Archive for the ‘Flowers, Trees and Landscapes’ Category
Fire Season
Wednesday, November 6th, 2019
It’s fire season here in California, and it’s been a month for ruins all around.
The beautiful golden-peach glow of the smoldering sky is hard to capture on a monitor, but the inks give a magnificently clear color in person. The charcoal grey of ink wash swoops in fluid lines to suggest some kind of burnt-out ruins, close or distant, large or small.
Birds circle above and around, giving them a sense of scale — unless it’s the birds themselves that are distant.

Fire Season, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the shadow of a bird, the soft texture of paper and glow of the sky, and the stark jut of burnt ruins wreathed in their own smoky residue. Below, this dramatic scene is contained safely in a frame, just waiting to grace your wall.

Fire Season, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: brush and ink, for sale, horizons, ink wash, ruins
Ash Ghost series
Monday, November 4th, 2019

Ash, Overgrown, Legend, and Ancient, ink wash art in the Ash Ghost series by Amy Crook,
4 works, 5″x7″ ink wash on paper
This series was painted, and named, after prompts from Inktober 2019.
The upper left’s eerie ghost is the first of the Ash Ghost series: 4 ink wash paintings featuring the same mysterious and yet-unwritten legend. They get progressively more complex, filling up the space, drawing you into their story, but Ash is stark and simple.
The upper right, Overgrown, has the footsteps but no ghost that you can see. They lead up to a series of steps between two overgrown pieces of wall, vines obscuring even that hint of what used to be there. A few bits of charred wood stick up in memory of a doorframe, but the rest of the structure is lost to the mists of time.
There’s a tale waiting to be told in these images. Small details waiting to be teased out and put down, more pictures yet to come. It keeps pulling us in, luring us closer.
In Legend, the graveyard is full of mist, trees vanishing in the distance and yet, somehow, the ghost is as vivid as ever. Nothing can hide him from you, neither space nor fog, but then again, perhaps nothing can hide you from him, either.
The lower right, Ancient, is the end of our ghost story so far. It features a single ash-blackened handprint obscuring the details on a cracked headstone.
There are more questions than answers left, of course. Who is the ghost? How long has he wandered and where is he going? The headstone is there, but where is his head?
And most importantly: what does he want with you, dear reader?
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: ash ghost, for sale, ink wash, inktober, sold
Inktober 2019, part 2
Sunday, October 27th, 2019
It’s been quite the October for me, so I’m afraid part 2 is late and long, and part 3 will round out the month for you next week. Thanks for all your patience and support!
Abbreviation decoder ring!
- wip = work in progress, ie, I’m probably going to color some or all of the drawing before it’s really done
- nfs = not for sale, ie, it’s a Patreon sketch and already belongs to someone else
- ACEO = Artist Card, Edition Original, also known as ATC or Artist Trading Card when traded rather than sold, which is a standard size I use for all my Patreon sketches these days
Want to get your own sketches, dibs on art, or just feel the warm glow of being part of my community of supporters? Head over to Patreon and pick a tier to get started! There’s also bonus cat photos sometimes, if that helps.
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Nudes and Other Sexy Things, People, Figures and Faces, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: brush and ink, cat, ghost, ink wash, kim, mcu, patreon, pen and ink, pod, winter soldier
Inktober 2019, week 1 plus
Friday, October 11th, 2019
Normally I do these on Mondays, but I was out of town and then there was some kind of power shutoff madness (mine was supposed to go but did not? whatever, PG&E, you run your public utility like the Muppet Show.) So, anyway, here you go, week one-and-then-some of Inktober!
Abbreviation decoder ring!
- wip = work in progress, ie, I’m probably going to color some or all of the drawing before it’s really done
- nfs = not for sale, ie, it’s a Patreon sketch and already belongs to someone else
- ACEO = Artist Card, Edition Original, also known as ATC or Artist Trading Card when traded rather than sold, which is a standard size I use for all my Patreon sketches these days
Want to get your own sketches, dibs on art, or just feel the warm glow of being part of my community of supporters? Head over to Patreon and pick a tier to get started! There’s also bonus cat photos sometimes, if that helps.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Tentacles, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, brush and ink, brush pen, cthulhu, futhark, hockey, inktober, mcu, patreon, pen and ink, rey, tony stark, tree, water brush, zelazny
Hammer of the Gods
Sunday, September 8th, 2019
Thor’s third movie really changed things for him as a character, and this art calls up the cinematic moment when he and his lightning come crashing down on his enemies to the tune of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” — which is also the source of the title.
The spreading tendrils of lightning at the bottom all but vanish until you tilt the page to the sun, and then it all lights up just like crashing down from the heavens.
Thunder not included.

Hammer of the Gods, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the bright shine of abstract lightning against the low-hanging clouds, forking out before it strikes the ground. Below, the power is contained in a frame, but for how long?

Hammer of the Gods, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: for sale, interference, iridescent, lightning, mcu, mcu abstracts, thor, watercolor
Stirring Up the Sky
Friday, September 6th, 2019
More skies, more sparkles, more moon, more bird!
This one’s got a lovely shimmery background, both moon and sky, which the wings of our crow pick up beautifully. There is some matte black in its head and body and along the arches of its bones, but mostly this crow is like a dream of motion, stirring up the sky. The crow blots out the shine of the moon like the only solid piece of reality in a shining, swirling night.
Where would this beauty fit into your reality?

Stirring Up the Sky, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the deep black of the crow going blurred and sparkly against the turquoise glitter of the moon. Below, the painting is shining out of a frame, waiting to go home with you. Yes, you.

Stirring Up the Sky, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: altered skies, blue moon, crow, duochrome, iridescent, moon, nfs, sold, watercolor
Halloween Trees 3
Wednesday, September 4th, 2019
Halloween is starting to be everywhere, and I added some clinging leaves to this month’s ode to autumn. A soft wash of gold and orange gives a rich background to the skeletal trees and swooping flock of birds.
This warm palette brings to mind pumpkin spice and apple cider, crisp leaves and cawing crows, whispered winds and cheap candy, at least for me. Not to mention all the amazing goth housewares that I can find in stores this time of year and use year round!
What’s your favorite part of Halloween season?

Halloween Trees 3, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the twisty branches bleeding into the fiery sky, a few leaves just hanging on and a single crow flying in the background. Below, the painting is resting in a small frame, waiting for its time.

Halloween Trees 3, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: crow, for sale, halloween trees, horizons, sunset, tree, watercolor
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