Posts Tagged ‘tea’
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Tea sketch
Sunday, April 29th, 2012
Tea pencil sketch by Amy Crook
After the week I’ve had, I could use a good cuppa. Shall I pour you one, too?
Tags: nfs, pencil, sketch, tea
Posted in Daily Art, Things I'm a Fan Of | No Comments »
Tea Mug sketch
Sunday, March 11th, 2012
Tea Mug, sketch by Amy Crook
This little sketch christened my new pocket sketchbook! I drink my tea super cream-and-sugary (mmm half’n'half), so the white at the bottom is actually my drink. I didn’t let myself spend too long fussing over perspective or shading, so it’s got a funky slant I quite enjoy.
Have a cup on me this Sunday — what’s your favorite sort?
Tags: nfs, pencil, sketch, tea
Posted in Daily Art | 2 Comments »
Cuppa Watercolor
Monday, December 26th, 2011
Cuppa Watercolor by Amy Crook, $323
I painted this image with prints in mind, and then Photoshop and I had irreconcilable differences about the color. I managed to get a decent one made for a certain Christmas present, but I swear I wasn’t speaking to my Adobe products for a few days afterward.
Apparently one culprit is the bright teal paint I used for the cup, which is a color my scanner seems to hate, not to mention the issues it has with pale colors of any sort, such as the shadow under the spoon that’s been rendered invisible.
Regardless, I really liked how the original came out, a peaceful cup of tea brewing, just waiting to brighten up someone’s day.
Cuppa Watercolor, 6″x6″ watercolor on paper, $323 with free shipping.
Tags: for sale, tea, teal, watercolor
Posted in Daily Art, Shop - Whimsical and Strange, Whimsical and Strange | No Comments »
Mud Puddle
Friday, September 2nd, 2011
Mud Puddle by Amy Crook, $444
This is one of the last of my tea experiments from a few months ago. I had the piece sitting around for weeks and weeks not really being anything, until one day I was in a crosshatching mood and suddenly I saw it as a mud puddle just needing a grassy lawn all around it. The puddle itself was made of strong black tea, and the spots of texture were big crystals of salt, some of which had a bit of watercolor left on them to add a touch of color to the tea.
Mud Puddle, 5″x5″ mixed media on paper, $444, framed, with free shipping.
I spent a couple of hours putting in the green pen-and-ink grass around the tea puddle, and I took photos with my iPhone as it progressed (though I forgot to take a before shot, oops).
Mud Puddle, work in progress, by Amy Crook
When I’m working on a piece like this, I often spin it this way and that while I’m working to get a better angle for whatever I’m doing. Then, if it’s an abstract piece, I look at it in all four directions before I decide on which way is really up and sign it.
Mud Puddle, detail, by Amy Crook
There’s a bit of subtle sparkle in the area where some of the salt sat, but the chunks remained mostly intact instead of dissolving into the tea, so there’s no crystal formations beyond the tiny ones you can see above.
The frame I’ve got it in is a little lighter than it shows in the photo, though I’m considering one even a shade lighter to go better with the delicate tea-dyed puddle.
Mud Puddle, framed, by Amy Crook, $444
Tags: crosshatching, for sale, pen and ink, salt, tea, watercolor
Posted in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Shop - Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Shop - Flowers, Trees and Landscapes | No Comments »
Autumn Winds
Wednesday, August 24th, 2011
Autumn Winds by Amy Crook, $299
I’m saving the Weeble this week for Friday, so instead you get a windy Wednesday. This piece uses tea, salt, watercolor, and pen and ink to create a whirlwind of color and shapes that reminded me of leaves tumbling around and around in a little eddy of breeze. I added in the rust-red Japanese maple leaves to add color and strengthen that impression.
Autumn Winds, 7″x5″ mixed media on paper, $299, framed, with free shipping.
Here you can see a close-up of the spot where leaf and salt pool collide; I used my brown pen and very little color leeched out into the salt, making the pools a subtle addition of texture and sparkle rather than a focal color point.
Autumn Winds, detail, by Amy Crook
This piece looks great in its brown wooden frame, the colors really go well together. It will arrive at your door framed and in upcycled gift wrap, safely packaged for transit.
Autumn Winds, framed, by Amy Crook, $299
Tags: brown, for sale, leaves, orange, pen and ink, salt, tea, watercolor
Posted in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Shop - Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Shop - Flowers, Trees and Landscapes | 1 Comment »
Hibiscus Violet
Friday, August 12th, 2011
Hibiscus Violet, abstract art by Amy Crook, $99
Something about having painted the iridescent oils onto this watercolor postcard before gracing it with the hibiscus tea caused the tea to stop at a lovely violet mid-stage between the vibrant pink and soft blue of my other hibiscus pieces. I used salt to add some extra texture to the tea wash, but most of the texture comes from the peaks of dried oil paint.
This piece rides the edge of being busy, the harmonious color palette keeping it from being too random. I really like the way the paint shimmers in the light, but the areas of tea are a soft matte, which makes the paint seem to float above the background just a tiny bit.
Hibiscus Violet, 4″x6″ mixed media on watercolor postcard, $99, framed, with free shipping.
Here you can really see how the paint rises up from the page, and get a sense of the iridescent effect.
Hibiscus Violet, detail, by Amy Crook
I’ve put it in a simple black frame, you can see how the colors change depending on the light.
Hibiscus Violet, framed art by Amy Crook, $99
Tags: for sale, hibiscus, iridescent, oil paint, postcard, tea, violet
Posted in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Shop - Abstract and Just Plain Weird | No Comments »
Iridescence 3
Thursday, August 11th, 2011
Iridescence 3, abstract art by Amy Crook, $333
I admit, I wanted to post both of these in the same week because they feel like different sides of the same coin to me. They use similar color schemes and techniques, but where Iridescence 2 is all soft glowing colors and indistinct shapes, Iridescence 3 is all sharp-edged spirals and visible brush strokes.
Even the haloes of complementary color around each salt pool are sharper and more distinct than in the previous piece, with more areas of pure white paper peeking through as a result. I’m not sure which of the two I prefer, though this is the one I’ve got out on display right now.
Iridescence 3, 7″x5″ mixed media on watercolor paper, $333, framed, with free shipping.
This is a closeup of the green salt pool in the lower left, so you can really see how the paint is layered in distinct circles with watercolor’s characteristic dark, sharp edges.
Iridescence 3, detail, by Amy Crook
The bold black frame works really well with the blue-black and violet-black in the darkest, sharpest of the paint swirls, and protects the fragile salt crystals from damage.
Iridescence 3, framed, by Amy Crook, $333
Tags: blue, for sale, green, hibiscus, iridescence, pen and ink, purple, salt, tea, watercolor
Posted in Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books, Shop - Abstract and Just Plain Weird | No Comments »
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