Archive for the ‘Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things’ Category
Frost Ghosts
Thursday, June 5th, 2014
Frost Ghosts, watercolor by Amy Crook
This painting, too, is hard to convey online. There’s no shiny paint or other special effects, but the way the paint seems to have depth is somewhat lost, and the subtle shadings and chilly colors get warmed and muddied.
I let the paint on this one mostly do its own thing with only a little direction from me to tease out the handprints on the right and the strange, creepy face in the upper left. The frostlike bloom of lighter paint happens when the dark purple and pale, opaque periwinkle interact in a pool of color, and are allowed to dry as they will.
The ghosts put their mark on this painting just for you.
Frost Ghosts, 5″x5″ Japanese watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Frost Ghosts, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see one of the handprints that bloomed above the surface of the dark paper and darker paint like frost traced on a window at night by a ghostly hand. Below, the painting sits in a frame in the incongruous sunshine, showing off more of its depths.
Frost Ghosts, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: black paper, for sale, japanese watercolor, periwinkle, spooky
Nine Crows
Saturday, May 3rd, 2014
Nine Crows by Amy Crook
Nine tiny crows fly in from afar, black against a stark white page. The widescreen expanse of paper adds to the feeling of distance.
Nine Crows, 8″x4″ pen & ink on Fluid watercolor paper.
Nine Crows, detail, by Amy Crook
As above, so below.
Nine Crows, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: black and white, crow, for sale, pen and ink
Fetch the Cultist
Thursday, April 24th, 2014
Fetch the Cultist,
Lovecraft parody art by Amy Crook
The Hound of Tindalos is one of the most evil, annoying monsters to draw while playing Arkham Horror, and so of course I wanted to draw one being adorable. He’s playing fetch the cultist with Cthulhu! I’m sure the one he’s brought is only slightly chewed.
There’s not actually any real description of the hound in the books, it’s only called that because once it gets a time traveler’s scent, it will follow him through space and time like a hunting hound.
My idea is cuter.
Fetch the Cultist, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper. You can get him in black & white in my Cthulhu Holiday Fun Book, or pick up the original during May’s Floating Gallery.
Fetch the Cultist, framed art by Amy Crook
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Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: copic marker, cthulhu, cultist, hound of tindalos, lovecraft, pen and ink
M is for Molly
Thursday, April 17th, 2014
M is for Molly by Amy Crook
And here we have the 8th piece in my Baker Street Tinies series of parody pastiches. Molly Hooper gets to die next, and she doesn’t look happy about it.
Her method of demise is shared by “F is for Fanny,” in the original Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey. Rather than give her a peaceful beach scene, our favorite hapless coroner has been transported to a more Victoran morgue for her doom.
H is for (Mrs.) Hudson, 8.5″x5.5″ pen & ink on paper.
The original was a commission (I’m trading with a knitty friend for the best shawl ever), but she’s kindly allowed me to sell them as greeting cards in my Etsy shop.
Molly & Mrs Hudson Baker Street Tinies cards on Etsy by Amy Crook
Categories: Card Design, Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: baker street tinies, crosshatching, edward gorey, molly hooper, nfs, pastiche, pen and ink, sherlock, sold
H is for (Mrs) Hudson
Wednesday, April 16th, 2014
H is for (Mrs.) Hudson by Amy Crook
Now that the dreaded season of taxes is past, let’s get back to a more cheerful subject — death! I’ve finally completed the next pair of characters in my Baker Street Tinies series of parody pastiches. First up is poor Mrs. Hudson, who should know better than to open Sherlock’s packages.
Her pose and predicament is from “T is for Titus,” in the original Gashlycrumb Tinies by Edward Gorey, but the wallpaper is from the show (the weird lamp is all me). There was something strangely satisfying about drawing all those birds and branches for the express purpose of implying they’d be demolished shortly.
H is for (Mrs.) Hudson, 8.5″x5.5″ pen & ink on paper.
The original was a commission (I’m trading with a knitty friend for the best shawl ever), but she’s kindly allowed me to sell them as greeting cards in my Etsy shop.
Molly & Mrs Hudson Baker Street Tinies cards on Etsy by Amy Crook
Categories: Card Design, Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: baker street tinies, crosshatching, edward gorey, mrs hudson, nfs, pastiche, pen and ink, sherlock, sold
Lurker in the Depths
Sunday, April 6th, 2014
Lurker in the Depths by Amy Crook
Most of this seahorse is pale, like a creature evolved in a place where there’s little to no light, but his fin is decorated with a rather morbid splash of red. His eye swirls with yellow and white, making him look blind. He lurks in the swirling waters next to a barnacle-bedecked skull.
Despite all these rather ghoulish details, there’s an adorable sort of whimsy to him. Go figure.
Lurker in the Depths, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper.
Lurker in the Depths, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see some of the subtle detail in the seahorse, his creepy yellow-tinged eye and the blue shadows on his pale body. Below, you can see him in a frame, hanging out with a squid.
Lurker in the Depths, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: copic marker, for sale, pen and ink, seahorses, skull
Red Wedding Decoration
Thursday, March 6th, 2014
Red Wedding Decoration by Amy Crook
Some of the time when I’m working on abstract art, I’m just thinking about the visuals. Sometimes, like with this piece, I tell myself a little story while I’m working, so there’s this weird little mental narrative behind the art.
In this case, despite having never seen or read Game of Thrones, I’ve been made aware of the whole Red Wedding thing. When the garnet paint (made with real garnets!) looked so much like blood dripped onto the paper, it made me think of that show, which in turn gave me this idea of some poor scribe, tasked with turning the ruined parchment into a decoration. And he had better do a good job, since he obviously knows what happened to the last people that crossed Lord Frey.
Red Wedding Decoration, 7″x5″ watercolor on watercolor paper.
Red Wedding Decoration, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the painstakingly detailed filigree pattern radiating out from each splatter of paint. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, with the white circle emphasized by the way it intersects with the edge.
Red Wedding Decoration, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: filigree, for sale, game of thrones, red, spirals, watercolor
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