Archive for the ‘Series and Books’ Category
A Murder of Crows 2
Friday, October 5th, 2012
A Murder of Crows 2 by Amy Crook
This piece is visually and thematically related to A Murder of Crows, but this time instead of swirling around calligraphy these pen-and-ink crows are coming to rest on some power lines. They were inspired by the convocation of crows that’s often outside my window, including the loud fellow who woke me up this morning by scolding my cat, who just chittered excitedly right back.
I had a tiny frame I got from who knows where that I wanted to make something just to fit, and this murder of seven crows seemed like the perfect flock for the small space.
A Murder of Crows 2, 3.5″x5″ pen & ink and watercolor on watercolor paper.
A Murder of Crows 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, there’s a little detail of one of the crows, who was scribbled in with a fountain pen and then smoothed out with a paintbrush and water to give him a soft, almost glowing quality. Below, you can see the piece in the frame that inspired it, nearly as small as my iPhone.
A Murder of Crows 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: crow, for sale, murder of crows, pen and ink, watercolor
K is for Greek Key
Thursday, October 4th, 2012
K is for Greek Key, calligraphic illumination by Amy Crook
It’s a bit cheating to use the Greek Key pattern for K, but it was the option that appealed to me the most. It’s hard to do kerning with only one letter, after all!
I ended up designing my own Greek Key in Illustrator, printing it, and using my lightbox to copy it in blue glitter gel pen onto the K. All the tools of the modern age are getting put to use as I explore the historic art of calligraphic illumination.
K is for Greek Key, 5″x5″ pen & ink, Japanese watercolor, and glitter gel pen on paper.
K is for Greek Key, detail, by Amy Crook
Between the color and the glitter, I had a really hard time photographing this piece. The Key pattern blends into the soft blue background to the camera, but of course your eye immediately catches the light. Below, you can see it in a frame, spelling out the word I said when I realized I didn’t have a framed photo for it.
K is for Greek Key, framed art by Amy Crook
(with A is for Arabesque and C is for Counter)
Categories: Daily Art, Illuminated Alphabet, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: alphabet, blue, calligraphy, for sale, glitter gel pen, green, illumination, pen and ink, watercolor
Sherlock Discovers Bubble Tea, colored
Saturday, September 22nd, 2012
Sherlock Discovers Bubble Tea comic by Amy Crook
now with bonus color!
After an inking mishap with this comic required some Photoshop love to make it workable, I put it away in a drawer sad for its fate. Then I decided to try to color it anyway, and through the magic of pinstripes you can’t tell where I mis-inked it at all, yay! I decided to do Sherlock’s clothes in cool blue and give Mycroft a nice warm yellow shirt and golden tie, which goes well with the warm brown tapioca ball stuck to his forehead.
Sherlock Discovers Bubble Tea, 7″x5″ pen & ink and Copic markers on paper, nfs (sold).
Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: cartoon, comic, copic marker, mycroft holmes, nfs, pen and ink, sherlock, sherlock bbc, sherlock holmes, sold
The Stars Are Right 4
Friday, September 21st, 2012
The Stars Are Right 4 by Amy Crook
A baleful yellow planted like a great eye stares out from the cold depths of space, sending golden chanting out into the void in a mysterious ancient language. The surrounding stars are a shimmery green, adding to the surreal feeling of the piece. This piece would a nice touch of eerie Lovecraftian horror to any office or home. Well, for certain values of nice, anyway.
The Stars Are Right 4, 10″x8″ Japanese watercolor and glitter gel pen on Arches cover black paper.
The Stars Are Right 4, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see the shiny gold glitter “lettering” and iridescent green starnext to the eye-like yellow planet. Below, I’ve put it in a frame and let it loom over my comparatively wee iPhone for your visual reference.
The Stars Are Right 4, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: black paper, cthulhu, for sale, glitter gel pen, gold, japanese watercolor, planet, stars, stars are right
J is for Juxtapose
Thursday, September 20th, 2012
J is for Juxtapose, calligraphic illumination by Amy Crook
I wasn’t sure how well I could manage Juxtaposition, but I’m really happy with the contrasts and superimpositions in this piece, from the colors of subtle buff titanium with bright purple and rich teal, to the way the dark purple ink outline of the neat lower J bled through into the messy top letter. The light purple glitter strips in the upper left blend very differently with the background than the dark inked spirals in the lower right, too.
J is for Juxtapose, 5″x5″ mixed media on paper, nfs (sold). If you’d like a J of your own, you can find out how to commission one here.
J is for Juxtapose, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the shine of purple glitter and a close-up of many of the various overlapping styles. Below, the J is hanging out with the A, which shares a similar color scheme but a nicely different feel.
A is for Arabesque & J is for Juxtapose, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Illuminated Alphabet, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: alphabet, buff titanium, calligraphy, glitter gel pen, illumination, nfs, pen and ink, purple, sold, spirals, teal, watercolor
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Tentacle Deeps 42
Tuesday, September 18th, 2012
Tentacle Deeps 42, painting by Amy Crook
The stars are clearly right, because we’ve arrived at the answer! For #42 I tried another new thing this week, or really a very old thing in a new way. I broke out my acrylic paints for the background, and then drew tentacles on top with Sharpie oil paint marker. Since it’s on a gallery-wrapped canvas, the image slips around the edges, as you can see where the tentacles sneak off the left edge there.
Tentacle Deeps 42, 12″x12″ acrylic paint and Sharpie oil paint marker on gallery-wrapped canvas.
Tentacle Deeps 42, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see the way the tentacles shine with a different sort of gloss than the background, at least when exposed to the sun and an Instagram filter.
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Series and Books, Tentacles
Tags: 42, acrylic paint, canvas, for sale, purple, sharpie marker, teal, tentacle deeps, tentacles, yellow
The Death of Me, 6 of 6
Sunday, September 16th, 2012
The Death of Me, 6 of 6, a Sherlock comic by Amy Crook
Poor John. It’s too early to tell if he’s caught Sherlock’s cold or if he’s just shattered from the workout he got taking care of Sherlock, but either way, he’s not ready to go much of anywhere.
I imagine if John did catch Sherlock’s cold, Sherlock would at first not care and then John would prod his ego, and Sherlock would become determined not to be outdone. Either way, hilarity would ensue!
If you’d like a print of this little comic, I’ve got them for sale here in my Etsy shop.
Categories: Completed Commissions, Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: all rights reserved, commission, death of me comic, etsy, john watson, mrs hudson, nfs, pen and ink, sherlock, sherlock bbc, sherlock holmes
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