Crowned Skull
Posted on June 10th, 2013
Crowned Skull by Amy Crook
After drawing yesterday’s bookmark, I decided to draw a big version of the same image. I actually have a Halloween model skull on my bookshelf, wearing the paper crown out of a Christmas cracker, so he’s been the inspiration and model. His name is Sherrinford, because of reasons.
Personally, I think he would appeal to fans of Game of Thrones, given how everyone dies while George RR Martin drinks your tears.
Crowned Skull, 5″x7″ pencil, pen & ink and water brush on paper.
Crowned Skull, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the way the black ink separates into greys, blues and browns when I use the water brush to create shading. Below, you can see him in a frame, looking regal and tragic with my iPhone for moral support. Well, and size reference.
Crowned Skull, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: for sale, pen and ink, pencil, skull, water brush
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Skull Bookmark 3
Posted on June 9th, 2013
Skull Bookmark 3
by Amy Crook
There was originally a skull bookmark in this set, and it wasn’t this one! That one got claimed by someone on my list, and someone else asked me to try to recreate it, so I did two more and she picked her favorite. So here is number three, pen and ink and water brush scribbled and smeared on comic backing board. I ended up also doing a full-sized crowned skull as a result of all this thinking about it, which you’ll get to see this coming week.
Skull Bookmark 3, 2″x6.5″ pen & ink and water brush on paper.
Skull Bookmark 3, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the skull itself up close. This ink tends to bleed out just a bit of blue and brown when it’s wet, so there’s a subtle undertone of color to the pieces that I really enjoy. Below, it’s sitting with my trusty book, and you can see it’s one of the largest of this set.
Skull Bookmark 3, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, book never included in anything)
Categories: Daily Art, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: bookmark, buy a bookmark, for sale, pen and ink, skull
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Harvest Bookmark
Posted on June 8th, 2013
Harvest Bookmark by Amy Crook
Today’s bookmark started life as a color study for last Friday’s art, Harvest, which in the long run I decided not to color at all. I finished this off with a bit of extra inking anyway, and added it to the pile of bookmarks. I like the warm glow of the big moon and the subtle browns on the figure and background, especially with the bit of added texture on the ground.
Harvest Bookmark, 2″x3″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper, nfs (sold).
Harvest Bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the texture in the paper, and the crosshatching on the burlap hood. One of the reasons I decided not to color the original piece was to keep the ambiguity as to whether it was a scarecrow or a person being lit by the big harvest moon. Below, the squat little bookmark is resting on the book, looking small and mysterious.
Harvest Bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, do not harvest the book)
Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: bookmark, crosshatching, pen and ink, watercolor
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Spiral Bookmark 7
Posted on June 7th, 2013
Spiral Bookmark 7
by Amy Crook
I couldn’t resist putting #7 on the 7th, so here are three lovely coppery spirals on a background of black paper with dark purple stripes. The paint is a metallic called “duochrome” that shows different colors from different angles, orangey bright from some angles and a more rose-tinted copper from others. I suppose one of these days I ought to do a, “why spirals?” post, but I’m not sure I could adequately answer the question.
Spiral Bookmark 7, 1.5″x4″ watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Spiral Bookmark 7, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see that I took this over to the window so you’d get the full effect of sunlight, making the spirals shine and the purple deep shadows against the paper. This soft paper is actually made for printmaking, and they create the black color with a chemical reaction in the paper pulp so it’s lightfast and won’t ever fade beyond the rich, deep charcoal. Below, you can see it hanging out with my book, being mysterious.
Spiral Bookmark 7, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, book wishes to remain mysterious)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, buy a bookmark, duochrome, for sale, spirals, watercolor
Pattern Bookmark 1
Posted on June 6th, 2013
Pattern Bookmark 1 by Amy Crook
I decided that, since I am clearly going to keep experimenting with the imperfect art of hand-drawn repeating patterns, I might as well just call it a series starting with this one. This was drawn with my favorite scribbly fountain pen on archival comic backing board, and then shaded with a waterbrush to carry the ink throughout the pattern. It reminds me of some of the patterns on the dwarves’ clothing in The Hobbit, geometric and individual but not too complex.
Pattern Bookmark 1, 4.5″x1″ pen & ink on paper, nfs (sold).
Pattern Bookmark 1, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close up of the middle section of the pattern, containing almost one whole repeat though it goes off the edges. Below, you can see this bookmark with a hardcover book, looking quite petite.
Pattern Bookmark 1, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, do not covet the book)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, pattern, pen and ink
Daffodils Bookmark
Posted on June 5th, 2013
Daffodils Bookmark
by Amy Crook
Have a bit of sunshine for you Wednesday! This cheerful little bookmark is done entirely with Japanese colored fountain pens on a coated archival inkjet paper. I used a waterbrush to add just a tiny bit of blue shading to the sky, green to the leaves and gold to the flowers by blurring out the ink, but as you can see the coating keeps it from being anything but a very soft, subtle background glow. This cheerful little bookmark is quite small, perfect for a paperback.
Daffodils Bookmark, 1″x4″ pen & ink on paper, nfs (sold).
Daffodils bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the cute little ladybug adding a bit of delight to this bookmark. Below, you can see it atop a hardcover book, for scale.
Daffodils Bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, grow your own)
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, nfs, pen and ink, sold
Tentacle Bookmark 5
Posted on June 4th, 2013
Tentacle Bookmark 5 by Amy Crook
Scribbly purple tentacles come in from all sides of this bookmark, which has a soft, grainy wash of reddish violet for its background. It’s quite small, drawn on stiff archival comic backing board, and would make an excellent accompaniment to a book by HP Lovecraft.
Tentacle Bookmark 5, 4″x1″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper, nfs (sold).
Tentacle Bookmark 5, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the spiraling purple tentacles up close, the ink going from dense to loose around the curls. Below, you can see the bookmark nestled up to a big hardcover book, looking all dainty.
Tentacle Bookmark 5, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, tentacles are enough for anyone)
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books, Tentacles
Tags: bookmark, iridescent, pen and ink, watercolor
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