"...giggle all you want."

John Cleese on the 5 Factors to Make Your Life More Creative

Another video that I am posting for inspiration.  I got these from an art blog I read.  Can't remember which one though; it's on my google reader.  I had posted this last December.  It's worth it to watch again, but here's a more detailed version:

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

WATERCOLOR INSPIRATION

Acid Drops - Episode 2 - Dylan Rieder from Matt Box on Vimeo.

The second in a series of hand painted studies that aim to psychedelically capture the individual styles of influential skateboarders.

Getting on with my artwork again...

I've got to thank Steven. He's the one I'm going to collaborate with this year. When I wrote him that I've been experiencing a lack of energy and motivation lately. This is what he wrote. I needed this:

"It shouldn't be hard to get motivated, as long as you remember the joy and smiles you have from engaging in the dance, and that it just takes several hours of breaking in and then it's all cruise control until you slow down again... ...It's not about falling to the pressure of having a decent show and throwing stuff together, it's about being tied to your sketchbook and therefore experience, and then letting this turn into something personal and unique and thorough, even if creating a painting off of a sketch. Just don't go anywhere with out a pencil and paper, like water on a hot day. You'll be fine."

Okay... Here's a note that I wrote to add along while sharing to others about Scarytales Kickstarter Project:



Hello,

I've been excited watching this project come into fruition. Last year I illustrated a book for singer/songwriter Tracey Coryell called SCARYTALES. I've been excited for her, since it's been a project she's worked so long on, but also for myself in trying to make the magic in the pages "happen." While creating the drawings for this project I kept reminiscing over the illustrations that awed, inspired, SCARED, and INTRIGUED me while growing up. I kept thinking about the illustrations for Alvin Schwartz's "SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK." Recalled when I was a pre-teen at the library pouring through “MAN. MYTH, AND MAGIC” illustrated encyclopedias and “THE ENCHANTED WORLD” Time Life Series; how I was obsessed over Michael Whelan’s cover illustration of “THE BEST OF H.P. LOVECRAFT: BLOODCURDLING TALES OF HORROR AND THE MACABRE". My curiosity for the macabre grew in me a respect and love for a well-crafted suspense novel; literature that spooked me and had me turning the page to find out what happens next.... I think overall, what left lasting impressions on me were the illustrations from these books. I kept thinking, is there going to be a generation of readers, who would read Tracey's book and the lasting impression that would stick with them are the illustrations that I drew? Egotistical, I know, but I can't help but to think of that and how exciting it is. To inspire others to "get scared" and "read on."

Tracey Coryell shares her "darker side" with Scarytales. It is a series of nine beautifully written short, scary stories for all ages. They are accompanied by a narrated audio cd with soundtrack.

Tracey and her husband, Larry created a kickstarter project that includes a humble promo video to help further see this book into production and we're looking for those who can help with pledges. You can read more about the project and/or pledge at the link SHARED. A pledge of $1 or more gets your name and/or company listed on their website. $5 or more gets you an autographed Scarytales poster. $10 or more gets you an autographed audio cd of Scarytales. $35 or more you get an autographed book complete with audio cd.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/153572387/scarytales

I've heard some of the demos for the narrative audio cd. They're haunting and mesmerizing. I also, can't wait to her the finalized versions!

THANK YOU for taking the time to read all of this.

Please share this message.

CHEERS!,
Angel

No new artwork since I created the MMP award. I'm experience a lack of energy and motivation lately. I need to get on it. Also didn't have the energy to submit anything for the Xeric Grant. But the comic needs to be finished by August since I have a show coming up then with another artist; Hoping to bring in a graphic novel/comic aspect to this show.

My desires right now, as mentioned in a previous post:

• Peerless Watercolor Paks.
• Aqua Brushes.
• Moleskine Watercolor Journal.
• Time.
• Energy.
• Focus.
• Stamina.
• Zen.

In the meantime, I got this necklace for myself, as a reminder.

My friend, Jodi...

I "finished" one of the Club Bart pieces last night. But I am completely unsatisfied. I feel the need to practice more self-control when I use my pen to define the shapes. I went slap happy & the piece was officially over after I sprayed the crystal clear acrylic. Ink began to bleed together and got even more dark. TOO DARK.



I want to experiment more with not relying on my pen to define the shapes & get more used to shaping with just the colors. So I'm going to do this piece all over again; Less pen, more watercolor, with more understanding of the light, the shades of pink and red....white.

BUT FIRST, going to put that piece aside and work on the comic. My goal is to finish in time for the Xeric Grant deadline on February 26th. I'm probably not going to make it since I'm teaching again and it tires me out. It's hard to get a second wind, BUT I will have it finished before summer. Been on this for almost seven years and it's near completion. That's a good thing.

Moving on...

Here's a little wrap up video for the We Are Here show last October:





(Note: Depending what browser you might be using, the video might be cut off on the screen. You might get a better view by clicking on the video and watching it on the youtube page.)

Here are some images and detailed scans I took of the piece I created as a custom award for the 2011 Short of The Year for The Movie Mitten Project. The film that won was Amendment. No one, including the director showed up for the January Movie Mitten Project screening. So I don't know what they thought of it. Anyway, I hope they like it. The film was amazing and deserved to have won.

I created the piece using a wooden box that I stained and finished. I created a paper butterfly since a butterfly is shown throughout the movie. Plays somewhat a symbolic and important role.

Most of the illustrations are based off of still shots I took from the film. The cinematography is gorgeous, so I had decided to draw some chosen shots in my own style.









I've enjoyed using a power drill, to drill the illustrations into the small wooden plaques. I also stained and finished these wooden plaques. I want to brainstorm more ways I can make use of my new found love to play with a power drill.



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