Red Planet
Posted on June 1st, 2012
Red Planet, watercolor by Amy Crook
This piece is a combination of old ideas and new toys. I got some nifty waterbrushes to test out, and some new eyedroppers for my salt solution, and used them together to paint another planet. First I used the waterbrushes to paint in the circular wash in two shades of red, and then I added a few drops of salt solution to the mix while the paint was still wet and forced myself to set the whole thing aside to dry without any further interference.
There’s not a lot of sparkle in this one, mostly the salt created texture rather than crystals, but I love the way the texture looks like the surface of some far-away alien planet.
Red Planet, 8″x8″ salt and watercolor on paper.
Red Planet, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see the texture and a tiny bit of shine where the salt catches the light. Below, I’ve got it put in a wall frame (they don’t make many 8″x8″ standing frames), which can be yours for a small additional fee mostly relating to the shipping costs where you are.
Red Planet, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: for sale, pink, planet, red, salt, watercolor
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Thistledown
Posted on May 31st, 2012
Thistledown, watercolor by Amy Crook, $169
I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with this once I painted in the sky and the grass, but then the idea of thistles came into my head. I like the way the little sneaky bubbles in the grass echo the centers on the flowers, and of course these are the sort of thistles that stare at you. But don’t worry, I’m sure they’re thinking totally harmless flower-thoughts while they do. They’re not thinking about how they outnumber you at all.
Really.
Thistledown, 8″x4″ watercolor on paper, $169 with free shipping.
I slipped the piece into an 8″x10″ frame so you could get a sense of the scale, and of course I’d be happy to more permanently frame it for you for a small additional fee. Just drop me a line!
Thistledown, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: flowers, for sale, things that stare at you, watercolor
Why Tentacles?
Posted on May 30th, 2012
Tentacle Deeps 30 by Amy Crook
I’ve had some time to think about this question since I was asked at the STUDIO Gallery reception (the show’s now over but it was wonderful to be a part of it), and I’ve come up with some answers that are probably true some of the time. Your mileage may vary.
First off, tentacles are fun. I’ve said this before, but it’s probably the top reason I keep up with the series, just because I really enjoy doing it. The scribbly ones are fun to draw, the painted ones are fun to paint, and there’s still new things I can do with them that I haven’t done before.
Now that the shallow answer is out of the way, we can dip our toes a little deeper, though in the end the answer is still about fun. What can I say, I’m a fan of fun.
Being scared is fun.
It is when you know it’s harmless, anyway. And it’s wonderful to explore the edge where scary meets something else. I love things that are morbidly funny, frighteningly beautiful, or creepy-cute, just to name a few. It’s those ragged edges where tentacles are gorgeous and otherworldly and creeping into our thoughts like, well, tentacles, that keeps me coming back not just to the Tentacle Deeps series, but to weeble Cthulhu and logos with skulls on them and pendants of spiderwebs.
Real-life spiders give me the willies, but art that makes them fascinatingly lovely is amazing to me.
I enjoy taking people to that place where you go, “Huh, I never would’ve thought of that.” I like creating something that is, let’s be honest here, not just another fucking landscape. If I’m going to obsessively detail anything, I want it to be something interesting, fascinating and maybe even a little bit repellent, something funny or charming but also morbid and grim.
It may be that that narrows my audience to a very small sliver of people who, like me, enjoy seeing the horrific beauty in the tentacles that slide up from the depths for purposes unknown. But you can kind of guess they aren’t savory, that these strange alien arms reaching upward aren’t straining towards the surface of our world, our pond, our imaginations, for anything that’s good for our health.
But then, since when has anything that’s really fun been all that good for your health?
Tentacle Spiral 1 by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Tentacles, Words Words Words
Tags: info, tentacles, why
Tentacle Deeps 36
Posted on May 29th, 2012
Tentacle Deeps 36 by Amy Crook
This week’s art is all full of color, and the tentacles are no exception! A soft, granular periwinkle background plays host to rich teal tentacles, seven of which reach up for whatever mysterious light shines down from above. All this rich color is hard to represent online, but I do what I can to be as accurate as possible, at least on my monitor.
It’s hard to believe I’ve painted three dozen of these, but the proof is in the tag. I have a few more planned yet before I give up the series, so don’t fear for Tentacle Tuesday just yet.
Tentacle Deeps 36, 6″x6″ watercolor on paper.
Tentacle Deeps 36, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see my tradition tentacles-up detail photo. Below, I’ve temporarily tucked them into an 8″x10″ desk frame for photographing, with my iPhone for reference. If you’re wondering where the sticker went, it’s a whole new phone – the old one had an in-warranty mechanical issue, and so I have a brand new one in its place. New sticker soon, this time with Jellyfish!
Tentacle Deeps 36, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books, Tentacles
Tags: nfs, periwinkle, teal, tentacle deeps, tentacles
Flow
Posted on May 28th, 2012
Flow, abstract art by Amy Crook
This holiday Monday brings a piece that’s ironically about work, and getting into the flow of things. I actually painted the background for this upside-down, but I decided I liked the way it looked better the other way around once I got in the flow of working on it.
It reminds me a little of those desk toys with the two unmixing fluids that rock back and forth meditatively, creating waves where the two fluids meet. Something to put up at work to remind you that sometimes, all you have to do is look at things another way to get into the groove again.
Flow, 8″x4″ pen & ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Flow, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see some of the crosshatching up close, and the subtle variations in color and texture throughout the piece. Below, it’s been temporarily put in a 10″x8″ frame for scale. And now, by request, it’s also a computer wallpaper.
Flow, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Free Wallpapers
Tags: blue, crosshatching, for sale, green, pen and ink, spirals, watercolor
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Ogre sketch
Posted on May 27th, 2012
Ogre sketch by Amy Crook
Today’s sketch went into some nice person’s Cthulhu Coloring Book, or perhaps a Monster Heart one. It’s hard to remember sometimes. The Ogre was inspired by an episode of Grimm, one of the few shows I watch that wasn’t cancelled.
Happy Sunday!
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art
Tags: coloring book, nfs, pen and ink, sketch
Mother Hydra Weds Father Dagon
Posted on May 26th, 2012
Mother Hydra Weds Father Dagon, cartoon by Amy Crook
When I was done coloring this and Monday’s zombies, I realized that I’d managed to do only 2 drawings, but color 4 figures with 7 heads between them. Whew!
This one was also done specifically to be a card, this time to bring a little Cthulhu to your wedding season. Dagon is the big bad from Shadows Over Innsmouth, and while Lovecraft’s Hydra doesn’t get a lot of description, it was easy to adapt the classic many-headed monster of myth to this purpose. I especially enjoy the boutonniere pinned straight to Dagon’s chest.
Yeah, I’m a little morbid.
Mother Hydra Weds Father Dagon, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic markers on paper.
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: cartoon, copic marker, cthulhu, dagon, etsy, for sale, hydra, pen and ink, weeble
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