H is for (Mrs) Hudson
Posted on April 16th, 2014
H is for (Mrs.) Hudson by Amy Crook
Now that the dreaded season of taxes is past, let’s get back to a more cheerful subject — death! I’ve finally completed the next pair of characters in my Baker Street Tinies series of parody pastiches. First up is poor Mrs. Hudson, who should know better than to open Sherlock’s packages.
Her pose and predicament is from “T is for Titus,” in the original Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey, but the wallpaper is from the show (the weird lamp is all me). There was something strangely satisfying about drawing all those birds and branches for the express purpose of implying they’d be demolished shortly.
H is for (Mrs.) Hudson, 8.5″x5.5″ pen & ink on paper.
The original was a commission (I’m trading with a knitty friend for the best shawl ever), but she’s kindly allowed me to sell them as greeting cards in my Etsy shop.
Molly & Mrs Hudson Baker Street Tinies cards on Etsy by Amy Crook
Categories: Card Design, Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: baker street tinies, crosshatching, edward gorey, mrs hudson, nfs, pastiche, pen and ink, sherlock, sold
Doubly Logical
Posted on April 10th, 2014
Doubly Logical, a Star Trek parody comic by Amy Crook
After I drew this birthday card for Tara, I wanted something similar for my Etsy shop, but not exactly the same. I decided to double down on the Spock and add in Spock Prime with a bonus pair of Vulcan salutes. Live Long and Prosper, indeed!
The original sold to my Patron’s List about two seconds after I sent out the email — the advantage of living in the future for my Asian & Aussie people is that they get my midnight emails at a reasonable hour. But you can still get on a greeting card at Etsy, complete with birthday felicitations!
Doubly Logical, pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Spock birthday card by Amy Crook on Etsy
Categories: Card Design, Floating Gallery, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: copic marker, etsy, pen and ink, sold, spock, star trek
Splash 2
Posted on April 8th, 2014
Splash 2, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook
You may be wondering what happened to the first Splash, and the answer to that is that the artist didn’t take off the masking tape in time, oops. Still, I really love this second version — it’s got a lot of delightfully layered texture reminiscent of waves breaking over and over, plus if you turn it on its side you can kind of see Godzilla.
I was playing with implied boundaries here, and also testing the color gamut on my printer — I’m sad to say that this doesn’t reprint well at all, because the delicate shadings of blue and turquoise turn to cyan mush.
Splash 2, 8″x8″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Splash 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up that shows the layers of color and texture that give this work its depth and beauty. Below, you can see it in a frame, brightly lit by the spring sunshine.
Splash 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes
Tags: blue, for sale, godzilla, splash, turquoise, watercolor
Quilted
Posted on April 7th, 2014
Quilted, abstract art by Amy Crook
This piece started out life as a test for my new Zebra brush pens (in three sizes, woo!), something to doodle while I was on a conference call. I liked the progression of patterns so much I pulled out my travel kit of watercolors and played around long after the call was over, giving each section its own distinct color and texture, but letting them blend a little where they bordered each other.
It reminds me of a quilt, with the bright patterned sections that don’t match, but somehow go together. Thus, the name!
Quilted, 8″x4″ pen & ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Quilted, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the middle section, the two shades of red in a big swath bordered by orange fading to white on one side, and white fading to blue on the other. Below, I’ve temporarily put it in a frame — for these little odd-sized pieces, I think it looks nice to put it on a mat with transparent photo corners in a slightly larger frame.
Quilted, framed art by Amy Crook
Want to get an early peek at the art next month? Join my Patron’s List!
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: doodles, for sale, pen and ink, watercolor
Lurker in the Depths
Posted on April 6th, 2014
Lurker in the Depths by Amy Crook
Most of this seahorse is pale, like a creature evolved in a place where there’s little to no light, but his fin is decorated with a rather morbid splash of red. His eye swirls with yellow and white, making him look blind. He lurks in the swirling waters next to a barnacle-bedecked skull.
Despite all these rather ghoulish details, there’s an adorable sort of whimsy to him. Go figure.
Lurker in the Depths, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Lurker in the Depths, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see some of the subtle detail in the seahorse, his creepy yellow-tinged eye and the blue shadows on his pale body. Below, you can see him in a frame, hanging out with a squid.
Lurker in the Depths, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: copic marker, for sale, pen and ink, seahorses, skull
Burglar
Posted on April 5th, 2014
Burglar, The Hobbit parody comic by Amy Crook
Amidst the piles of shining gold, Bilbo Baggins is caught by the mighty red dragon, Smaug. But it’s not the Arkenstone that Smaug’s worried about — instead, he says, “Burglar, you’ve stolen my heart.” I suppose Bilbo should be glad he’s not lunch, though I’m not sure how he’s going to get out of this one.
Burglar, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper. The original is sold, but you can get a card to send to your own heart-stealing hobbit here.
Burglar greeting card by Amy Crook on Etsy
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Card Design, Floating Gallery, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: bilbo baggins, copic marker, dragon, etsy, hobbit, pen and ink, smaug, sold
Yearning
Posted on April 4th, 2014
Yearning, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook
Yearning might actually be my favorite piece out of April’s Floating Gallery. Everything about it is subtle, delicate, and incredibly hard to convey with photos and pixels, but I love it anyway. There’s just something about the two shapes and the way they strain to cross the void, sending out waves of yearning like a corona surrounding the core.
What are you longing for, in your silent, secret heart?
Yearning, 10″x8″ duochrome watercolor on watercolor paper.
Yearning, detail 1, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the upper left corner, turned to catch the sunlight and reveal the hidden treasures of color and light in its depths. Below, we have the lower right, cooler and more congruent but still sending those secret tendrils outward.
Yearning, detail 2, by Amy Crook
And finally, the piece in a frame, showing off the depth of texture in the paper, and hanging out with my iPhone for size comparison.
Yearning, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: duochrome, for sale, iridescent, splash, watercolor
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