animals in love packs coming!

Today I made 2 new cards in the "Moose in Love" area. I'm so excited! I'm going to make one more (the animal is yet to be decided) and then I'll be able to finally make some mix packs!

I also did some painting today that I'm extremely proud of. No progress shots yet. I don't know what the final product will look like, necessarily, but again, the style feels very unique, which, you know, is most of what I'm going for here.

back in the saddle again

After a particularly rough week at work, I am feeling newly inspired to return to painting every day. We'll see how long it lasts.

Here is what I "finished" last week - my series of travelers. I'm calling them "Where have you been?"



I also just finished three little mini-paintings that feel Finally! Original! Sort of. No! I refuse to be a downer. They look like my own. I can see shadows of the many many artists I admire, but these are Truly My Own. I'm super happy with them. Pictures to come!

In progress

Maggie, in progress. I am liking how it's looking, but have no idea what the background will hold. There are a few options but nothing too enticing so far.

back to work!

I went by school today to meet with another teacher. Suddenly all I can think about is planning and students and advising and meetings. I was planning on stopping by utrecht on the way home, but decided against it. Will returning to work completely end my creative streak?? I certainly hope not!

Last night I made some gocco prints to touch up with acrylic paint. I think using acrylic paint on paper might be some sort of no-no, but I am not concerned. It doesn't make the paper buckle like gouache or watercolor would.


These are printed on some nice cover weight papers I got from a cute store in Manhattan whose name escapes me at the moment. I also have them on white paper, but I think I prefer the brown. I hope to get them up on etsy soon!

keep doing it!

Two big things have inspired me in the past few weeks.

1. Matte Stephen's interview at Grain Edit. In the interview, he talks about how he got into painting. I expected a background full of art awards, MFAs, and success. Instead, he talked about how he decided he'd be a painter, did a ton of research and experimenting, talked to lots of people and read lots of books, and finally found success. I mean, I'm sure he's always been talented, but to hear that there can be success from hard work, rather than just success from general awesomeness...that's amazing. (Also, check out his etsy shop. I love his style.)

2. I have been painting consistently for the past few weeks. I recently whined to my roommate that I'm going to be a painter, except that perhaps I can't be a painter because I'm not good enough. She replied, "Keep practicing!" Again! Apparently, awesomeness can come from practice. I cannot be reminded of that enough.

Finished triptych:

outlines

My illustration teacher commented that in my work, I was doing something with outlines that was interesting. I thought, hey, that's true! Maybe that's my thing!

"Mugs" was painted on 6"x6" artboard of the most delicious quality. It's some sort of gorgeous wood that I loved painting on. I also am loving overlapping figures and trying not to decide what's in front and what's in the back. And oh, leaving wood to show through is also great. Seriously. That is some awesome wood! I am thinking about making a whole series of these. We'll see. I've been painting every day for the past week or so, and am almost out of surfaces to paint! I might try to scrub off some old ugly paintings and reuse the wood blocks I was painting on a few months ago.

I finished the triptych I was working on, with the lady in the forest. Pictures are coming soon.

I'm also having fun considering this site.

lady in the trees

I am finding a lot of things that I like about acrylics. Unlike gouache, I can paint layers without the paint cracking when it dries. Unlike oils, I don't have to wait for days for it to dry. Of course, unlike gouache, the colors aren't as opaque. And unlike oils, I have to mix the colors much more quickly. Getting a stay-wet palette yesterday was a huge renovation, however, so that is awesome.

When I painted the first one, the one on the left, I was thinking I had come upon a new style that was completely my own and going to be awesome. I'm a flighty idealist, and quickly saw where most of the influence was coming from. The nude on the right is from a drawing I did at the Society of Illustrators, of this fantastic amazing model with a heart-shaped face and an enormous gray/white/black wig. I loved that pose, and have been trying to figure out how to make it into something else. This painting is not as successful as I had hoped. Something about it bothers me...perhaps it's a bit boring? Also, the trees aren't really clearly trees, they're weird circle lollipops until you sit the canvas down next to the one with the swing. I'm not sure how to fix that.

Why I Am Doing This

1. For as long as I can remember, I have been a lover of the visual arts. For almost as long, though, and probably like many people, my artistic endeavors have filled me with as much anxiety as happiness. There is invariably someone else doing what I'm doing, and comparisons have to be made. I'm not sure when that point comes in life when drawing stops being awesome and starts being borderline misery. Luckily, I've always been a bit arrogant about my artistic skills, so I was not affected as much as most. Still, why do we want our drawings to look good? And if we want them to look "good", why is it that so many of my current inspirations draw in a very youthful style? What is it that makes some less accurate drawings "good" while others just look like chicken scratch?

2. How do people find their creative voice? Can you have a voice without seeing it? When does it come out, and what makes it original?

3. I spend many of my waking hours consumed by a need to CREATE! something, RIGHT! NOW! There are lots of exclamation points involved.

4. I have a lot of crafty hobbies. I'm probably not alone. How do some people maintain their creative voice across different mediums? Not like, drawing and painting. More like, printmaking/sewing/design. And can you have too many hobbies? Is it like too many cooks spoiling the broth?