Thursday, May 31, 2012

Project 11 of 365


Horse

Tonight, I decided to dabble in digital collage. I experimented with using contrasting colors for my shadows and highlights...in this case green for the shadows and yellow for the highlights. I couldn't get away from my usual black and white entirely and used these colors sparingly to punch up certain areas.

Tomorrow, I will go back and add my usual black shadows and white highlights so I can see the difference more clearly.

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Project 10 of 365

Woof


I made it to double digits! Yippee!

I still need to get a schedule together...it would be great if I could get up before the kids, work on my writing and artwork, then get on with the flow of the day. If only I were a morning person. If only...

Another quickie collage on recycled beer box divider cardboard. I looked up other three to five letter animal sounds for other ideas and came up with a list:

1.) Snake - hiss
2.) Bee - buzz
3.) Chicken - cluck
4.) Frog - croak
5.) Cow - moo
6.) Donkey - bray
7.) Baby chick - peep
8.) Crow - caw
9.) Fish - blub
10.) Coyote - howl
11.) Lion - growl
12.) Sheep - bleat
13.) Horse - neigh
14.) Rooster - crow
15.) Doves - coo
16.) Cricket - chirp
17.) Hummingbird - hum
18.) Goose - honk
19.) Person - talk

Other sounds that a relatively short and worth considering for this project: purr, bark, sing, ribbit, squeak, whinny, cackle, gobble.

Now, if I ever get stuck...I have a healthy list to ponder.

Recycled elements: cardboard, music sheets, magazine paper

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Project 9 of 365

Tweet

Another quick collage on recycled cardboard. It's small, simple and fun!

Recycled elements: cardboard and scrap paper

Monday, May 28, 2012

Project 8 of 365

A Room of My Own

It's late so I chose art prompt number 5*, "Allow yourself to sit at your worktable for five minutes. Sometimes just getting to the table is the challenge, the rest is easy."

I combined this with a project from Melissa Sweet's Drawing Book for Kids. The book was a freebie from the SCBWI conference and has been sitting on my desk. I flipped through it and chose a project of creating quick sketches of objects in my room. Easy enough.

Cloth Paper Scissors magazine (Jan/Feb 2012, page 80).

Sunday, May 27, 2012

Project 7 of 365
Illustration Friday: Faded

Bye Breezy

Bye Breezy - detail

LETTER

Great. It’s about time. It’s weird how over the past
two weeks life’s gotten much more exciting. I’m
still trying to figure out why John was kissing
my hand. Anyway it’s been raining here and I’m
getting mad because I want to sun bleach
my hair. After all, I am a Californian. So when are 
you coming back? To California of course. Well
I gotta run. Since it’s been so long you’ll have
to fill me in on your adventures. It’s been live.

Bye, Breezy

 Today, I used Project 6: Just Relaxing as my inspiration; the second part of Cloth Paper Scissors' (Jan/Feb 2012, page 80) art prompt number 23. "Create a doodle on a piece of paper and then use it to create a piece of art."

After reading about Breezy's adventures with hand kissing and hair coloring, her thoughts faded into the night.

Saturday, May 26, 2012

Project 6 of 365

Just Resting

Just a quick sketch and some brainstorming while I watched a movie tonight. To get inspired, I reviewed the art prompts mentioned in the Cloth Paper Scissors magazine (Jan/Feb 2012, page 80). I was inspired by number 23, "Create a doodle on a piece of paper and then use it to create a piece of art."

Friday, May 25, 2012

Project 5 of 365

Happy Hour!

Doing an illustration a day is hard (insert whine)! Today, I ran around doing chores and running errands so I could get ready for ladies night. I knew I wouldn't be up for creating art when I returned from happy hour at the Parlor...so, after enjoying my Huckleberry Press cocktail, I doodled on my bar napkin. That's gotta count for something, right?

Thursday, May 24, 2012

Quick Collages

Meow
I wanted a quick collage since I didn't meander down to my studio until 10:00 tonight. I had already created four other animals (bear, duck, pig, and owl) on recycled cardboard dividers from a case of beer.

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Project 3 of 365

Birdhouse Sketches

I jumped right into collage mode, and spent some time creating a birdhouse face. I was trying to be quick and didn't wait long enough for my crackle paint layer to fully dry. My haste really showed...no matter how hard I tried to turn it into an interesting texture, it just looked bad.

So, I went back to the drawing board and put pencil to paper. Good thing I did because I still don't know where I want to go with this image. I've had this idea for awhile...a birdhouse luring a bird into it's mouth. I want it to appear innocent and charming...oh look! What a cute birdhouse. But the hole into the birdhouse is a mouth. Hmm. Is the bird going to make a home or is the bird going to be breakfast?

A question, and illo, for another day.


Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Project 2 of 365

Baby is Back.

Baby is Back. - Detail

GUEST CHECK

I love you so much baby
Even know you can be a bitch
I still love you
Cause I know who you really are
So please bring her back baby

We can have a great life together
But it's up to you
I love you baby
Have a merry x-mas
Love Austin

I found this note in the ditch by my mailbox a couple years ago and have been inspired by it since. I am intrigued by the use of "baby" and the multitude of emotions layered in this short note...pleading, love, insults,  ambivalence...all written on a restaurant guest check. What a story! Who is baby? Did she get this note and toss it in the ditch? Or was Austin too proud or embarrassed to give it to her?

Recycled elements: guest check "love" note, ticket stub, magazine paper, stationary, parking stubs and other memorabilia.

Monday, May 21, 2012

Project 1 of 365
Illustration Friday: Sight

Lady Sunshine

Lady Sunshine - detail
"You will bring sunshine into someone's life."


I marched right downstairs to my studio to crank out the first piece for my personal 365 project. I grabbed the first thing that was on my desk and dove right in. A crown and a blank face with hair I'd assembled some time ago. Perfect starter material.

I didn't want to fuss or think too much and then stall out on my first piece. Like Melissa Sweet said in her session at the Western Washington SCBWI conference last April, "Nothing is precious." That is a great reminder to dive in and enjoy the process and toss that dread of ruining something right out the window.

So I did. Who cares if it's too busy or not the right color palette. Who cares if the lips don't look right or the nose if off kilter. I decided to have fun and go with my mood. I'm not sure why this regal lady is in an old barn wood frame...and I don't care. I had fun and put something on that blank piece of paper. Welcome, Lady Sunshine!

As for Illustration Friday's theme this week, sight...I figure you need light for sight...and Lady Sunshine is here bringing sunshine into someone's life. A nice start to a year long project.

Recycled elements: paper scraps, paper doily, music sheets, Christmas card, letter from mom.

365 Project

This morning, I was thinking about the Western Washington SCBWI conference that I attended last April. Melissa Sweet was a guest speaker and had mentioned in one of her sessions that she had taken on a 365-day project of illustrating the weather; her creative warm up for the day.
I liked the sound of that idea, whether as a warm up for my illustrating or writing. To just put something on that blank canvas, ANYTHING, everyday, would not only limber up my mind for bigger ideas or create seeds of inspiration, but it would also help to create a good habit. I could certainly use more of those.
I have a friend on Facebook who is a photographer and is part of the 365 Project. They tout "Document a year of your life by taking a photo a day." How about we follow Melissa Sweet's idea in combination with the 365 Project, and make art everyday? A simple sketch, paint to paper, words, a creative journal entry? Anything goes, everyday, for one year.
I found another creative website dedicated to this idea called, Make Something 365 & Get Unstuck by Noah Scalin. If you'd like to share your project, you can do so on his blog. For all you Creative Cuppers, who want to participate, share here! It's your project, your rules.
Guess I better get to my studio and start creating a good habit. I'll be back shortly with Project 1 of 365.

Cheers!