Archive for the ‘Floating Gallery’ Category

Drowned and Dreamt

Thursday, September 4th, 2014

Drowned and Dreamt, abstract art by Amy Crook

Drowned and Dreamt by Amy Crook

This gorgeously morbid piece of abstract art was inspired by the opening credits to Skyfall, and the colors and textures of the blood in the water. I used several washes to give the background its grainy fade of blue-green, and then two colors of opaque Japanese watercolors for the reds, and I’m quite pleased with the final effect.

Drowned and Dreamt, 4″x8″ watercolor and Japanese watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.

Drowned and Dreamt, detail, by Amy Crook

Drowned and Dreamt, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the brightest reds and the way they interact with the green background where they’re thinner and more translucent. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, an eerie tribute to a visually stunning film.

Drowned and Dreamt, framed art by Amy Crook

Drowned and Dreamt, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Things I'm a Fan Of
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Glacial Melt

Wednesday, September 3rd, 2014

Glacial Melt, abstract art by Amy Crook

Glacial Melt by Amy Crook

The snowy white paper melts into a beautifully subtle array of blues, like a glacier giving way to summer, sending water and debris out to join the ocean. I really love the way the two different paints reacted to one another, giving a broad range of color and texture in the simple shapes.

Glacial Melt, 5″x5″ watercolor on watercolor paper.

Glacial Melt, detail, by Amy Crook

Glacial Melt, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the texture of the paper like snowdrifts with the barest blue shadows in the hollows like sunlight on snow. Below, you can see the painting in a frame, bringing a breath of coolness to the end-of-summer heat.

Glacial Melt, framed art by Amy Crook

Glacial Melt, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
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Stormriders

Tuesday, September 2nd, 2014

Stormriders by Amy Crook

Stormriders by Amy Crook

Three small crows brave the stormy skies, suspended between the upward-reaching branches of the tree and the downward-reaching fork of lightning. The clouds are limned in violet light all around the silver bolt, adding an extra touch of mystery.

Stormriders, 6″x4″ pen & ink, watercolor, and metallic and interference watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.

Stormriders, detail, by Amy Crook

Stormriders, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the way the light shines off the silver and interference violet paints in the lightning and clouds. Below, you can see the piece in a frame. It’s small, but it’s fierce!

Stormriders, framed art by Amy Crook

Stormriders, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
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Winter

Friday, August 8th, 2014

Winter, abstract art by Amy Crook

Winter, abstract art by Amy Crook

I don’t usually pick favorites, but this painting stands out to me as one of the best ones I’ve done lately. There’s just something about it that really speaks to me, a story it almost tells, like an open door into your own interpretation. I almost didn’t want to narrow the viewer’s impressions with a title, but the colors were so cold and the shapes so organic I went with Winter.

Winter, 10″x8″ watercolor on Arches cover white paper.

Winter, detail, by Amy Crook

Winter, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the delicate traceries and fascinating granulation within each line up close. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, which is very much my favorite way to view it. Something about cutting off that top whitespace really brings the image together for me. The creamy ivory color of the paper is also more evident in this photo than the others.

Winter, framed art by Amy Crook

Winter, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
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Cthulhu Waits

Thursday, August 7th, 2014

Cthulhu Waits, pen and ink art by Amy Crook

Cthulhu Waits, pen and ink art by Amy Crook

Three colors of pen, three different inking techniques, and one creepy drawing. Cthulhu glares balefully out of his cave, surrounded by strange growths and bathed in darkness. He waits for the stars to be right, for the summoning that will bring him from his sleep of death and up into the world once again.

Cthulhu Waits, 6″x4″ pen & ink on Fluid watercolor paper.

Cthulhu Waits, detail, by Amy Crook

Cthulhu Waits, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see all three inking techniques up close, the roe-like stalactites hanging down above the fine-inked blackness, with Cthulhu in his scribbly, tentacled glory. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, just waiting to drive you mad with its strange details.

Cthulhu Waits, framed art by Amy Crook

Cthulhu Waits, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Series and Books, Tentacles, Things I'm a Fan Of
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Growth 3

Wednesday, August 6th, 2014

Growth 3, abstract art by Amy Crook

Growth 3, abstract art by Amy Crook

I took the theme of Growth a step further this time, layering the growths themselves in three sets of increasingly light blue, and then blurring them out with water to add a strange spin to the structure of circles within and without.

Growth 3, 5″x5″ pen & ink and watercolor on Arches cover white paper.

Growth 3, detail, by Amy Crook

Growth 3, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the corona up close, the three layers of ink mixing and blending, but still some of the white central spaces from inside the circles remain. Below, you can see the painting in a frame. It’s small, but it’s fierce!

Growth 3, framed art by Amy Crook

Growth 3, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
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Uncertain Boundaries

Tuesday, August 5th, 2014

Uncertain Boundaries, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook

Uncertain Boundaries, abstract watercolor by Amy Crook

I spend way too much time explaining how much better my artwork looks in real life, but it’s always true. This piece has much richer jewel tones of purple, teal, and green that have all sort of washed out into a vague blueness when converted to rgb.

There’s rich layers of color, with some of the boundaries outlined and some erased, and some only vaguely visible. It makes me think of a map of some strange world that has evolved along with the history of the place, borders drawing and redrawing themselves as alien politics shift and change.

Uncertain Boundaries, 6″x4″ pen & ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.

Uncertain Boundaries, detail, by Amy Crook

Uncertain Boundaries, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see one of the places where new color obliterates the old, and the boundary lines stutter and fade. Below, you can see this small piece in a frame, small enough to add its bright color to any number of surprising spaces.

Uncertain Boundaries, framed art by Amy Crook

Uncertain Boundaries, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
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