CATS, VALUE, AND COMPOSITION

I have been reading some great books on composition, and have been practising with paintings of my cat Harpo.

FRIENDLY PORTRAITS

A friend of a friend has is organizing an art show and told me I should submit my work. I was initially way too nervous, but eventually got around to working on it.

I wanted to make abstract portraits of a few of my friends, where their eyes and hair are really precise, and the rest is kind of a blob, because i figured you could still recognize the person from their eyes and hair.

What I ended up working on wasn't really what I had initially imagined, but I'm happy with how they turned out anyway.

I have one more I will be working on and then I will submit them!

I enjoyed making them a lot, and with the holidays coming up I was trying to add items to my Etsy shop that would make good gifts. I think "custom magical portraits" would make a nice gift!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

Now that the Thanksgiving festivities are over, I am feeling inspired and energetic.
Yesterday Eric and I took a beautiful fall walk, and saw a lot of amazing pigeons (I then made him write down "PIGEON" so I would remember to draw one).

So here is a little pigeon. Their colours are really incredible. I always said if I could go back to my first year of university when we had to make a dress based on a theme, I could change my theme to PIGEONS and make something really iridescent and incredible.

DRAWING PRINCESSES

I think this piece is finally done, but I might go back to it eventually and add more detail. I am REALLY happy with the coral around the bottom edges of the illustration. Definitely my most detailed and complete piece to date.

Also, today I quickly drew this princess.

FLOWERS & BUNNIES

I have been making a lot of progress on the flower book now that I have switched to working on it digitally.

Today I am working on a page that I was dying to draw, because it gives me a bit of a break from drawing flowers, to draw.... A BUNNY!

FANCY EARL ILLUSTRATION

This is one of those pieces that I could work on forever until it is completely overworked and horrible, so I think I need to stop (it's killing me though). This is the final piece, I am going to print it today and hopefully it looks beautiful!

MAGIC BOX HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT #1

I have finally gotten around to starting my first assignment for Chris Oatley's MAGIC BOX course. The assignment is about atmospheric lighting and colour comps, and for some reason the assignment is to combine a funny animal with the outfit and lighting from an old painted portrait.

I don't know any animals that are funnier than my dad's dog EARL.

I can't stop laughing as I work on this ridiculous portrait of Earl in a dress with a dainty hand on his cheek. Just ridiculous.

NEW WEBSITE IN THE WORKS

Yesterday I signed up for a 2 week trial with SQUARESPACE, which allows you to design your website but it is not viewable to the public until you start paying the monthly amount. So far I love it. It is super easy to design a beautiful website through it. So far i am keeping the website really simple.

I have also been working on the final wolf illustration from the wolf colour comps. I want it to look messy and sort of frantic, but I think it needs a bit more work (and some sort of background element... no ideas yet). Here it is so far:

Also working on some simple practise poses - they're quick to do and great practise so I might try to do 5-7 a week. (Ignore the horrible claw hand)And another!

WORKING FROM HOME: WEEK 3

On Friday I went and printed out all of the work I have done in the last 2 weeks, (that sounded like it was a lot... it was 5 pages). It's really nice to see your work on paper rather than a screen. The illustration of the girl from the last post printed BEAUTIFULLY. The colour were so vivid, and it is shocking to me that I created something so bright. I usually stay away from bright colours.

This week I have decided to work on the Illustration Friday theme, which is "TOTEM". I'm going to be drawing a dad with kids and pets hanging off of him, looking sort of like a totem pole (and it will also give me practise drawing people, which I NEED).

So this is where it is at right now: (please ignore the zombie eyes, I'm getting to them)

Also, I read a beautiful children's book this week.

MIGRANT illustrated by ISABELLE ARSENAULT

Edit: Almost forgot I have been working on colour comps for a little wolf illo:

EDIT 2: COMPLETE!

WORKING FROM HOME: WEEK 1

I have had a really successful week working 9-5 from my little basement apartment. I wake up feeling excited and inspired, and I am finding it very difficult to pull myself away from the computer at the end of the "work day".

I am currently taking Chris Oatley's Magic Box course online, and I am already learning so much just one lesson in. It has also provided me with access to a forum of artists sharing and discussing their work and process. SO INSPIRING. The above piece is something I was working on to develop atmospheric lighting. I will probably do a few more pieces using the techniques I have learned and post them over the next few weeks.

I am also working on copying masters paintings to practise digital painting and learn to make more deliberate brush strokes and use a more sophisticated colour palette. My first attempt is coming out pretty rough, but the process is teaching me about light and shadow and mixing colours. I am going to be doing a few of these so they will only get better.

I have also been collecting inspiring children's books from the library (if you follow me on Twitter you have seen my daily tweets about these). These are a few of the books I have been inspired by this week:

BRIAN WILDSMITH'S FAVOURITE FABLES:



COSMO AND THE ROBOT - BRIAN PINKEY:

I LIKE OLD CLOTHES - PATRICE BARTON:

And finally I have been working on a children's book with a friend of mine, about flowers! Here is a peak of some cute bumblebees. Done in acrylic and magic.