Archive for the ‘Pretty Words’ Category
The Sight of the Stars
Thursday, July 22nd, 2021
The Sight of the Stars, 8″x10″ mixed media on metallic paper
Metallic photo paper makes a fascinating substrate, you can’t ever lift color once it’s put down. Instead, all the texture here is physical, soft body acrylic that rises above the paper in bumps and ridges formed by the brush strokes. On top of that a scattering of iridescent watercolor stars adds to the shine that already comes through the semi-translucent paint.
“The sight of the stars makes me dream.”
-Vincent Van Gogh
Sometimes I start an Aglow painting with words in mind, and sometimes I create the image and find words that go with it. I think this was the latter, but time is meaningless here in 2021 so who knows.
The Sight of the Stars, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the textured paint and shiny paper catching the golden light overhead. Below, the painting is in a frame, waiting to be shipped off to its new home!
The Sight of the Stars, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words, Series and Books
Tags: acrylic, aglow, blue, inkjet print, metallic paper, more cowbell, nfs, purple, soft body acrylic, sold, van gogh
Resonate
Tuesday, July 20th, 2021
Resonate, 6″x4″ watercolor and tea on paper
This piece sprang from a long-lost art challenge: I took the 2 teabags out of my giant mug of tea and put them on the page to create random shapes. I left them out for a few hours, then tossed the tea and let the paper dry thoroughly, by which I mean didn’t work on it again for a couple of months.
This abstract has a feeling that makes me think of the drip of tea back into the cup, of the shape made by a splash of milk, of the way sounds or ideas reverberate in your head.
What resonates with you?
Resonate, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the mix of bronzite and gold and the subtle ways they sparkle against the soft, tea-stained paper. Below, this small painting sits in a frame, ready to help you resonate.
Resonate, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words
Tags: brown, for sale, gold, metallic, tea, watercolor
Concentric 10
Sunday, July 18th, 2021
Concentric 10, 6″x4″ watercolor on paper
This last half-year has had a lot of taking one thing and making it into another. A purple-washed background waiting to become art got the words “be kind” added in soft, subtle periwinkle. After another delay, bursts of shining dots finally blossomed into another addition to my Concentric series.
This tiny artwork has soothing shades of blue and purple and lovely lavender, hints of green and gold waiting to shine at the right angles.
This series is very meditative to paint, following my inner promptings to start a burst here, and then one there in that color, building up from the first dot to the last.
Concentric 10, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the three shades of color bursts, green-gold, dark purple, and ocean blue. Below, this small painting is framed and waiting to bring delight to some small nook or larger display of art.
Concentric 10, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Pretty Words, Series and Books
Tags: concentric, duochrome, iridescent, nfs, purple, sold, watercolor, word art
April 2021 Patreon Sketch Cards
Wednesday, July 7th, 2021
Having standardized the sketch size to these pre-cut ATC/ACEO cards makes my life so much easier — they come in vellum for drawing, watercolor paper, and some cool new stuff like Yupo synthetic substrate. It gives me a lot of room for play! Which I did with several of these that weren’t for anyone specific, heh.
From the top left:
- Do Good Recklessly, a recent tumblr meme
- Capybaras for Rebecca S
- A wee Concentric doodle to play with some of my new watercolors
- Bats and Mushrooms and Sun and idk man, sometimes you just gotta paint mushrooms I guess.
- Purple dragon for Andria, who wanted to have a golden hoard of their very own, which was pretty easy since they are very wee
- Amy B asked for a kitten and got a blobcat with a Christmas tree tail, which is a feature of kittens of a certain age that I find delightful. It has brought you a mouse toy like the mighty hunter it is, and is all fluffed up about it.
From the top left:
- Amber asked for “seasonal (holiday) allergies” and I may have chosen to tease her husband.
- A is for Amy wants to play with her yupo paper some more.
- Roxanne asked for Falcon & the Winter Solider and apparently this is what my brain wanted.
- Rey asked for “conditionally huggable” and of course I had to draw a hedgehog.
I love my Patreon supporters with all my heart — thanks, you guys! You’re the best.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Completed Commissions, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Illuminated Alphabet, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: bat, capybara, cat, concentric, copic marker, dragon, duochorome, hedgehog, iridescent, mcu, pen and ink, primatek, watercolor, word art
Yupo sketch cards
Tuesday, May 25th, 2021
I got a new substrate to try, Yupo, which is an interesting synthetic that comes in a transluscent thin sheet, a more normal sheet, and a fat cardstock, all very smooth and non-absorbent. Basically the opposite of watercolor paper! I got a package of sketch card sized pads, and did some non-request sketch experiments on them in various media.
5 sketch cards by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: aceo, cat, counting crows, crow, duochrome, salt, watercolor, yupo
January 2021 Patreon Sketches
Tuesday, March 30th, 2021
5 sketch cards by Amy Crook
From top left:
- Eric asked for Peanut m&m as an Airbender and, well. Yeah. That’s a thing I’ve drawn now.
- Roxanne asked for this quote, which got a little shiny visual along with the word art.
- Kim asked for winter socks, and got bats ^^v^^
- Amy B prompted “peacock” and got an abstract. It’s shiny!
- And Jeff asked for “missing bff” which I made both silly and sad, like I do.
This finishes off January for me, which makes me briefly all caught up on sketches! Slowly, slowly, finding a new balance.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Completed Commissions, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: aceo, avatar, cat, copic marker, eric, jefferson, kim, nfs, patreon, pen and ink, sold, watercolor, word art
End of 2020 Patreon Sketches, part 2
Tuesday, March 16th, 2021
Another big batch of sketches done, getting us caught up through October, with one little January request sneaking in because reasons. Corvid reasons.
Lenin & Carmilla down the left side for Dr. Tags, and then on the right we have Persevere for Rey, “Mandalorian feels” for Kim, and vampire bats for Amy B (most sold)
Espurr for Eric, crow in snow for Andria, the things in Jeff’s skull, Julius Ceasar and the Very Pointy Day for Dr. Tags, and Relax for Rey (most sold)
Categories: Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Tentacles, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: bat, carmilla, cat, colored pencil, copic marker, crow, lenin, patreon, pen and ink, pencil, pokemon, star wars, watercolor, word art
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