Posts Tagged ‘black paper’
Summer 2021 Patreon Sketches
Monday, February 21st, 2022
Sketch cards galore! I have so many that I haven’t posted here, sorry. Last year was full of overwhelm and catch-up and madness, and I’m finally starting to organize things back into a system I can function with.
These little baseball-card-sized sketches are called ACEO (artist card edition only) or sometimes ATC (artist trading card) if being traded around. I standardized all my sketches for Patreon supporters to this size, and it’s made life much easier for me in terms of starting friction. I have all the stuff to start sketching in one little pouch!
ACEO sketch cards by Amy Crook
From the top left:
- Kim wanted to say no to summer, so she gets images of winter, instead!
- the abstract dreams of a dying Medusa is for nobody in particular
- Rebecca S wanted something for Pride, and gets this rainbow of DiversiTea
- Eric wanted some beetroot and got some fun watercolor on Yupo substrate
ACEO sketch cards by Amy Crook
From top down:
- Amber asked for Time Flies
- Jeff asked for “i can’t even right now”
- Eric asked for the One Ring
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Completed Commissions, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Pretty Words, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: aceo, acrylic ink, black paper, eric, gay pride, iridescent, kim, patreon, rebecca s, sharpie marker, watercolor, yupo
May 2021 Patreon Sketch Cards
Wednesday, July 28th, 2021
Another day, another bunch of Patreon sketch cards! I got some nifty black mixed media ones in, and tried that out with my shiny paints for the cocktails on the bottom left. I try to have fun with my sketches whenever I can, y’know?
From the top left:
- Amber’s April showers/May flowers
- a summer bat for The Other Amy
- Nott the Brave for Eric
- Wally the Nonbinary Welsh Walrus for Booskerdu
- Cocktails for Jefferson
- Kim’s new job ft. books
- and 40s music for Roxanne B, with my personal favorite song from the era, “Swingin’ on a Star.”
Carry some moonbeams off in a jar, darlings!
Categories: Completed Commissions, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: bat, black paper, book, copic marker, duochrome, ink wash, iridescent watercolor, pen and ink, walrus, watercolor, yupo
Concentric 9
Monday, July 12th, 2021
Concentric 9, 5″x5″ watercolor on paper
A fitting start for a gallery full of abstract artwork and reclaimed images, here’s an old painting that gained a lot more cowbell.
This mostly-green painting had some sneaky color-changing shine to it already, so I doubled down on that palette and brought in some blue to go with the gold, green, and surprising pops of red. There’s just one big set of Concentric bursts that fade through the palette, and finally trail off and fade out into nothingness.
This is a painting I wish I could show you in person, since it looks different from every angle and has a lot more to offer than I can capture in photos. A very familiar complaint, sadly!
Concentric 9, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight reflecting off the green-gold and green-red paints, turning everything into new colors and showing off hidden details. Below, the painting is in a frame, ready to bring a bit of peace and beauty into your life.
Concentric 9, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, concentric, duochrome, green, iridescent, japanese watercolor, more cowbell, nfs, sold, watercolor
GPS
Thursday, September 3rd, 2020
GPS, 6″x4″ watercolor on black paper
If you’re not looking for murder, perhaps some direction will do.
This is a GPS satellite, painted for a calendar cover to represent both technology and direction needed in 2021. The sunrise is just glinting over the curve of the earth in the background, a reminder that the sun continues to rise, and the atmosphere that we breathe is the thinnest of layers between us and the void.
It’s painted in metallic and opaque watercolors on black paper, so the sky is an even, velvety charcoal studded with distant stars.
GPS, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the gold of dawn just starting to glint over the Earth’s horizon. Below, the whole of space is laid out in a frame, just waiting to go to its forever home.
GPS, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, commission, for sale, gouache, japanese watercolor, metallic, space, watercolor
The Skies of Unknown Kadath
Thursday, March 5th, 2020
The Skies of Unknown Kadath, 6″x8″ watercolor on black paper
In this month’s lone abstract painting, shiny paints layer over black paper to get this dreamlike effect.
“The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath” is a novella by horror writer HP Lovecraft, best known for creating Cthulhu and also being hugely bigoted (even for 100 years ago). It’s a fascinating trip into dreams and obsession and madness, like so many of his works, and the painting’s title is a nod to the surreal descriptions that keep his work in our collective memory.
There’s a lot hiding in this painting, full of pigments that shine at different angles, in different colors, that peek through the less-glittery mineral paints and stand out against the black background.
The Skies of Unknown Kadath, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see some of the shining paints at a close up and oblique angle, the pigments catching sunlight and showing the layers of texture and detail. Below, it’s in a temporary frame, just waiting for the right dreamer.
The Skies of Unknown Kadath, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: black paper, duochrome, interference, iridescent, metallic, nfs, primatek, sold, watercolor
Night Snow
Saturday, November 2nd, 2019
Night Snow, 6″x4″ ink on Arches cover black paper
The last time I saw snow was a freak storm when I was visiting family last year, but the flakes were just like this, fat and fluffy and white against the darkening sky. There’s a very specific kind of snow that looks this way when it’s falling, and is perfect for snowball fights, snowmen, and going inside afterward to drink cocoa.
The white here is ink rather than paint, and its random-seeming spatter has just enough of a direction to it that you can imagine the wind softly blowing the flakes off their course.
Perfect for a winter soul all year round, or as an elegant decoration that’s more seasonal than holiday-related.
Night Snow, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the soft-edged layers of snowflakes, a few so close and big you could almost catch them on a mitten. Below, I’ve trapped this moment in a frame, just waiting to bring a bit of winter wonderland to you!
Night Snow, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black and white, black paper, ink wash, nfs, snow, sold
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!
Inktober 2019 day 1: Ring, 7″x5″ pen and ink on paper
Inktober 2019 day 2: Mindless, 5″x7″ pen & ink and ink wash on paper
Inktober 2019 day 3: Bait, 3.5″x2.5″ pen & ink, glitter gel pen, and ink wash on ACEO bristol, nfs
Inktober 2019 day 4: Freeze, 3″x3″ pen and ink on paper, wip
Inktober 2019 day 5: Build, ink wash on paper bookmark, sold
Inktober 2019 day 6: Husky, 7″x5″ pen and ink on paper, wip
Inktober 2019 day 7: Enchanted, 5″x7″ ink wash on paper
Inktober 2019 day 8: Frail, pen and ink on a bookmark, wip
Inktober 2019 day 9: Swing, 7″x5″ pen and ink on paper, wip
Inktober 2019 day 10: Pattern, 3.5″x2.5″ brush and ink on ACEO card, nfs
Inktober 2019 day 11: Snow, 6″x4″ white ink on black paper
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
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