figures. A new art friend even claims he was struck by inspiration through the figures, which is a higher compliment than money in my little brain.
I really enjoyed socializing and making new art friends this time around, so I honestly can't wait to get out there & do it again. The Untitled meeting tomorrow will start the ball rolling on plans for the 20th Anniversary Show in July, so I expect more hard work will be put into it, too.
Below is a before/after photo of set-up...though I did forget to take a Really Before photo without the walls. You just get Ryan and Joe hanging pieces, and then the first visitor to the same area the night of the show. Maybe someone else has a photo of me hauling around those panels or being a short little She-Ra...but if not, there's always a chance to photo those moments in the next install.
So above we have the ancient original sketch and the recent study (in purple) above the current larger version in gray. At 16"x20" this version of Twins was the largest squiggle to date, so while working by candlelight I laid in the basic shape and position of the heads, the ribcage, spine and a few major drips and stretches. You might still be able to see some of those original pencil marks.
After I was happy with the basic shape, I started shading in the larger basic areas very lightly with a Bic Ballpoint. Those are probably the only pens I can achieve this level of shading with, and would just cry if they were pulled from the market.
I try not to even think about what I'm shading if it's not a vital section, like the head/torso/spine, because the more I think about shading the area, the less organic it becomes.
Every once in a while I set the drawing across the room and seriously just cock my head to the sides and stare at the piece, judging the shaded areas and comparing them visually with what will become the highlights. Pretty much just weighing the visual balance.
After my little brain is happy with the shading process I then attack the highlight areas with a white colored pencil, when go back into a few places to push the darkest areas even darker.
Most squiggles will also get a background treatment of colored pencil a shade or two off from the paper, but I was really digging the monochromatic image and smooth texture of the paper, so I let it be.
Not only is this method a little theraputic with it's slightly brainless execution, but I really enjoy people looking up close and HARD trying to discern what instrument I used. Twins was really well recieved at the Untitled show, and even if the title block reflected the wrong piece, people got a kick out of the figures. A new art friend even claims he was struck by inspiration through the figures, which is a higher compliment than money in my little brain.
I really enjoyed socializing and making new art friends this time around, so I honestly can't wait to get out there & do it again. The Untitled meeting tomorrow will start the ball rolling on plans for the 20th Anniversary Show in July, so I expect more hard work will be put into it, too.
Below is a before/after photo of set-up...though I did forget to take a Really Before photo without the walls. You just get Ryan and Joe hanging pieces, and then the first visitor to the same area the night of the show. Maybe someone else has a photo of me hauling around those panels or being a short little She-Ra...but if not, there's always a chance to photo those moments in the next install.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Wait, it's Spring?!
:blinks:
Well, the past two months just flew by in a haze of art [thankfully.]
Lately I'm trying to be more involved with the Untitled Artists Group, but so far I've missed a few meetings due to back-logged work...this week I'll be able to get more info about the Spring Show in April, which I made a squiggle for my own poster design. Once the date/venue is posted I'll update it, but for now, enjoy my ink!
I also did a smaller squiggle study for the piece I plan on entering in this show. The idea came from an old sketch from sometime between 2002-2004, which was revived due to my desire to revamp the idea, and Hobbit-husband's love of the original. I might try to draw one similar to the original just for him, but I like the squiggled-version as well. Behold.
Original:
Twins 031311: 
I sold a BUNCH of items at the Hellblinki/Joe Black show in mid-February. Boa Clothing is keeping me on my toes with restocking and special orders on the crafty items. And honestly, I really need to get back to restocking my own inventory for the large festival at the end of May, not to mention really getting down to stocking the Esty site. So...random fascinators/accessories/necklaces are a success. I suppose they could be my "hobby" when people ask what I do in my free time. (Hobbit-husband would laugh at the phrase "free time" though, cause it doens't really exist)
I've gotten a little more freelance work under the belt, and one regular client that is helping build the dream of "earn a living with my skills alone." I still do a little part-time as-needed mockup work at the local design company, but lately I've been too busy, which is a half blessing cause I miss working with those people.
Hopefully I'll be able to upgrade my website to allow 500 images, cause I'm at the limit and Really want to just add instead of rotate new projects in my current 30 image limit.
I was asked to design a friend's baby shower invitation and am so happy with how it is coming out. I'll post the images from it after delivery, as I want the mom-to-be to see it before the interwebs. I still have production to do, trimming out embellishments, putting them all together, but doing things like that are fulfilling in their own way. Soon I'll be holding a stack of 40 cute and complex-looking invitations and can say "I made it all, minus the actual paper." Maybe one day I'll have the space to Actually make the paper, or at least recycle paper into home-recycled stuffs.
Anyway...That's mainly what this design-junky has been up to the past few months. It's not everything, but the coffee is finally kicking in and there's a meeting I need to get to....which time has totally snuck up on me! Must run!
Well, the past two months just flew by in a haze of art [thankfully.]
Lately I'm trying to be more involved with the Untitled Artists Group, but so far I've missed a few meetings due to back-logged work...this week I'll be able to get more info about the Spring Show in April, which I made a squiggle for my own poster design. Once the date/venue is posted I'll update it, but for now, enjoy my ink!
I also did a smaller squiggle study for the piece I plan on entering in this show. The idea came from an old sketch from sometime between 2002-2004, which was revived due to my desire to revamp the idea, and Hobbit-husband's love of the original. I might try to draw one similar to the original just for him, but I like the squiggled-version as well. Behold.
Original:
Twins 031311: 
I sold a BUNCH of items at the Hellblinki/Joe Black show in mid-February. Boa Clothing is keeping me on my toes with restocking and special orders on the crafty items. And honestly, I really need to get back to restocking my own inventory for the large festival at the end of May, not to mention really getting down to stocking the Esty site. So...random fascinators/accessories/necklaces are a success. I suppose they could be my "hobby" when people ask what I do in my free time. (Hobbit-husband would laugh at the phrase "free time" though, cause it doens't really exist)
I've gotten a little more freelance work under the belt, and one regular client that is helping build the dream of "earn a living with my skills alone." I still do a little part-time as-needed mockup work at the local design company, but lately I've been too busy, which is a half blessing cause I miss working with those people.
Hopefully I'll be able to upgrade my website to allow 500 images, cause I'm at the limit and Really want to just add instead of rotate new projects in my current 30 image limit.
I was asked to design a friend's baby shower invitation and am so happy with how it is coming out. I'll post the images from it after delivery, as I want the mom-to-be to see it before the interwebs. I still have production to do, trimming out embellishments, putting them all together, but doing things like that are fulfilling in their own way. Soon I'll be holding a stack of 40 cute and complex-looking invitations and can say "I made it all, minus the actual paper." Maybe one day I'll have the space to Actually make the paper, or at least recycle paper into home-recycled stuffs.
Anyway...That's mainly what this design-junky has been up to the past few months. It's not everything, but the coffee is finally kicking in and there's a meeting I need to get to....which time has totally snuck up on me! Must run!
Friday, January 28, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
More steps in the right direction.
Just made an account on Thumbtack.com that focuses on all those Heartworks and Facinators I've been churning out lately. I already have one for the Illustrations & Designs & think this will be a great addition to the web "presence" I've been trying to build up. (and the best part is the price tag of free :)
Pop on over for a full selection of my little twisted creations and details on how you can order your own wearable art!
Pop on over for a full selection of my little twisted creations and details on how you can order your own wearable art!
Thursday, January 13, 2011
Locomotive Thinking
9 days after the previous post and I'm still working at fulfilling 2011's goals. I can haz cookie?
I've been trying to flesh out a new series of illustrations based on my vision of Neil Gaimen's "Family of the Endless" from "The Sandman" comics, but they're a little hard to fully form. I'm still stuck on which medium to use, mainly based on time, which is putting a big wrench in my cogs as far as design. Today's sketches yeilded the idea of approaching the portraits like the Bible Series pieces or even the Skinny Puppy portrait, with text interwoven through the illustration, grittily colored and slightly garishly fleshed on the board. My initial idea was a simple vector line illustration because of a slight time constraint/number of images ratio, but the first attempt yeilded a bit of an...underwhelming portrait. I planned on casting close friends as each character, listed as so (in case you're familiar with either side of the list or just curious)
Destiny-Hobbit Husband
Dream-Hobbit Brother-in-Law (first attempt complete)
Death-Myself
Desire-Chris (girl-chris, though the androgony of the name lends well to the character)
Despair-unknown
Delirium-Hobbit BiL's girlfriend, Rachel
Destruction-Hobbit Husband or friend Gerald (Gerald is honestly a perfect match to the character, but Husband is a quick model if need be.)
There is an art gallery in the Hickory Hollow Mall having a comic/anime art show on the 29th of this month that at least 5 of these would fit into. The problem lies within that small amount of time to do these portraits....But we will see how well I spend my off time from the day-job, yes? Maybe seven amazing pieces will just leap from my fingers as easily as five did last spring?
I'm also eyeballing at least three other shows in the coming months, all insisting I revamp my inventory and bulk up the "new art" list.
The best news, or newest news, is that last week I was accepted by a local shop to sell my necklaces, notecards, hair facinators and other random art on consignment! Now my items don't have to sit away in storage til an art or craft show, they can be lovingly drooled over by locals and bought up! (my little dream)
The shop is Boa Clothing located at 4902 Charolette Ave. in Nashville TN and I swear the owner/operator Sam is one of the most awesome chicks you'll ever meet. Her shop is one of the best places to burn through a paycheck for your horror/goth/punk/vintage desires and she is severely dedicated to local artisians.
As it's nearly 4am in The Shire I'm going to wrap up the package designs I was working on trying to get sleepy and crawl in bed with my poor sick Hobbit Husband. I don't plan on sleeping in too much, though. There's just too much to do in too little time :D
I've been trying to flesh out a new series of illustrations based on my vision of Neil Gaimen's "Family of the Endless" from "The Sandman" comics, but they're a little hard to fully form. I'm still stuck on which medium to use, mainly based on time, which is putting a big wrench in my cogs as far as design. Today's sketches yeilded the idea of approaching the portraits like the Bible Series pieces or even the Skinny Puppy portrait, with text interwoven through the illustration, grittily colored and slightly garishly fleshed on the board. My initial idea was a simple vector line illustration because of a slight time constraint/number of images ratio, but the first attempt yeilded a bit of an...underwhelming portrait. I planned on casting close friends as each character, listed as so (in case you're familiar with either side of the list or just curious)
Destiny-Hobbit Husband
Dream-Hobbit Brother-in-Law (first attempt complete)
Death-Myself
Desire-Chris (girl-chris, though the androgony of the name lends well to the character)
Despair-unknown
Delirium-Hobbit BiL's girlfriend, Rachel
Destruction-Hobbit Husband or friend Gerald (Gerald is honestly a perfect match to the character, but Husband is a quick model if need be.)
There is an art gallery in the Hickory Hollow Mall having a comic/anime art show on the 29th of this month that at least 5 of these would fit into. The problem lies within that small amount of time to do these portraits....But we will see how well I spend my off time from the day-job, yes? Maybe seven amazing pieces will just leap from my fingers as easily as five did last spring?
I'm also eyeballing at least three other shows in the coming months, all insisting I revamp my inventory and bulk up the "new art" list.
The best news, or newest news, is that last week I was accepted by a local shop to sell my necklaces, notecards, hair facinators and other random art on consignment! Now my items don't have to sit away in storage til an art or craft show, they can be lovingly drooled over by locals and bought up! (my little dream)
The shop is Boa Clothing located at 4902 Charolette Ave. in Nashville TN and I swear the owner/operator Sam is one of the most awesome chicks you'll ever meet. Her shop is one of the best places to burn through a paycheck for your horror/goth/punk/vintage desires and she is severely dedicated to local artisians.
As it's nearly 4am in The Shire I'm going to wrap up the package designs I was working on trying to get sleepy and crawl in bed with my poor sick Hobbit Husband. I don't plan on sleeping in too much, though. There's just too much to do in too little time :D
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
In the year 2011....
...things will happen.
I know that January fills the interwebs with postings bursting with resolutions, goals and grand ideas, and there's no reason to change that trend here.
2010 was the year that essentially boiled down to my wedding, something grand that needed much time to be dedicated to planning, creating and sorting for. I tried to set time aside for art shows and such, but by September I was just burnt out, and decided to dedicate wholly to the wedding "art project" and leave the rest on hiatus til January.
Wedding day came and went off beautifully and was kindof the begining of the great bomb that is known as "Family Holiday Season." The honeymoon was a week later, Thanksgiving the week after that, and essentially I literally didn't stop until New Year's Eve. Well...more specifically New Year's Day as I was battling the annual hangover (on a much smaller scale than usual) combined with a cold (of a much larger version than usual.) After the hangover burned itself out I was still left mostly immoble with an insanely stuffy head and chest leaving me time to sketch. Bringing us to day 4 of 2011.
I applied and interviewed for an intership in the end of 2010, which I didn't get, but the process pushed me into a more motivated way of thinking which I hope to keep up with. I need to push myself. I need to utilize the skills I have, the books I have, and build the professional Book I know I can create. I'm trying to sketch something substantial everyday, no matter the style or subject, no matter if it's on paper or digitally.
Since I'm still rocking an amazing headache from the cold, I'll cut this short with a couple of b/w sketches.
b/w digital sketch of my Hobbit Husband and I.
b/w digital sketch with minimal color, illustrating the pain sometimes behind inspiration and ideas.
I know that January fills the interwebs with postings bursting with resolutions, goals and grand ideas, and there's no reason to change that trend here.
2010 was the year that essentially boiled down to my wedding, something grand that needed much time to be dedicated to planning, creating and sorting for. I tried to set time aside for art shows and such, but by September I was just burnt out, and decided to dedicate wholly to the wedding "art project" and leave the rest on hiatus til January.
Wedding day came and went off beautifully and was kindof the begining of the great bomb that is known as "Family Holiday Season." The honeymoon was a week later, Thanksgiving the week after that, and essentially I literally didn't stop until New Year's Eve. Well...more specifically New Year's Day as I was battling the annual hangover (on a much smaller scale than usual) combined with a cold (of a much larger version than usual.) After the hangover burned itself out I was still left mostly immoble with an insanely stuffy head and chest leaving me time to sketch. Bringing us to day 4 of 2011.
I applied and interviewed for an intership in the end of 2010, which I didn't get, but the process pushed me into a more motivated way of thinking which I hope to keep up with. I need to push myself. I need to utilize the skills I have, the books I have, and build the professional Book I know I can create. I'm trying to sketch something substantial everyday, no matter the style or subject, no matter if it's on paper or digitally.
Since I'm still rocking an amazing headache from the cold, I'll cut this short with a couple of b/w sketches.
b/w digital sketch of my Hobbit Husband and I.
b/w digital sketch with minimal color, illustrating the pain sometimes behind inspiration and ideas.Cheers!
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