Puddle
Posted on December 5th, 2014
Puddle by Amy Crook
This piece was inspired by an Instagram photo I took of a puddle in the rain, hiding under a ledge so my phone wouldn’t get wet. I couldn’t ever get the whole puddle to show all the concentric rings coming off the drops, because the angle of the light washed everything out so you only saw the rings in a little slice from an angle.
So I created this dusky, desaturated blue “puddle” that has surprising rings around the “droplets” when you tilt it into the sun (which washes the whole thing even bluer). The interference blue is basically invisible until light catches it, and then this beautiful pattern of overlapping waves appears.
Puddle, 8″x8″ watercolor and interference watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Puddle, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight has washed this photo bright blue, but also brought out the nearly-invisible rings around each ‘droplet.’ I handed this painting to a friend and he said it was, “like being handed an actual puddle.” Below, you can see it tucked into a frame, a bit of puddle-wonderful that will never dry up.
Puddle, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes
Tags: blue, interference, nfs, rain, watercolor
Sunset Silhouette
Posted on December 4th, 2014
Sunset Silhouette by Amy Crook
The branches on this tree are fine as lace, a complicated fractal of interlocking shapes with three birds silhouetted inside. A red-gold sunset paints the sky behind, giving drama to this small work of art.
The sky is very loose and painterly, while the tree and birds are stark black in contrast.
This painting is shot of brightness as we approach the darkest time of the year, wintry with the bare branches and yet full of the colors of spring.
Sunset Silhouette, 6″x4″ pen & ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Sunset Silhouette, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can really see the lace-fine details in the branches, and the three birds chilling out in the few open spots. Below, the piece is tucked into a frame so you can admire its compactness.
Sunset Silhouette, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: crow, horizons, nfs, orange, pen and ink, sold, tree, watercolor
Kelp
Posted on December 3rd, 2014
Kelp by Amy Crook
Ah, the foibles of subtle art and electronic reproduction. The monitor tries to wash out this painting into cyan or acid green, but don’t let it fool you, there is a gorgeous seafoam green color to these rising strands. It has a very subtle feeling of being underwater somewhere brightly sunlit, so that the water is washed to white and the kelp glows from within, with only the densest leaves showing darker greens.
This painting is a dreamy abstract watercolor that gives a sense of weightlessness, of drifting slowly upward with a slight sway from some hidden current.
Much like its spiritual relatives, Winter and Midnight, I could stare at it for hours and still find new little details hiding among the pale splashes of paint.
Kelp, 8″x8″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Kelp, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see some of the subtle details that get washed out in the scan. The color in that photo comes out a little too green, but you can get a better feel of how soft and peaceful it is. Below, the sunlight streams in on this piece in its dark frame.
Kelp, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: for sale, pathways, water, watercolor
Yule Gifts
Posted on November 21st, 2014
Yule Gifts, a Hobbit parody comic by Amy Crook
Thorin has a beautifully-wrought golden lantern in the shape of an apple for his Burglar for Yule. Bilbo has made a very hobbity wreath of fresh evergreens for the King Under the Mountain.
They both have the cutest blushes from knowing that the other person thought of them for the winter holidays.
You can send this adorable holiday card and spread the yuletide cheer, just pick one up at my Etsy shop!
Yule Gifts, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Yule Gifts hobbity holiday card by Amy Crook at Etsy
Categories: Card Design, Floating Gallery, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: bilbo baggins, cheese, copic marker, etsy, hobbit, holiday, holiday card, nfs, pen and ink, sold, thorin
Commission: Paul and Balances
Posted on November 19th, 2014
Paul the Octopus, Balance the Force, & Gru Coins
by Amy Crook for Mathlords
This odd little trio is for the same awesome client who got the Continuations art a while back. He wanted something to represent the way some systems worked within his larger project. We named the octopus Paul after the late Paul the Octopus who predicted the world cup results back in 2010. I asked Zack to explain them for you, and this is what he had to say:
“In a marketing illustration for an industrial automation system, our hardworking cephalapod Paul keeps the monies and goods flowing to the highly trained minions and lizard monkeys. Complex processes? No problem. Send down more worms and coins, Paul! These eager minions and rainbow-hued lizard monkeys handle it all with flair and elan. Any rumors that the system’s creator is a somewhat unstable polymath with limited social skills are greatly exaggerated and he asks that this fact not be weighted heavily in purchasing decisions during any ERP downselect process.”
-Zack Galler, Mathlords
We wanted some extra color, so the Hutt got greened up, and the Kowakian Monkey-Lizards were colored rather like Fraggles, plus of course Paul himself is a lovely mottling of ocean green and violet. Gru refused to be dressed up for mere commerce however.
Paul the Octopus, Balance the Force, and Gru Coins, all 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
To get a commission of your own, for work or for play, check out my Commissions pages!
Categories: Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: all rights reserved, commission, copic marker, nfs, octopus, pen and ink, sold
Snowflakes
Posted on November 17th, 2014
Snowflakes, a Sherlock parody comic by Amy Crook
John and Sherlock agreed to a festive winter evening making snowflakes. Unfortunately, they have very different ideas about how to go about that particular activity.
Whose do you think will win out?*
Snowflakes, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper. Get the cheerful holiday card on Etsy!
Snowflakes Sherlock holiday card by Amy Crook on Etsy
*I think they’ll do both, first Sherlock’s and then John’s.
Categories: Card Design, Floating Gallery, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: christmas, copic marker, etsy, holiday, holiday card, john watson, nfs, pen and ink, sherlock, sherlock bbc, sherlock holmes, sold, watson
Don’t Blink
Posted on November 13th, 2014
Don’t Blink, Doctor Who parody art by Amy Crook
Don’t look away. Don’t turn your head. Don’t even blink.
You’ll be a lot more years down if you let this one catch you blinking.
Don’t Blink, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper. Get Weeping Angel birthday cards for all your frenemies!
Don’t Blink, Weeping Angel parody birthday card by Amy Crook on Etsy
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Card Design, Floating Gallery, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: copic marker, doctor who, etsy, for sale, pen and ink, weeping angel
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