Shrimp-Crossed Lovers
Posted on January 11th, 2014
Shrimp-Crossed Lovers, comic by Amy Crook
The fates are conspiring to keep these two lovers apart, but they’ve used their shrimp treats to express their devotion. Will someone buy them both and put them in the same tank, or are they doomed to live forever alone?
You can get a Valentine at Etsy to show that long-distance love how much you miss them. With shrimp.
Shrimp-Crossed Lovers, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Shrimp-Crossed Lovers Valentine at Etsy by Amy Crook
Categories: Card Design, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Tentacles, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: copic marker, etsy, nfs, octopus, pen and ink, sold, squid, valentine
Roil
Posted on January 10th, 2014
Roil, abstract art by Amy Crook
What can I really say about this painting? It started out with a completely different idea, and once I let go of the image I had for it I was able to make something I really love. It’s got layers of color, texture and sparkle. The shapes are partly chaos and partly deliberate. It’s also the first painting I finished this year — I even remembered to write AC2014 instead of 2013!
Roil, 4″x6″ watercolor and duochrome watercolor on watercolor paper.
Roil, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight glittering off some of the secret bits of sparkle hiding in the bottom of the painting. Below, it’s in a frame with my iPhone for size reference.
Roil, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: duochrome, iridescent, more cowbell, nfs, watercolor
Cross Section
Posted on January 9th, 2014
Cross Section, abstract art by Amy Crook
I don’t do a lot with brown. I’ve never been that fond of the warm end of the scale, especially anything orange-toned, and browns usually have a lot of orange in them. But this time I wanted to give it a shot, so I used a rich terra cotta red-brown paint and a dark, sepia-like brown fountain pen to give this painting its grounded palette.
The brown ink is dye-based and fugitive, which means it’ll fade over time. I took advantage of this and put the piece in the sun for a few days, then used water to fade out the lines around the right edge, and faded it in the sun some more. The lines where the ink wasn’t watered down faded far less, which should be interesting if the new owner keeps it in a sunny spot.
Cross Section, 5″x5″ pen & ink and watercolor on Arches cover white paper.
Cross Section, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close up of the lower right corner with its sun-faded lines. Below, you can see the piece in a black frame, though I suspect it’d look nicer in a deep, warm brown.
Cross Section, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: for sale, pen and ink, watercolor
Death of a Comet
Posted on January 8th, 2014
Death of a Comet, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook
This painting feels a little like a Rorschach blot to me — I look and see ephemera, fleeting beauty, something that will melt or shift or fade away. Frost on a dark window. Clouds lit up against a midnight sky. Or the comet ISON that it’s named for, breaking up in the blackness of space after flying, Icarus-like, too close to the sun.
What do you see?
Death of a Comet, 7″x5″ iridescent watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Death of a Comet, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the way the iridescent paint seems to float above the black paper. This paper is made by setting off a chemical process in the paper pulp rather than dying, so the color will stay a rich, soft black for years. Below, you can see it contrast with the shining paint in sunlight, blossoming in the simple frame.
Death of a Comet, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: black paper, iridescent, nfs, sold, watercolor
Shadow
Posted on January 7th, 2014
Shadow, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook
This is really more of a zen spiral than a circle, but the softly broken brush strokes at the top make me think of a zen circle anyway. The pigments pooled and settled with the texture of the paper, giving it more detail than you would think for such a small, simple painting.
Everything about this painting is subtle, muted, desaturated. It makes me think of shadows on a cloudy day, softened by the lack of direct light but still there if you think to look.
Shadow, 5″x5″ watercolor on watercolor paper.
Shadow, detail, by Amy Crook
The photo above is tinged blue by the sun, but you can still see the textures of paper and paint, and how they interact to create layers of detail. Below, you can see it in a frame, hanging out with my cell phone for size.
Shadow, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: for sale, watercolor, zen circle
Hobbits Love Cherries
Posted on January 3rd, 2014
“You’re as sweet as a bowl full of cherries!”
The Hobbit parody art by Amy Crook
Bilbo Baggins has a flower-petal bowl full of summer goodness — cherries are perfectly appropriate to Middle Earth New Zealand this time of year! He thinks you’re just as sweet as those luscious little fruits, and I’m inclined to agree.
He’s not for sale, though, so if you want to share his sentiment with someone you love, you’ll have to get him on a card in my Etsy shop.
Hobbits Love Cherries, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Hobbit Valentine by Amy Crook on Etsy
Categories: Card Design, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: bilbo baggins, copic marker, etsy, hobbit, nfs, pen and ink
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Tea is Love
Posted on January 2nd, 2014
Tea is Love, Sherlock parody art by Amy Crook
There’s just something special about that person who makes you tea when they make their own without being asked. Despite the contentious onscreen friendship, I’ve always thought there must be quiet moments at 221b Baker Street where John and Sherlock get along.
You can get this sweet image as one of this year’s Valentines in my Etsy shop, and give it to someone else you adore to show you appreciate the little things they do for you. Or to suggest they make you tea* more often. One of those.
Tea is Love, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Sherlock Valentine by Amy Crook
(hedgehog not included)
*I’d love a cup of Earl Grey, thanks.
Categories: Card Design, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: copic marker, etsy, john watson, nfs, pen and ink, sherlock, sherlock bbc, sherlock holmes, sold, tea
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