Posts Tagged ‘crosshatching’
Sherlock Quote Cards
Saturday, July 21st, 2012
Sherlock BBC quote cards with art by Amy Crook
I’ve decided to do a new little line of Sherlock cards at my Etsy shop, which I hope you’re thrilled about, heh. I drew four painstakingly crosshatched corner designs, and then put together a card with one of my favorite quotes from the series. I’ve chosen one quote from each episode, making a total of six cards, which you can to buy in threes (by series, of course) or as a set of six.
Starting clockwise from the upper left, I’ve drawn Sherlock’s much-beloved scarf, curled around a pack of cigarettes which bear a skull and crossbones to indicate poison, or maybe pirates. Then there’s his ubiquitous magnifier, the design fudged a bit to make it more resemble an eye in its own right. It’s surrounded by deadly nightshade, a nod to Sherlock’s profession (and my cat, Belladonna). Down in the lower left, there’s also amanita mushrooms, which are quite poisonous indeed. A mysterious iPhone that might be pink were it not in black and white rests with two large, speckled pills and one shiny bullet. The last set, in the lower right, is Sherlock’s beloved skull (well, I say friend…), along with three books of mysterious origin, though I imagine the biggest one is the volume of fairy tales Sherlock found at a certain crime scene.
The quote above is from my favorite episode of Series 2, not perhaps the best objectively but the most fun by far, The Hounds of Baskerville. I love how Gatiss shifted the plurality from the original title (The Hound of the Baskervilles) and gave it a whole new, equally sinister meaning. I’m using the Sherlock page on Wikiquotes to get the phrasing right, so all mistakes in canon are totally theirs, wot.
Sherlock Quote Cards, 7″x5″ pen and ink on paper, original nfs. But feel free to buy the cards at my Etsy shop!
Categories: Daily Art, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: cards, crosshatching, etsy, greeting card, nfs, pen and ink, sherlock
Giant Rats 16: Don’t You See?
Saturday, July 14th, 2012
“Do you see, John?” – a Sherlock comic by Amy Crook
For a few months now I’ve been contemplating the idea of doing a larger work with the Gorey-style shading, taking Sherlock and his Watson on an adventure that I could later put into a short book or something. Apparently, the first step on that path wasn’t deciding on a story or doing thumbnails, but instead drawing a random panel that might or might not fit in the middle, with a cute little one-shot joke.
If I do actually get far enough into the project it seems like it’ll finish (never a guarantee, heh), then I’ll want the originals to be Kickstarter incentives for printing a run of little books, I think, so this one won’t be for sale just yet.
“Don’t you see, John?” Sherlock comic, 7″x5″ pen and ink on paper.
Sherlock comic, framed, by Amy Crook
These are the smaller size from my B is for Baker Street series, the art itself is 5″x3″ on the 7″x5″ paper, whereas the original four character drawings are 7″x5″ including the text, on a larger 8.5″x5.5″ sheet of paper. These are much easier to frame, and easier to finish as well with significantly fewer square inches of white space to be crosshatched in masochistic detail.
So, what do you think? Would you want a little Sherlock book, perhaps The Giant Rats of Sumatra?
Categories: Daily Art, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: black and white, crosshatching, giant rats of sumatra, gorey, john watson, pen and ink, sherlock, sherlock bbc, sherlock holmes
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Tentacle Reach
Tuesday, June 26th, 2012
Tentacle Reach by Amy Crook
One of the colors I have in my flower-shaped Japanese watercolor palette is a vivid, almost fluorescent orange that makes a surprisingly subtle wash. I started doing another Tentacle Deeps with the red pen on the orange wash, but i liked the reaching-out gesture of the first crosshatched tentacle so much I decided to do something a little different.
I grabbed my Apricot fountain pen and brought another tentacle down from above, the two of them not quite touching as they try to cross the distance. The result echoes a lot of iconic images without actually copying any of them.
Also, there’s spirals.
Tentacle Reach, 7″x5″ pen & ink and watercolor on paper.
Tentacle Reach, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of the crosshatched tentacles and the aching space between them. The red pen has a fatter nib, and its ink tended to bleed more where the paint wash was denser, which gives the orange tentacle a more ethereal feel by comparison. Below, you can see them tucked in a frame, hanging out with my jellyfish phone for scale.
Tentacle Reach, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Tentacles
Tags: crosshatching, for sale, orange, pen and ink, tentacles, watercolor
Jellyfish Deeps 2
Thursday, June 7th, 2012
Jellyfish Deeps 2 by Amy Crook
Jellyfish, jellyfish everywhere! Well, okay, just here and on my phone, but still. Somehow getting Jellyfish Deeps put onto my phone as a custom Gelaskin inspired me to make a sequel. I rescued another paper from the pile of awful, added another layer of watercolor and salt, and then let that dry into something far more pleasing. Once that was done, it was time for the white gel pen and jellyfish.
I like drawing these jellyfish, too, they’re like happy little aliens floating serenely amidst the currents and formations in the deep of ocean or maybe outer space. Also, tentacles.
Jellyfish Deeps 2, 5″x7″ pen & ink, salt, gel pen and watercolor on paper.
Jellyfish Deeps 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see that the salt on this piece is just a scattering of texture and sparkle rather than solid formations like some of the pieces. Below, the piece is cuddled up in my desk with my phone for size reference.
Jellyfish Deeps 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books, Tentacles
Tags: crosshatching, for sale, gel pen, jellyfish, pen and ink, salt, tentacles, watercolor
Flow
Monday, May 28th, 2012
Flow, abstract art by Amy Crook
This holiday Monday brings a piece that’s ironically about work, and getting into the flow of things. I actually painted the background for this upside-down, but I decided I liked the way it looked better the other way around once I got in the flow of working on it.
It reminds me a little of those desk toys with the two unmixing fluids that rock back and forth meditatively, creating waves where the two fluids meet. Something to put up at work to remind you that sometimes, all you have to do is look at things another way to get into the groove again.
Flow, 8″x4″ pen & ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Flow, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see some of the crosshatching up close, and the subtle variations in color and texture throughout the piece. Below, it’s been temporarily put in a 10″x8″ frame for scale. And now, by request, it’s also a computer wallpaper.
Flow, framed, by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Free Wallpapers
Tags: blue, crosshatching, for sale, green, pen and ink, spirals, watercolor
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Sherlock Flock
Thursday, May 24th, 2012
Sherlock Flock - from wallpaper to fabric by Amy Crook
If you’re a fan of Sherlock on the BBC and enjoy my Baker Street Tinies, then I have a fabric design for you — Sherlock Flock! I took the tiny-pen-rendered wallpaper from B is for Baker Street, interior, and used my mad Photoshop skillz to create a repeating pattern, then uploaded it to Spoonflower at rather a larger size than the original. You can put it on a skirt, pillow, purse or have a hanky made, whatever your heart desires!
Sherlock Flock, digital pattern for fabric, available at Spoonflower.
My sample swatch came and I may have made a squeaky noise at how cool it was to have and to hold. No idea what I’ll do with it, but here it is in silk crepe de chine:
Sherlock Flock, actual fabric from Spoonflower by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of
Tags: crosshatching, fabric, scribble goth, sherlock, spoonflower
Jellyfish Bookmark 1
Friday, February 17th, 2012
Jellyfish Bookmark 1
by Amy Crook
The second-to-last day of Bookmark Week is upon us! I’ve already got a few ideas for next time, too, so I hope you’re enjoying the shift from small to super-small art this week.
This one I actually just doodled idly while I was on the phone, thinking of my larger piece Jellyfish Deeps as I worked. I thought about going back in to try to add a little color, but I liked the slight reddish cast the mat board gave to the white gel pen. I’m sure I’ll do another of these sometime, though, the jellyfish are just too entertaining.
Jellyfish Bookmark 1, 0.875″x5.875″ white gel pen on black mat board, nfs, sold.
Jellyfish Bookmark 1, detail, by Amy Crook
Above you can see how the black mat board bled red into white of the ink, though it’s made much more pink by my camera here. The mat board is quite thick, but it would still slip easily into a book as long as you don’t shove it all the way to the spine. Below, I have the jellyfish hanging out with a hardcover, for size comparison.
Jellyfish Bookmark 1, with book, by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Tentacles
Tags: bookmark, crosshatching, gel pen, jellyfish, nfs, pen and ink, sold, tentacles
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