Baby Bird Series

These are four spot illustrations done in watercolor for note cards and bookmarks. The inspiration came from a friend's request to sell my art on cards in her retail shop. It's not that she was looking for baby birds. She just wanted to see my art on blank note cards.The idea just came to me to do a series, keep it simple and get them done quickly. Two out of three ain't bad. The quickly part didn't happen.

No excuses. I had the time to paint. But, I started thinking about the outcome instead of just letting the art flow. So, it was a lot of start and stop, walk away, come back. Once I was really able to let go ~ in other words, not think about how the art would look on cards, who would want to buy them, if they were market-viable, if anyone would like me, really like me ~ the art did just flow right out of my hands.

So, the art is ready to be manipulated in Photoshop using a border I painted a while ago, and laid out for notecards and bookmarks. A future post will announce where they can be purchased locally and on the web.

I'm actually glad the process went like it did. It was a great learning experience, and now I know how to approach any art I do in the future.

It is literally out of my hands.

Sophia's Orchids

I've had a 16" x 20" canvas sitting in my studio for awhile just waiting for the chance to be something other than blank. With the urge to paint some fine art with a mission, an idea popped. When my dad and his wife got married some five years ago, I never got around to giving them a wedding gift ~ long story full of lame excuses. Anyway, since another toaster was probably not necessary and knowing that Sophia loves orchids, the inspiration hit. I know they have a house full of altensteinia and the like but I'm pretty sure they don't have an original painting of them. They have no idea this art is on its way. That makes it even more fun.

This was painted with acrylics, which I find challenging because they dry so fast, even with medium. It was also challenging to dissect the center of the flowers and try to mix colors that made sense (I'm a realist) but had some creative kick too.

All in all, I like the way it turned out. I hope they like it, too.

Chapter 5: Missing In Action

This chapter was so long that it could've been split into four chapters. So much happened that it was hard to pick one image that would represent all the action. In the end, I decided to focus at the beginning when the LEPrecon police force realizes that Holly Short is missing, and springs into action.

Chapter 4: Abduction

Okay, so I didn't get them all done this weekend. I went to the Milwaukee Art Museum on Saturday to see the Jan Lievens exhibit. Lievens was a friend and contemporary of Rembrandt, and used Rembrandt as a model in a number of his paintings. They walked similar paths during their lifetimes. The exhibit was awe-inspiring, as was the building itself ~ a stunning piece of architecture.

Chapter Books Can Be Fun

These are self-assigned sketches of the chapter pages of the first book in the Artemis Fowl series of chapter books. I took a key sentence or two and used that point of reference for the chapter. Note: the passages highlighted below are © Eoin Colfer.

Top left: Chapter 1 - The Book: "She opened her knobbly fingers. Lying in her palm was a tiny golden volume the size of a matchbox." I did this sketch in the waiting room at the doctor's office.

Top right: Chapter 2 - Translation: "With a craft knife and ruler, he dissected the first page of the Book and reassembled it in parallel rows." I think the symbols on the dissected page were created by Eoin Colfer because they appear on the book cover and on the pages.

Bottom: Chapter 3 - Holly: "Holly Short had nut-brown skin, cropped auburn hair, and hazel eyes. Her nose had a hook and her mouth was plump and cherubic, which was appropriate considering Cupid was her great-grandfather." Holly Short is a fairy (an elf, technically) who works for a police force known as the LEPrecon.

There are nine chapters in the first book. My goal is to get them read and sketched by the weekend.

Catchin' Snowflakes

Seven days before Christmas I finished this artwork for my greeting card. This was a long time coming ~ one of those labors of love that included some internal struggle. But, the good thing was that is was finally born. Too many times I think I focus on the outcome of the art ~ will it be good enough, should I have done this or that, etc. Once I decided to just let it be, everything fell into place and the art just flowed out of me.

This is a 7-3/4" x 10-3/4" colored pencil drawing on Rives BFK (my favorite paper), using Prismacolor colored pencils. I photographed the final drawing because my new multi-function scanner/printer proved that you get what you pay for. Because the snowflakes weren't white enough on the shot, I painted them with a Photoshop paintbrush to brighten them up.

Since time was limited, I sent my greetings out electronically. No one complained, some people raved, and the purpose of spreading joy was achieved no matter what the delivery method.

The farmlands of Wisconsin and joys of catching snowflakes on my tongue when I was a young and carefree little kid were the inspirations behind the concept.

Change of Focus

Planning for 2009 is in place and in the process I've decided to suspend my CafePress store. I just don't have the time it takes to develop and promote the art and products necessary to make the store successful. So, it became a necessary and logical decision to close the store for now.

I will still offer prints for sale through my website, but product art won't be available unless I decide to go that route again.