Posts Tagged ‘duochrome’
Three Crows 2
Friday, March 6th, 2020
Three Crows 2, 6″x4″ watercolor on paper
Sometimes original, amazing titles come to me, and sometimes you get Three Crows 2.
The art that goes with the uninspired title, however, has a gorgeous sky full of hidden shimmer in the sunset-painted clouds. The tree twists out into the middle ground with gorgeously shaded branches, and the three crows have just enough spook and shimmer to them to stand out beautifully against both. Their eyes are painted with a dot of one of my favorite weird paints that shimmers from red to green like a scarab.
Where do you need a little bit of spookiness in your spring?
Three Crows 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see two of the crows flying past the shimmering clouds, their eyes reflecting unknown secrets. Below, this deceptively small painting is waiting in its frame to be whisked away to a new environment, with new secrets to be learned.
Three Crows 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: crow, duochrome, nfs, primatek, sold, sunset, tree, 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
Stirring Up the Sky
Friday, September 6th, 2019
Stirring Up the Sky, 8″x8″ watercolor on paper
More skies, more sparkles, more moon, more bird!
This one’s got a lovely shimmery background, both moon and sky, which the wings of our crow pick up beautifully. There is some matte black in its head and body and along the arches of its bones, but mostly this crow is like a dream of motion, stirring up the sky. The crow blots out the shine of the moon like the only solid piece of reality in a shining, swirling night.
Where would this beauty fit into your reality?
Stirring Up the Sky, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the deep black of the crow going blurred and sparkly against the turquoise glitter of the moon. Below, the painting is shining out of a frame, waiting to go home with you. Yes, you.
Stirring Up the Sky, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: altered skies, blue moon, crow, duochrome, iridescent, moon, nfs, sold, watercolor
Concentric 6
Thursday, July 11th, 2019
Concentric 6, 6″x4″ watercolor on paper
Irresistibly textured dots adorn this odd Concentric abstract, the paint a strange beast that shimmers from deep red to metallic green in the light. Made to imitate the oil-slick colors of a scarab, the colors shift from dried blood to old bronze in a manner befitting the gloomy violet-grey fog it’s floating against.
The depths of the purple have their own little sparkle in the brightest sunlight from the amethyst ground up into it, because if one is going to go goth, one might as well go all the way.
Concentric 6, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the iridescent paint catch the light and even a hint of sparkle in the amethyst. Below, the painting is hiding in a frame, waiting for its chance to shine.
Concentric 6, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: concentric, duochrome, for sale, primatek, watercolor
Be Curious
Wednesday, July 3rd, 2019
Be Curious, 8″x8″ watercolor on paper
I’m always on the lookout for short, interesting quotes to add to an Aglow painting. Sometimes the quote comes first, and sometimes the painting happens and the words wander in later, after some thought and possibly googling.
In this case, the shifting blue glows of pixies or stars or will-o-the-wisps floating up through the painting brought me to a very simple thought: be curious.
The perfect sentiment for a painting that invites exploration, with its odd details, here-and-gone glow, and a shining message in pink-purple-blue at the edge of a whirlwind of blue.
Be Curious, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the shine of iridescent paint on top of the soft, complex matte of natural mineral paint. Below, the painting sits in its frame, inviting one closer, inviting curiosity.
Be Curious, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: aglow, duochrome, interference, nfs, primatek, sold, watercolor
Concentric 3
Tuesday, March 12th, 2019
Concentric 3, 8″x8″ watercolor on paper
Another Concentric abstract this time, one that holds some of the meditative quality of its creation.
This one sparkles in every layer, from the tiny chips of amethyst in the background depths, to the mix of shimmery special effects paints used in the foreground. The final effect is like fireworks against a violet, star-speckled sky, brightening the room with their shine.
Concentric 3, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a small section of the firework-like bursts of concentric rings. Below, the painting sits in a frame, resting before its trip to its new home.
Concentric 3, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery, Series and Books
Tags: concentric, duochrome, inerference, metallic, nfs, pearlescent, primatek, sold, watercolor
Old Blue Eyes
Monday, June 4th, 2018
Old Blue Eyes, 6″x6″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper
The King is dead, long live the king! Old Blue Eyes here is ready to rule even in the tender grip of death — is he a lich or a ghost, or leader of the skeleton army?
Or perhaps he’s a she, a queen of the undead with her spirit shining out of her eye sockets with as much fierceness as ever.
What story would you give to this clever creature?
Old Blue Eyes, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the shine of the crown and the subtler blue glow of the eyes on this strange skull. Below, the painting’s resting in a frame, just waiting on the next chapter of their story.
Old Blue Eyes, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: crown, duochrome, for sale, metallic, skull, watercolor
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