Tim Burton

More inspirational links....

Okay, I am probably the last person to realize how amazing Tim Burton's artwork is...  But after reading Blu Penny's post on his illustrations, I checked out his website.  I am in love with whoever designed his website.  Also, of course, the artwork is brilliant.  I was just the last person, I believe, to know this.

I had a chance to sketch Will Sessions last weekend.  I'll share some of those sketches soon.  But I want to color some of the sketches in before I scan them.  Very exciting and I can't wait to draw them as a full illustration.

In the meantime, here is a link to some very funny and cool photography work by Jason Lee.  The subjects are his daughters and they are the ones who gave him most of the ideas.

And after looking at how fantastic those photos are, you can check out this TED lecture of child prodigy, Adora Svitak on how the world NEEDS childish thinking.

Warming Up The Sketchbook.

Starting slowly, but finally dipped my toes in the water and completely broke in my sketchbook...  Just drawing in the moment and seeing what lines are produced and learning to not be hard on myself and just feeling free to play and not have anything concrete.

It's just a sketch book right?  I am LOVING my moleskine journals!

Nothing perfect.  Just energy, lines, form, and some color here and there.

Some sketches drawn at Chez Milroy during a jam session/afterglow when Doug & Telisha Williams were in town.  Sunday, April 15/Monday, April 16, 2012.  My first time trying out my sketchers travel kit:

[Click images for larger view.]

  

Last night at Rochester Mills Beer Co.  The Thursday Greenhorn Open Mic.  Wednesday, April 19, 2012:

Your Artist’s Sketchbook – 10 Tips For Creativity

After I had written the last post, the next day Artonomy.com had posted this:

Your Artist’s Sketchbook – 10 Tips For Creativity

I love #3 (Even though on the post, they mis-numbered it):

"Your sketchbook should be honest. Dont try to edit it."

Spring Flowing Through My Veins.

Much has changed since this last post written on February 28th. I've been focusing a lot on a weight loss challenge competition that has my energy and strength improving; And because of my very awesome friends and a bit from my tax refund, I was able to create for myself a sketchers travel kit that I've been dreaming about since I read Danny Gregory's "An Illustrated Life: Drawing Inspiration from the Private Sketchbooks of Artists, Illustrators, and Designers."

In my sketchers travel kit:

1. Book light to clip onto my sketch journals when drawing in dark bars and other venues with low lighting
2. Water brushes. I received two as a surprise gift from my best friend, Kristy. A medium and small brush. Coincidentally, a boyfriend of one of my closest friends gave me his large water brush the evening before I got the package. This will be wonderful when using watercolors and not having to carry brushes and jars of water around.
3. Moleskine watercolor journals! My very firsts! Kristy had given me a smaller watercolor journal. I was so teary-eyed when I had opened this package from her. The day before I had bought the larger Moleskine with my tax refund and I was in the art store for 20 minutes being indecisive whether to get the larger watercolor journal or smaller. I like sketching both large and small, depending what mood I'm in. I opened up the pages to these journals and have fallen in love with the quality of the paper. Right now, I'm trying to maintain a balance of thinking of the journals as NOT too precious, so I won't have the fear of making crappy sketches; but also thinking of the journals as very precious since the smaller journal given to me is a gift and because the quality of these journals are so wonderful. Makes me put in more effort and time when working with each fresh page.
4. Black Micron Pigma pens.
5. Pencil.
6. Pencil sharpener.
7. Winsor & Newton Cotman Sketchers Pocket Box Watercolor Set
8. Small hand towel and sponge to blot and/or remove excess water and paint from water brushes.
9. Case to carry my business cards.
10. My custom made peerless watercolor palette.
11. Camera to take pictures for reference. (Although, you can't see the camera case very well in this image.) I'm still trying to feel okay about live sketching in public again... I like taking my time by working in detail by detail; So sketching live is a new experience for me, to capture as much as I can in that moment of time. I draw fast with the intention of catching just the forms and energy before going back home and using the camera images taken to illustrate a potential art piece. My fast sketching has me wary of using too many pages in my Moleskine. The paper is too nice! I might have to get a cheap watercolor journal (student grade) for these reference/minute sketches.

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Kristy also gave me the Complete Edition Peerless Water Colors!!! Like I had mentioned before, I wanted to cry when I got her package. I don't make much money, so it means a lot that she knew how much I wanted these so I can go sketch all around town! I had gotten the Bonus Pak of the Peerless Watercolors on-line w/my tax refund. All together there are 55 colors.



Taking from Jane Davenport, I went ahead and made my own palette for the peerless watercolors.

Last Sunday was gorgeous. Even though I can feel the outside energy of all different groups of friends of mine playing, drinking, watching live music, after a gym workout, I opted to stay in the house, open the window for fresh air, and listen to the Andrew Bird Pandora Channel while creating my palette. I was also crossing my fingers that I might be done in time for an afterglow at The Milroys. A lot of friends were out watching Doug & Telisha Williams perform at The Stone House. Maybe, if there is an afterglow, I might be able to use my sketchers travel kit for the first time?



Sewing a pocket for scrap watercolor paper that I could use to test paint colors, pen tip sizes, and blotting...





Before the peerless paks arrived in the mail, I had prepped by printing all the colors names. With this I numbered and ordered, by color ranges, where each color would go on the palette.



Added Dura-Lar page to protect the palette pages:





Pocket I sewed in for watercolor scrap paper:



Added velcro to open/close watercolor palette booklet:



Finished palette to carry inside the back pockets of Moleskine journals:



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Past 11 p.m. I got word from CJ of an afterglow and pizza at her place. Got giddy to finally break in my Moleskine watercolor journals and sketchers travel kit.

In attendance at The Milroys:

Annie and Rod Capps, Bob and Ellen Doster, Bernard Staples, John & CJ Milroy, Doug & Telisha Williams, and Derek Daniel. So happy be a part of these intimate jam sessions and break in my new journals with a such warm and loving, fun crowd. So in love with this life so full of music, laughter, and smiles:




Nothing perfect.... But a few fast minute sketches breaking in and experimenting with my new art materials at the afterglow. Capturing energy, a bit of color, and form:





I'm looking forward to sketching live performances these next few months in preparation of mine and Steven Gamburd's show at The Woods Gallery this August.

Feeling a lot of good raw energy these days. A new friend of mine told me that maybe Spring is flowing through my veins. It is. I know it is.

Here's another video for inspiration:



Stop motion animation that CJ Benninger shot for Campbell Ewald for Deliver Magazine’s iPad edition; After Effects by Dave Graw. Both of whom I worked with for our group show, We Are Here, last October.

Article Link and Video for Inspiration...

Riusuke Fukahori Paints Three-Dimensional Goldfish Embedded in Layers of Resin