Blog « Antemortem Arts | Fine Art & Custom Paintings

GPS

Posted on September 3rd, 2020

GPS, 6″x4″ watercolor on black paper

If you’re not looking for murder, perhaps some direction will do.

This is a GPS satellite, painted for a calendar cover to represent both technology and direction needed in 2021. The sunrise is just glinting over the curve of the earth in the background, a reminder that the sun continues to rise, and the atmosphere that we breathe is the thinnest of layers between us and the void.

It’s painted in metallic and opaque watercolors on black paper, so the sky is an even, velvety charcoal studded with distant stars.

GPS, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the gold of dawn just starting to glint over the Earth’s horizon. Below, the whole of space is laid out in a frame, just waiting to go to its forever home.

GPS, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, commission, for sale, gouache, japanese watercolor, metallic, space, watercolor

Blue Moon Murder

Posted on September 2nd, 2020

Blue Moon Murder, 8″x8″ watercolor on paper

This piece is in a category I call “more cowbell.” I took an older Blue Moon painting and put a bird on it. Or three, to be accurate.

It’s a small murder, but it checks out.

There’s a rich texture both on the paper and in the paint here, with the black sky and haloed moon both highlighting and concealing the crows. They’ve got some gorgeous blue and violet in their feathers, especially the two in the shadows, and their eyes contain a tiny glint of iridescent paint.

Doesn’t your life need a little murder?

Blue Moon Murder, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the crows, shadow on shadow, their purple-blue plumage fading into the textured black night sky. Below, they’re trapped in a frame like a view out a window that doesn’t exist.

Blue Moon Murder, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: blue moon, crow, for sale, iridescent, more cowbell, murder of crows, watercolor

June 2020 Patreon Sketches

Posted on August 28th, 2020

I took some time off in July to have a lot of migraines, so that was great, but I’m feeling better now despite the state being on fire and everything, and hey, my theme of Black Lives Matter for those prompts is really still relevant, so here we go:

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

Corinne wanted a BLM emoji for Slack, so I’ll be combining this with a Pride abstract I painted back in June for the actual finished item.
Kim asked for Scary Anglerfish in July, and since she hadn’t made a June request she got this guy

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

Amy B asked for “no Pride without Marsha P. Johnson” and I found a great photo of her with a big hat.
Roxanne asked to be surprised with a black MCU character, so the Falcon flew in to say Black Lives Matter.
Jeff asked for George Washington Carver, and there’s a lot of dumb jokes in here since he invented a ton of peanut products but not peanut butter, and also a subtle dig on the whole gif pronunciation debate.
Rebecca S asked for Justice, and got this “No Justice, No Peace” word art.

Thank you for the support and patience of all my wonderful patrons, who keep me in tea and paint and cat food! You can be one of them here.

Categories: Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: aceo, angler fish, black lives matter, copic marker, corinne, gay pride, kim, mcu, pen and ink, posca marker, sam wilson, trans pride, watercolor, word art

May 2020 Patron Sketches

Posted on July 24th, 2020

Everything is late and slow right now, please be kind to your artist! All of these got posted publicly to my Patreon when they were finished, and were drawn/painted by request of my lovely supporters there. Consider joining up as a supporter if you have a few dollars a month to spare!

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

Amber asked for “I’m melting!” and got Ditto for, uh, reasons
Amy B asked for a bat and got this silhouetted fruit bat
Rey asked for Patience and I couldn’t resist making it a bit golden

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

Another kitty portrait for Corinne, this time Gramsci being longcat
“Brain Fog” for Kim

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

Rebecca was wondering what Bucky was up to, so I put him in a coffee shop AU. This IS his customer service face, tyvm.
Eric asked for a MerMay Cloud Strife, and yeah, I dunno. Emo boy is emo.

ACEO sketches by Amy Crook for Patreon supporters

PG asked for a porcupine, and got this fellow and his bad hair day.
Deinvati asked for Shark and knew exactly what she was gonna get. It’s DC canon now, don’t blame me. It’s naughty, so click to see a less-censored version. Mom, don’t look! XD Uncensored version linked here with more, uh, related art.
Andria asked for dark purple lisianthus, and got some floofy abstract flowers.
Grace asked for Escape and I’m afraid I can never hear that word and not think of Dory. Esss-cahp-ay!

Thanks once again to all my wonderful supporters, who keep me in tea and paint and cat food! June’s very late sketches coming soon to an internet near you.

Categories: Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Nudes and Other Sexy Things, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: aceo, bucky barnes, cat, copic marker, corinne, dcu, final fantasy, finding nemo, glitter gel pen, ink wash, kim, mcu, patreon, pen and ink, pencil, pokemon, watercolor, word art

Adam Darkly

Posted on July 8th, 2020

Adam Darkly cartoon commission, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper

The delightfully charming Adam Darkly, known as @devilsconjure on Instagram, wanted to be a cartoon!

He asked to be dressed as a conjureman at a crossroads at night under the full moon, and left the rest of the layout up to me. I put a devil in his pocket, a three-card playing card reading in his hand, and candles at the four points of the crossroads, and left the rest up to imagination. When shown the final version, he said, “It’s perfect!”

My commissions queue is full right now, but if you, too, want to live life as your cartooniest self, drop me a line and I’ll put you on the waiting list!

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces
Tags: be a cartoon, commission, copic marker, devilsconjure, nfs, pen and ink, sold

April Patreon Sketches

Posted on June 10th, 2020

I continue to be not dead yet! Things are a bit mad here, and somehow I’ve managed to go over my commissions limit again without meaning to, which means the queue is firmly closed with two people on the waiting list right now. That said, Patreon supporters continue to get their sketches! And someday I’ll have three seconds to put together a sale of all these little ACEOs I have lying around that were either for someone who doesn’t get to keep their card, or just random doodles I did while avoiding the actual requests.

ACEO sketch cards by Amy Crook

Mal modeled “frolic” for Andria but apparently disapproved of the result
Deinvati asked for Cavill and got a leonine Geralt
the silver and black abstract was just my inner goth playing around
and Rebecca asked for “space” and got a whole galaxy

ACEO sketch cards by Amy Crook

Kim asked for an itchy hedgehog and got this silly thing
Jeff wanted Captain Christopher Pike and I liked his giant grey bouffant
Grace asked for a rainbow & is a Virgo, so she got the constellation hiding in this textured rainbow-flag-ish bit of canvas paper
sekrit patron Rey asked for FREEDOM! in reference to finally leaving his terrible contract job, and I was late but it’s very shiny
sekrit patron Amber asked for Goosfraba and then had to explain it, lol

ACEO sketch cards by Amy Crook

Eric asked for “not so sekrit” now that he’s an official patron, and got spideybutt
Corinne asked for Raccoon (her cat), and after sending me 17 pics I ended up using one out of my txts from 2 months ago heh

Jealous? Get your own next month!

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: brush and ink, brush lettering, cat, copic marker, duochrome, gay pride, hedgehog, kim, mcu, metallic, patreon, pen and ink, primatek, space, spiderman, star trek, the witcher

Feb & March 2020 Patreon sketches

Posted on May 14th, 2020

Back in Feb & March, in the before times and the between times, some Patreon patrons gave me sketch requests! I’ve been slowly filling these as the months go along (they normally get filled the month after they’re requested), but forgetting to share them here.

And so, a lot of art with very little explanation!