Archive for the ‘Flowers, Trees and Landscapes’ Category

Eight for a Wish

Thursday, May 16th, 2019

Eight for a Wish, 6″x6″ Primatek watercolor on paper

Although the original rhyme is about magpies, there’s only murders hanging about outside my windows, so crows are what you get.

Seven charming fellows are flying in, with an eighth ahead of them already swooping along, banked to skim close to the thick trunk of this twisting tree. The ghost this time is looking more annoyed than anything; perhaps it’s not a fan of birds.

Although one of my patrons has already claimed this for their collection, you can still admire its creepy fog, spooky tree, and the gentle motion of eight pairs of wings.

Eight for a Wish, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the ghost’s very grumpy expression and the soft flutter of many wings. Below, it’s haunting this frame before it flies off to its new home.

Eight for a Wish, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: counting crows, crow, ghost, nfs, primatek, sold, tree, watercolor

Murder at Sunset 2

Wednesday, May 8th, 2019

Murder at Sunset 2, 6″x4″ watercolor on paper

It’s only a little murder — five crows swoop in almost like snapshots of a single bird, arcing down to make their home in the biggest of this grove of trees. The rich orange sunset behind them glows through a stack of fluffy clouds, lighting everything up in rich autumn colors.

Where would you nestle this tiny painting, to bring a bit of brightness into your daily life? It’s about the size of a postcard, perfect to tuck into a bookshelf, sit on busy desk, or decorate a stray bit of wall.

Murder at Sunset 2, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see three of the tiny crows making their way across the bright sky. Below, this tiny frame is holding a lot of detail for such a small artwork.

Murder at Sunset 2, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: crow, horizons, murder of crows, nfs, orange, sold, sunset, watercolor

Morning After

Monday, May 6th, 2019

Morning After, 8″x4″ watercolor on paper

The sky holds the softness of spring, the delicacy of an Easter egg, the gentlest of sunrises. In front of these lovely colors, there are smoking ruins, the aftermath of some mystery calamity. Carrion birds wheel and turn on the thermals, looking for a choice meal among the destruction. The pall of smoke hanging over the burnt-out husks is no deterrent to the scavengers.

There’s a curious juxtaposition with the grey-green ruins backed by the seashell pink, baby-chick yellow, and robin’s egg blue of the sky.

Morning After, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the delicate, tiny brushstrokes that make up each hollow, destroyed building. Below, the carrion birds circle and swoop inside their temporary frame.

Morning After, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: for sale, horizons, ruins, watercolor

Bees 5

Friday, May 3rd, 2019

Bees 5, 7″x5″ acrylic ink on paper

Experimental bees! Acrylic ink is lightfast and dries waterproof, and these bees were the perfect test subject for a new medium.

The loose honeycomb make a gorgeous background for the painterly scribble of a busy hive of bees. They’re mostly concentrated in the corner where all the honey is, with the rest of the comb slowly floating off and away into the aether, adding a surrealist quality to the piece.

Bees 5, detail, by Amy Crook

Above you can see these cheerful little bees against the soft cream paper and golden hexes. Below, these fellows are buzzing around in their own frame, just like in a proper hive.

Bees 5, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: acrylic ink, bees, brush and ink, for sale

Moon Landing

Thursday, May 2nd, 2019

Moon Landing, 9″x12″ Primatek watercolor on paper

This started with a palette and a sky, and the tree grew in complexity and reached out just asking for a bird to alight on its outstretched branch. There’s a dim daytime moon just barely visible in the upper left corner, inspiring the punny name.

This painting has a really delightful, eerie quality with its soft sky and stark tree. The black bird has a beautiful organic quality to the motion of its feathers, and the reach of its feet. It looks like the branch is beckoning it in for a landing, for good or ill.

Moon Landing, Detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the crow up close in all its gloomy glory. Below, this painting is in a frame, showing off its size by being almost as tall as the writing desk’s cubbies.

Moon Landing, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals
Tags: crow, for sale, moon, primatek, tree, watercolor

Shiny Magikarp

Thursday, March 28th, 2019

Shiny Magikarp, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper

Magikarp Jump is the most ridiculous game ever, and of course I had to celebrate the warm golden shiny with another commission from my Pokemon patron. This guy has a great height up above his tiny pond, so let’s hope he gets the best leap and doesn’t end up in a sad little pit.

Categories: Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: commission, copic marker, lytle, nfs, pen and ink, pokemon, sold

Hillside

Friday, March 8th, 2019

Hillside, 4″x6″ Primatek watercolor on paper

A bird of prey stoops above, but our mere human eyes can’t see what it’s diving for down in the scrub grass clinging to the hillside despite the season. The tree is stripped of its foliage, half vanishing against the twilight, everything softened by mist and distance.

The limited palette blends beautifully, mineral paints that cling together on the soft paper. The sunshine is rust, the sky turquoise and amethyst and barely-there vivianite, creating a glow against which the bloodstone paint seems almost transcendent.

There’s a missing corner on the lower right, but as you can see in the photo, a frame will easily hide the slight imperfection so only you and your artist will know it’s there.

Hillside, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the twining branches of the tree vanishing into the mists. Below, this small painting rests in its frame, the perfect size to tuck a bit of mystery into your life.