Antemortem Arts | Fine Art & Custom Paintings

Dichrome

Dichrome by Amy Crook

Despite the rather random way this image came about (and really, do my abstract pieces come about any other way?), I’m really in love with the stuttering flow of the paint and the subtle transition from warm orange to cool, soft blue. The salt pools came later, using a black ink that separates in water into brown and blue, which mixed beautifully with the pink Himalayan salt.

The swoop of paint reminds me of clouds at sunset, breaking up as they rise up into the sky, but then I’m not sure what the salt pools would become, though they were absolutely necessary for the visual balance of the piece.

Dichrome, 6″x6″ watercolor, ink and salt on paper, nfs (sold).

There’s a lot of variation in the salt pools this time around, and here you can really see the colors of them and how they echo the paint colors.

Dichrome, detail 1, by Amy Crook

And here’s another view of the same section that allows you to really appreciate the geometric crystals in the big pool, and the chunk of pink salt with its rough surfaces that’s nearby. I always find the close-up photos of the salt crystal formations fascinating.

Dichrome, detail 2, by Amy Crook

Tags: blue, nfs, orange, salt, sold, watercolor
Posted on January 19th, 2012 in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art | 2 Comments »

Like Sherlock Loves Crime Scenes

Like Sherlock Loves Crime Scenes by Amy Crook

I couldn’t resist doing a Sherlock & John cartoon to match the Like Mycroft Loves His Umbrella art from November. Both of these guys are now available as Valentines in my Etsy shop, and I’ll be adding a series of prints soon as well. I have to admit, I really enjoyed wrapping these two up in crime scene tape, it just seemed a natural fit.

Like Sherlock Loves Crime Scenes, 5″x7″ pen and ink and Copic markers on paper.

Tags: copic markers, pen and ink, sherlock, slash, watson
Posted on January 18th, 2012 in Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of | No Comments »

Get Well Squid

Get Well Squid by Amy Crook, $79

A friend of mine is in the hospital right now, so I drew up this little guy and printed him on a card to help cheer her up while she undergoes treatment. I’m not sure how he’s going to get that bottle of pills open without a helping hand, but he sure looks like he could use them, poor guy.

Get Well Squid, 5″x7″ pen and ink and Copic markers on paper, $79 for the original with free shipping, or get him on a card of your own at my Etsy shop.

Tags: cartoon, copic markers, for sale, pen and ink, squid, weeble
Posted on January 17th, 2012 in Daily Art, Sea Creatures, Tentacles, Whimsical and Strange | No Comments »

ATC: Flourish

Flourish, artist trading card by Amy Crook

I still have a bunch in my pack of Artist Trading Cards, so I decided to pull one out and just doodle a bit. Once I’d drawn in the little vine pattern in the corner, the word “flourish” sprung to mind so I went ahead and wrote it in messy calligraphy. Then I got out a brush and, using water and the ink already on the card, I smoothed out the shapes, and even ‘painted’ some new ones.

The whole thing has a feel of decorative whimsy, which goes quite well with the idea of adding flourishes, and also of flourishing in a more personal sense, at least for me. A life without whimsy or decoration would be awfully boring, after all.

Flourish, 3.5″x2.5″ ink on paper, nfs (but available for trading).

We actually had some sunshine this morning, so I took a photo and got a slightly better view of the very pale details in the middle of the card.

Flourish artist trading card, detail, by Amy Crook

Flourish, detail, by Amy Crook

If you’re an artist who makes ATCs of your own, and are coveting this one, let me know!

Tags: aceo, atc, brush and ink, calligraphy, decorative, pen and ink
Posted on January 16th, 2012 in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art | No Comments »

Tentacle Monster Too

Tentacle Monster Too sketch by Amy Crook

Another silly doodle from a Coloring Book, this guy knows how to keep an eye on his dinner.

Enjoy your weekend!

Tags: coloring book, pen and ink, sketch, tentacles
Posted on January 14th, 2012 in Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Tentacles | No Comments »

L is for Lestrade

L is for Lestrade by Amy Crook

Happy Friday the 13th! I bring you a fourth adorably morbid installment in my Baker Street Tinies Edward Gorey/Sherlock pastiche commissions. Lestrade is taken directly from H is for Hector in the original book, though Hector wasn’t texting at the time of his untimely demise.

I highly recommend clicking to see the image larger, if only so you can appreciate my absurdly painstaking work. The original is sold, but there are cards (and soon prints) available in my Etsy shop.

L is for Lestrade, 8.5″x5.5″ pen and ink on paper, sold.

Tags: baker street tinies, crosshatching, edward gorey, lestrade, nfs, pastiche, pen and ink, sherlock
Posted on January 13th, 2012 in Completed Commissions, Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange | No Comments »

Green Blue Violet

Green Blue Violet, abstract art by Amy Crook, $199

In contrast to the warm, cheerful harmony of Red Orange Yellow, today’s piece has the spiky green and swirly blue fighting over the tiny violet salt pools. Both of the paint colors were quite granulating, giving a rich texture to the large areas, and interesting color variation where the paint separated. The salt pools also had separating paint, the rich violet turning to pink salt and blue-violet spirals.

Green Blue Violet, 8″x8″ watercolor and salt on paper, $199 framed, with free shipping.

Here you can see the midnight blue swirling around one of the last salt pools it’s captured, with the earthy, grass-stain green just barely visible in the background.