On Fandom, Fan Art, and Being a Big Dorky Fangirl
Posted on June 20th, 2012
S is for Sherlock, Baker Street Tinies art by Amy Crook
By Starlight by Amy Crook
I sometimes think I’ve always been a fan of something. I remember getting into reading Star Trek books when I was maybe 12, but before that it was Stephen King and my big horror phase at 10, and before that I read every Nancy Drew book the library had, and all the Oz books (did you know it was a series?), and the Narnia books, and… Yeah.
I’ve always lived best in other people’s worlds. Even though every one of the things I named above, and every one of the things I’m a fan of now is problematic in some way, that doesn’t diminish my love for them.
Doctor Who
Bookmark 1
by Amy crook
As an artist, it’s always been a calling to me to draw or paint the things I was a fan of. I remember when I was younger, drawing ridiculously detailed pencil art from posters of the bands and actors I swooned over as a pre-teen. And now I’m nearly 40, and I still draw and paint things out of other people’s worlds, other people’s imaginations.
Transformative works are everywhere we look these days. From Sherlock to The Avengers, the new anthologies of stories in the Cthulhu Mythos and the explosion of unlicensed fanworks online (note: yes, the stuff here goes in that category), people are looking back through the things that came before, rifling through the imaginations of the past to build a foundation for the things they make now.
I love it.
Every once in a while I roll my eyes at the endless sequels and remakes and book-to-movie adaptations, but in truth it’s more Sturgeon’s Law (90% of everything is crap) I’m disparaging than the desire to depict Shakespeare as high school drama or make stylized movie posters for films from a different era.
So, I’ve embraced my dorky fangirl heritage, and in amongst the abstract salt paintings and tentacles you’ll find cartoon monsters out of someone else’s imagination and other pastiches of my favorite things.
I’ll just try not to do too much that falls into that bottom 90%.
Weeble Voldemort cartoon by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Things I'm a Fan Of, Words Words Words
Tags: info, why, words
Seekers
Posted on June 19th, 2012
“Who wins if It gets the Snitch?”
Seekers, Harry Potter art by Amy Crook
I’ve done so many paintings of tentacles rising up from mysterious depths that I thought it might be fun to do a set striving for the heights instead. These pale, half-translucent tentacles are reaching toward an errant Golden Snitch, and disrupting someone’s game of Quidditch.
If it’s not one thing, it’s another. Just ask Harry Potter.
Seekers, 4″x8″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Seekers, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the Golden Snitch next to an ordinary dime for scale. Tiny, tiny scale. Below, for a different sort of scale, I’ve temporarily put the painting in a standard 8″x10″ frame so you can imagine how it would fit into your home. Because it totally would fit into your home. I mean, doesn’t everyone need tentacles?
Seekers, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Tentacles, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: for sale, Harry Potter, tentacles, tiny fandom, watercolor
Adrift
Posted on June 18th, 2012
“You’re sure you know where we’re going?”
Adrift, Doctor Who art by Amy Crook
After doing Mario’s Cave, I started to get more ideas for putting tiny bits of the things I’m a fan of into my paintings in a meaningful, interesting way. Tomorrow’s is actually the next one I thought of, but I’m saving it for the traditional day. This one I painted the pattern of waves-or-maybe-scales, and then staring at it I thought, I could put a TARDIS, just there.
Floating adrift on a sea of scales-or-maybe-waves seems like just the sort of trouble the Doctor would get himself into.
Adrift, 8″x4″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Adrift, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the actual size of the wee TARDIS next to a dime, though the actual colors are not quite so brightly cyan as all that. Below, I’ve temporarily tucked it into a 10″x8″ frame to show you how it might look.
Adrift, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: doctor who, for sale, tiny fandom, watercolor
Sharpie Week: Spiderweb
Posted on June 17th, 2012
Sharpie Spiderweb sketch by Amy Crook
And so Sharpie Week comes to a close on a Goth sort of note, with a little spiderweb out of my sketchbook done in black fine point Sharpie.
I hope you are all having a cool and relaxing Sunday, and that the weather apps aren’t lying to me and today is cool for me, as well. Whew.
Categories: Daily Art, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: nfs, sharpie, sharpie week, spider, spiderweb
Sharpie Week: Fraggle
Posted on June 16th, 2012
Sharpie Fraggle sketch by Amy Crook
Dance your cares away, it’s Saturday! A generic Fraggle for those of you who actually remember Fraggle Rock.
My favorite character on that show is, of course, Mokey Fraggle. Who’s yours?
Categories: Daily Art, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: fraggle rock, nfs, sharpie, sharpie week
Sharpie Week: Green Bear
Posted on June 15th, 2012
Sharpie Green Bear sketch by Amy Crook
I saw some plushies a bit like this in Japantown the other day, so I was inspired to scribble this little guy.
Look out! Rawr!
Categories: Daily Art, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: green, nfs, sharpie, sharpie week
Sharpie Week: Golden Snitch
Posted on June 14th, 2012
Sharpie Golden Snitch sketch by Amy Crook
My house guest has flown back to DC, and I’ve got one more day of vacation plans before it’s back to the grind. Actually there’ll be a little grind today, since I’ve got a teleclass, but we’re pretending that’s just not the case at the moment. Much like how we’re pretending that the above Snitch is actually round.
Also, my cats say hi, and want you to know that I’m never allowed to leave the house again.
Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: Harry Potter, nfs, sharpie, sharpie week
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