Posts Tagged ‘spiral’
Whimsical Doldrums 2
Tuesday, October 2nd, 2018
Whimsical Doldrums 2, 10″x8″ watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper
These particular doldrums have a bit more color and less stormy skies than the last set, but never fear, there’s still a secret cat.
The heavens rain down on this strange city full of everything from crystal towers to wobbling skyscrapers, a motley of unusual architecture just waiting to bring a smile to your space.
Where would you hang this to turn someone’s frown upside down?
Whimsical Doldrums 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a few of the buildings up close, their loose ink and soft washes of color bringing delight to the gloom. Below, the painting waits in a frame, hoping for a forever home to grace with its fanciful ways.
Whimsical Doldrums 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: brush and ink, city, for sale, spiral, watercolor, whimsical doldrums
Whimsical Doldrums
Thursday, August 2nd, 2018
Whimsical Doldrums, 18″x6″ ink and watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper
This particular city skyline has a very specific sort of aesthetic, grim yet filled with delight. From the curlicue clouds to the building that’s a cat, there’s whimsy to go along with the gloom.
The painting is a true panorama, covering a swathe of buildings huddled close against the rain, their outlines loose and details smudged with rainfall.
Where would this whimsical oddity fit into your life?
Whimsical Doldrums, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of some of the buildings in all their grimly delightful glory. Below, this panoramic piece spans the whole writing desk, even without a frame to contain it.
Whimsical Doldrums by Amy Crook
Categories: Floating Gallery, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: brush and ink, city, for sale, panorama, spiral, watercolor, whimsical doldrums
Battle Scarred
Wednesday, June 18th, 2014
Battle Scarred, abstract art by Amy Crook
There are two distinct layers to this painting, both filled with shining metallics. The copper in the back is marked and scarred like armor that survived a great battle, with blue glittery enamel filigree over the top, decoration that either came after the battle, or survived unmarked by whatever damaged the surface below. Or perhaps it’s a tracery of some magic used to preserve this artifact of past battles, won or lost.
Battle Scarred, 5″x7″ watercolor, salt, metallic watercolor, and glitter gel pen on paper.
Battle Scarred, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the copper paint catching the light, the sparkle of the glitter pen and the salt interacting. The blue pen has picked up a slight green tinge in places from the color beneath it, and the metal ranges from a blushing copper to more golden to the green of tarnish in places. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, sunlight giving it a brilliant sheen.
Battle Scarred, framed art by Amy Crook
This one-of-a-kind piece will be available in the Floating Gallery for July; you can join my list to get an early chance to buy.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Floating Gallery
Tags: blue, copper, for sale, glitter gel pen, metallic, more cowbell, salt, spiral, watercolor
Spiral Dragon
Monday, October 7th, 2013
Spiral Dragon by Amy Crook
Red Sharpie scales cover the entire page, showing through and informing the shapes of everything above them.
Dragons are often identified by their colors. Red and blue make purple, make violet. This dragon has fire in his eyes and ice along his belly.
Is his breath hot or cold? Is that smoke or mist curling from his mouth? Do those spikes cauterize as they pierce, melt the strongest armor or chill it to shattering, or neither, merely sharp, merely tipped in shining red?
Seemingly endless spiral scales are there to protect him, but as Neil Gaiman says, “dragons have one soft spot, somewhere, always.”
Spiral Dragon, 8″x8″ Sharpie marker, watercolor and iridescent watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Spiral Dragon, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight reflecting off the iridescent sapphire of the dragon’s underbelly, and the way the red Sharpie spirals show through everything. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, just waiting for the perfect wall.
Spiral Dragon, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Floating Gallery, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: blue, dragon, iridescent, nfs, purple, red, sharpie marker, sold, spiral, spirals, watercolor
Brass Gates to Midnight 2
Saturday, October 5th, 2013
Brass Gates to Midnight 2 by Amy Crook
Last year I painted Brass Gates to Midnight, and posted it to the blog even though it never quite felt finished to me. I decided to pull out the old piece and rework it. I spent several hours with my brown and gold paint adding depth and weight to the gates, turning the spirals from insubstantial mist to thick vines frozen in a riot of growth. I added a sheen of starlight on the dark trees, and even gave the tiny fairy tucked in the gates a bit more detail and color.
The inner spaces of the gate remain black, blocking our sight to the lands we can see through the gap and over the top. Are you tempted to push them fully open and wander into the starlit places beyond?
Brass Gates to Midnight 2, 5″x5″ Japanese and iridescent watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Brass Gates to Midnight 2, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the little brown-and-green fairy hiding in among the brass curls of the gate. Is he luring you in, or warning you away? Perhaps it’s a bit of both.
Below, you can see the piece in a frame, like a window onto another set of possibilities.
Brass Gates to Midnight 2, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, fairy, for sale, iridescent, japanese watercolor, metallic, more cowbell, spiral, spirals, stars, watercolor
Brass Gates to Midnight
Friday, September 7th, 2012
Brass Gates to Midnight, watercolor by Amy Crook
Swirls of brass run through the range from the brown of oxidization to the bright gold of fresh polish on this half of a pair of gates, the other open and swung out of sight, inviting us through to the sliver of midnight forest we can see behind it. Astute eyes will pick out the shapes of starlit evergreens in the darker black, along with the little secret hanging out amidst the curls of brass. This one is, to me, as much of a fairytale as Monday’s art, an invitation into the lands of imagination that’s always open.
Brass Gates to Midnight, 5″x5″ Japanese watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Brass Gates to Midnight, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, the gold paint shines in the sunlight, and the silver stars glow up above. If you click on the image to see it larger, you can even get a good view of the little green-haired fairy lad chilling amongst the curls of brass. Below, it’s hanging out on a wall with my collection of duckies, and a ruler since my iPhone wasn’t feeling tall enough for the task.
Brass Gates to Midnight, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, fairy, iridescent, nfs, spiral, spirals, watercolor
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Zoisite Swirls
Saturday, September 24th, 2011
Zoisite Swirls by Amy Crook, $77
This piece is an echo of Hibiscus Green, but using the color palette from yesterday’s art. The mixture of the gold tones and zoisite texture gives it an illusion of being an iridescent bronze, even though the paint is actually quite matte. The zoisite is especially matte, soft and velvety looking on the paper’s surface.
Zoisite Swirls, 6.375″x4.25″ hibiscus tea on paper, $77 with free shipping.
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art
Tags: celadon, crane and co, for sale, spiral, watercolor, zoisite
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