Archive for the ‘Series and Books’ Category

Tentacle Bookmark 5

Tuesday, June 4th, 2013

Tentacle Bookmark 5 by Amy Crook

Tentacle Bookmark 5 by Amy Crook

Scribbly purple tentacles come in from all sides of this bookmark, which has a soft, grainy wash of reddish violet for its background. It’s quite small, drawn on stiff archival comic backing board, and would make an excellent accompaniment to a book by HP Lovecraft.

Tentacle Bookmark 5, 4″x1″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper, nfs (sold).

Tentacle Bookmark 5, detail, by Amy Crook

Tentacle Bookmark 5, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the spiraling purple tentacles up close, the ink going from dense to loose around the curls. Below, you can see the bookmark nestled up to a big hardcover book, looking all dainty.

Tentacle Bookmark 5, with book, by Amy Crook

Tentacle Bookmark 5, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, tentacles are enough for anyone)

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books, Tentacles
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Midnight Sprout Bookmark

Monday, June 3rd, 2013

Midnight Sprout bookmark by Amy Crook

Midnight Sprout bookmark
by Amy Crook

It’s Bookmark Week! This is the time when I take things I’ve doodled onto scraps left over from cutting or tearing paper down to size, and sell them as bookmarks so anyone can have their own wee original bit of Amy art. My newsletter people got to see the bookmarks last week, so there’s a few that are already sold, but I’m starting the week with one that you can still take home.

This little sprout is struggling up in the moonlight, trying to make the most of its cold light. The paint is matte and darkly colored, but you can pick out the little sprout at the right angle. It’s like a secret!

Midnight Sprout bookmark, 2″x5″ watercolor on paper.

Midnight Sprout bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook

Midnight Sprout bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the way the sunlight illuminates the dark colors, so you can see the deep green and midnight blue, and even the little bits of detail and shadow on the sprout. Below, you can see it hanging out with a nearly-matching hardcover book, so you can get an idea of the size.

Midnight Sprout bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook

Midnight Sprout bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, book happy in its current home)

Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
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Not That Late, Really

Saturday, June 1st, 2013

Not That Late, Really, Doctor Who fan art by Amy Crook

Not That Late, Really, Doctor Who fan art by Amy Crook

Since I already had a few birthday cards for Doctor Who, I thought I’d go with Eleven’s seeming inability to do anything on time and do a belated one as well. I got the inks all done a couple of weeks ago, and then had to wait until my refill of TARDIS blue ink (I use a B18 Lazuli Copic marker for it) came in the mail. Those big blue boxes take a lot of coloring!

I find it rather fitting, anyway, that it took an extra week to get the art done, all things considered.

Not That Late, Really, 5″x7″ pen & ink and Copic marker on paper, nfs (sold).

Not That Late, Really, detail, by Amy Crook

Not That Late, Really, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see a close-up of the Doctor’s little sheepish face, along with his spiffy new jacket. Below, you can see him in a frame, peeking out of his TARDIS and up at you.

Not That Late, Really, framed Doctor Who art by Amy Crook

Not That Late, Really, framed Doctor Who art by Amy Crook

Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
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Goldfish

Tuesday, May 28th, 2013

Goldfish, watercolor by Amy Crook

Goldfish, watercolor by Amy Crook

Last Thursday I finally got around to tearing some big sheets of paper I had into smaller, more Amy-sized sheets. Then I just had to play with the results, so I asked a friend to pick a color, and she said gold.

After a bit of playing and a bit of waiting, I ended up with this very bright red-orange-yellow background. Then I flipped it over, and found a fish in the shapes. I used a dark red and my lovely duochrome orange-gold paint to bring out the shape of this little guy, just a few strokes of paint to make a fishy.

Goldfish, 10″x8″ Japanese watercolor and duochrome watercolor on Arches cover white paper.

Goldfish, detail, by Amy Crook

Goldfish, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the shine of the paint I used to put some of the gold in the goldfish. Below, the piece is sitting in a frame, and you can see how vibrant the colors really are.

Goldfish, framed art by Amy Crook

Goldfish, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
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One for Sorrow

Monday, May 27th, 2013

One for Sorrow by Amy Crook

One for Sorrow by Amy Crook

I hope you’re enjoying your Memorial Day weekend! This little crow is painted with ink and watercolor on some soft Japanese “sketch” paper which warps the moment I look at it damply. It’s soft and nicely textured, but won’t stay flat to save my life. I like the crow, though, and the bits of rainbow oil-slick color in his feathers. The wrinkles in the paper form a sort of halo around him, little harbinger of sorrow that he is.

One for Sorrow, 10″x8″ Japanese watercolor and sumi-e ink on Japanese paper.

One for Sorrow, detail, by Amy Crook

One for Sorrow, detail, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the texture in the paper and the wibbly wobbly warping from the ink wash. I discounted his price a bit to account for the strange paper, and you can see below how it fits fine into a frame but still refuses to flatten out.

One for Sorrow, framed art by Amy Crook

One for Sorrow, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
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Angler Fish 1

Friday, May 24th, 2013

Angler Fish 1 by Amy Crook

Angler Fish 1 by Amy Crook, $250

After I painted this bloody red background, deliberately deep and dark, I thought that a glowing blue Angler fish would be the perfect thing to go on top of it. I love the contrast between the abstract, color-field-like painting in the background, all matte and dark Japanese watercolors that sank into the textured black paper, and the drawing-like simplicity of the fish on top. She’s got deceptive amounts of detail, from the subtle shading on her creepy blank eye to the deliberate comic “shine” marks around her phosphorescent lure. The paint itself is a little bit shiny, with some duochrome Aquamarine mixed in with the white and turquoise to create a shiny paint that sits on top of the background rather than blending in.

Also, she’s magnificently creepy. Win!

Angler Fish 1, 7″x5″ watercolor on paper, $250 with free shipping.

Angler Fish 1, work in progress, by Amy Crook

Angler Fish 1, work in progress, by Amy Crook

Above, you can see the murky background painting along with the little pre-sketch I did to fix the design in my head. I didn’t want to pencil directly onto the paint, so I just doodled it on a bit of scratch paper instead. Below, you can see a close-up of the angler’s lure and her shiny paint looking very bright against the matte depths behind her.

Angler Fish 1, detail, by Amy Crook

Angler Fish 1, detail, by Amy Crook

And finally, you can see the fish in her frame! I keep saying her because, of course, male angler fish are wee, pathetic little things doomed to die in the service of their species. I feel comfortable putting these links off my site here, because none of you ever read this far down, anyway.

Angler Fish 1, framed art by Amy Crook

Angler Fish 1, framed art by Amy Crook

  • Title: Angler Fish 1
  • 7 in. x 5 in. watercolor, Japanese watercolor, and duochrome watercolor on Arches cover black paper
  • $250 for the original (tax will be added if you live in CA)
  • Frame is not included, but can be added for $50 (shipping included)
  • Shipping is free anywhere in the world
  • Payment plans are available, just email me
  • The button below will take you to Paypal – if you’d like to pay another way, just let me know and we’ll work it out

Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
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Monster Naptime

Monday, May 20th, 2013

Monster Naptime by Amy Crook

Monster Naptime by Amy Crook, 5″x7″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper

After last week’s pair of Monster paintings, I decided to do a follow-up to start the week off right. This is, after all, the best perspective from which to deal with the adorable little pests. Once they’ve had a nap, I’m sure they won’t be quite so grumpy.

The clever among you will notice that it’s the artist holding the monsters. The persnickety will notice my part is on the wrong side, which is artistic license. And yes, I do have a nose in real life.

Monster Naptime, detail, by Amy Crook

Monster Naptime, detail, by Amy Crook

Above you can see the cranky cuties up close and full of meh. Below, I’ve put myself and my monsters behind glass, and Cthulhu himself came by to hang out. He’s got this sleeping thing down pat, after all.

Monster Naptime, framed art by Amy Crook

Monster Naptime, framed art by Amy Crook

Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
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