Posts Tagged ‘black paper’
Painted Ladies 2
Monday, October 3rd, 2016
Painted Ladies 2, 10″x8″ gansai watercolor on Arches cover black paper
It’s inevitable, living near San Francisco as I do, that I would revisit the Painted Ladies theme.
This time a soft, seafoam green permeates the beautiful Victorian row houses, each with a unique facade that nonetheless echoes its neighbors. The clouds above look like cotton puffs, fluffily floating along among the shining stars in the velvety black sky.
This paper is unique because it gets its color from a chemical process, so the black is lightfast. Though of course it’s never a good idea to put artwork in a sunny spot, it’s good to know it won’t become grey over the years.
Painted Ladies 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of a few of the charming faces on the painted ladies. Below, they’re tucked into a simple frame, just waiting to add charm and elegance to your home.
Painted Ladies, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, city, for sale, green, horizons, japanese watercolor, painted ladies, row houses, stars, watercolor
Purple Pathways
Thursday, February 4th, 2016
Purple Pathways, 6″x4″ duochrome watercolor and interference watercolor on Arches cover black paper
Silvery blue becomes iridescent lavender, a trick of the light, a visual mirage. The black is an endless sky behind it, a void, a road not taken as the paint makes its own pathways and claims its space with sparkle and color.
It’s always hard to capture the qualities of metallic and duochrome paints with a still photo, but you can see two of the angles and imagine the rest, the changes that happen in daylight or lamplight, at this vantage or that.
It would fit perfectly on a desk or a bit of wall that you pass often, somewhere where it can catch the light, and your eye, and bring a smile to your face and some beauty to your day.
Purple Pathways, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight picking out a plethora of glittery colors against the velvety black paper. Below, the piece is in a frame, showcasing its small size.
Purple Pathways, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, duochrome, for sale, interference, pathways, watercolor
Jack Frost
Friday, January 8th, 2016
Jack Frost, 10″x8″ watercolor and interference watercolor on Arches cover black paper
Most of the paint on this lovely black paper is white, but mixed in there’s just a little bit of interference blue. When it’s in normal light, the blue just looks white like the rest, but in sunlight or strong indoor light it adds a sparkle to this piece that makes it really magical.
Just like winter, it’s something lovely and stark that holds hidden depths of color and light.
And with the weather we’ve got out here in SF, Jack Frost might even pay me a visit this year — brr!
Jack Frost, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a little bit of the sparkle peeking out of the chilly frost. Below, you can see the painting in a temporary frame, like a window on a cold winter’s night.
Jack frost, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, interference, nfs, pathways, sold, watercolor
Hummingbird at Night
Sunday, October 4th, 2015
Hummingbird at Night by Amy Crook
This time of year there’s hummingbirds all over my neighborhood, and even showing up on my social media feeds. These inspirational little tiny jewels just beg to be captured, not in a cage, but on the page.
This painting features iridescent and duochrome paints on the black paper so everything shimmers and shines the way a real hummingbird does. The duochrome paints are really something, they change color depending on the angle of the light. Despite being a night scene, this piece sparkles charmingly in sunlight.
Hummingbird at Night, 6″x4″ duochrome and iridescent watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Hummingbird at Night, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sparkle in the Hummingbird’s breast and the loose brushstrokes that shape the leaves. Below, this tiny gem is nestled into a frame, waiting to brighten up your life.
Hummingbird at Night, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, duochrome, hummingbird, iridescent, nfs, sold, watercolor
Zombie Heart
Saturday, October 3rd, 2015
Zombie Heart, abstract art by Amy Crook
Although Zombie Heart is in keeping with the Halloween theme, there’s a gorgeous complexity to it that could live in the right home year round. The greens range from the darkest shadow around the main shape to the iridescence that floats above, shining like radioactivity.
The way the metallic greens bloom on the dark green core shape is like mold blossoming against decaying zombie flesh. The organic layers of shape and shade show an eerily beautiful side to this particular undead myth.
Are your favorite zombies created by magic, radioactivity, a virus, or some mad scientist?
Zombie Heart, 8″x10″ watercolor and duochrome watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Zombie Heart, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the mysterious swirls and shimmers giving depth and texture to the painting. Below, it’s lurking in a frame, waiting to find a permanent home, lab, or specimen shelf.
Zombie Heart, 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: anatomical heart, black paper, duochrome, for sale, green, iridescent, watercolor, zombie
Fairytale Sky 10
Friday, July 3rd, 2015
Fairytale Sky 10 by Amy Crook
I haven’t added to this series in a while, but sometimes you just want to paint swirly clouds and a big, bright moon.
I was watching Mulan the other day, and I was inspired by the beautiful way the artists rendered smoke in that movie. I’m still wembling about what to do with the sky in another work in progress, so this little painting let me explore both ideas.
I think the result is lovely, don’t you?
Fairytale Sky 10, 6″x4″ Japanese watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Fairytale Sky 10, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the moon up close, its softly glowing face full of beautiful texture from the paper. Below, the piece has been put in a tiny frame, perfect to secret in a bookshelf, display on a desk, or add to an array of other art.
Fairytale Sky 10, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, fairytale sky, for sale, japanese watercolor, moon, watercolor
Unlock Me
Tuesday, May 5th, 2015
Unlock Me by Amy Crook
I’ve been working hard on a new novel, Unboxed, which should be out sometime this summer. There’s a theme of keys and locks in it, and this lovely painting is part of the cover art.
Lovely hand-painted filigree in a warm rosy gold frames a mysterious keyhole, just waiting for the right key to come unlock it. There’s 3 painted gemstones held in the spirals and curls of the metal. The background is a dark brown woodgrain, the opening of this mysterious box kept safe and sound by the lock that covers it.
This painting gives a fairytale sense of mystery, inviting speculation and storytelling of your own to explain the reason for the lock, who has the key, and what hides inside.
Unlock Me, 8″x10″ Japanese and metallic watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Unlock Me, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the painting washed with sunlight, catching on the gold and copper paint that make up the filigree design. Below, the painting sits in a frame, a fairytale just waiting to be told.
Unlock Me, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, i made this, japanese watercolor, metallic, nfs, sold, unboxed
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