Posts Tagged ‘spirals’
Black Iron Filigree
Friday, July 19th, 2013
Black Iron Filigree, watercolor by Amy Crook
Another of my mysterious dark backgrounds has been brought to light, though in this case I gave it even more darkness to contend with in the form of matte black filigree. There’s a bit of salt on this piece to add a tiny bit of unexpected sparkle, too, and when framed in black it gives the impression of peering through a carved screen into the mysteries beyond.
Black Iron Filigree, 5″x5″ watercolor and salt on watercolor paper.
Black Iron Filigree, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the tiny sparkle of slat crystals hiding among the matte curls, adding a little magic to the mystery of the swirling blues and purples of the background. Below, you can see the piece framed with my phone for scale.
Black Iron Filigree, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: black, filigree, for sale, salt, spirals, watercolor
Tentacle Spiral 6
Tuesday, July 16th, 2013
Tentacle Spiral 6 by Amy Crook
This painting reminds me of looking into a pool of water that reflects the silvery moon. Not that I’ve ever been able to see writhing tentacles reaching in from all sides, slithering under the water and trying to capture the moon in their curls. The silver seems to float on top of everything else, even the details that were added after, though there’s little pen-and-ink details that scratch their way through the surface to add an extra bit of visual interest.
Tentacle Spiral 6, 6″x4″ Japanese watercolor, metallic watercolor, pen & ink and Sharpie marker on watercolor paper.
Tentacle Spiral 6, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the secret coppery pen-scratches adding little halos of movement around some of the tentacles, and the deeper blacks etched into the silvery Sharpie curls as well. Below, you can see the piece in a frame, giving the tentacles a more otherworldly feel as they sneak in from all sides, grasping at moonlight.
Tentacle Spiral 6, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: for sale, pen and ink, sharpie, silver, spirals, tentacle spiral, tentacles, watercolor
Fairytale Sky 7
Friday, June 28th, 2013
Fairytale Sky 7 by Amy Crook
So, instead of painting the moon and mist and stars on black paper, this time I painted a mysterious sky of nearly-black colors, then added in the silver mist and stars and milk-white moon. I love the way the moon and mist picked up the background colors, especially the bloody cast to the moon’s shadows. A subtle addition to the series, with shine on the metallic mist and stars but not too much fancy paint this time around.
Fairytale Sky 7, 7″x5″ Japanese watercolor on Arches cover white paper.
Fairytale Sky 7, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see brush strokes in the silver paint, which ranges from thick enough to stand off the paper, to thin enough to barely be visible on the dark background. Below, the painting is hanging out with my iPhone, showing off its spirals.
Fairytale Sky 7, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: fairytale sky, iridescent, japanese watercolor, moon, nfs, silver, spirals, watercolor
Drunk Lizard
Friday, June 14th, 2013
Drunk Lizard by Amy Crook
I drew this guy while I was watching Lilo & Stitch, and drinking a nice refreshing gin & ginger ale, so he’s got a looseness to him that I rather enjoy. Both his body and his background are done with pen & ink washed over with a water brush, and then more ink added back in afterward. I really like how multiple passes of pen and brush created layers of color and texture in his otherwise simple drawing.
Drunk Lizard, 5″x7″ pen & ink and water brush on paper.
Drunk Lizard, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the little spiral toesies, which I actually added in the next day, and the various textured layers of spirals that surround and fill the little lizard. Below, he’s in a frame, hanging out with an orange five-tentacled octopus, because that’s what drunk lizards do.
Drunk Lizard, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: for sale, green, lizard, pen and ink, spirals, water brush
Spiral Bookmark 7
Friday, June 7th, 2013
Spiral Bookmark 7
by Amy Crook
I couldn’t resist putting #7 on the 7th, so here are three lovely coppery spirals on a background of black paper with dark purple stripes. The paint is a metallic called “duochrome” that shows different colors from different angles, orangey bright from some angles and a more rose-tinted copper from others. I suppose one of these days I ought to do a, “why spirals?” post, but I’m not sure I could adequately answer the question.
Spiral Bookmark 7, 1.5″x4″ watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Spiral Bookmark 7, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see that I took this over to the window so you’d get the full effect of sunlight, making the spirals shine and the purple deep shadows against the paper. This soft paper is actually made for printmaking, and they create the black color with a chemical reaction in the paper pulp so it’s lightfast and won’t ever fade beyond the rich, deep charcoal. Below, you can see it hanging out with my book, being mysterious.
Spiral Bookmark 7, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, book wishes to remain mysterious)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, buy a bookmark, duochrome, for sale, spirals, watercolor
Tentacle Spiral 5
Tuesday, April 23rd, 2013
Tentacle Spiral 5 by Amy Crook
These tentacles are reaching out to you through an iridescent purple mist. I’m not sure what their plan is if they get a hold of you, but best make sure there’s a nice pane of glass on the frame, just in case.
Tentacle Spiral 5, 6″x4″ watercolor, iridescent watercolor and salt water on Fluid watercolor paper.
Tentacle Spiral 5, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the light changing the mist from lavender to shimmery blue. Below, you can see the tentacles in a frame, trying to get to my iPhone to make a call, presumably to Cthulhu.
Tentacle Spiral 5, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Angels, Cthulhu, and Other Myths, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: for sale, iridescent, purple, spirals, tentacle spiral, tentacles, watercolor
2 Comments »
Gibbous Moon
Monday, April 22nd, 2013
Gibbous Moon, watercolor by Amy Crook
It’s Earth Day, so of course I contrarily have a moon for you. Curling silvery mist wreaths upward, trying to reach the moon that’s a lot farther away than it looks, while blue stars shimmer in the far distance. The moon itself is just a little warm and golden, with the color bleeding strangely into the dark, making you wonder just what’s going on up there. Eerily beautiful.
Gibbous Moon, 7″x5″ watercolor and iridescent watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Gibbous Moon, detail 1, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the moon itself, warm and slightly sinister where it floats in the middle distance. Below, a few curls of iridescent mist swim into your view.
Gibbous Moon, detail 2, by Amy Crook
And finally, you can see it slipped into a frame and hanging out on my writing desk with my iPhone, so you can see how it looks in the wild.
Gibbous Moon, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, fairytale sky, for sale, iridescent, moon, spirals, watercolor
1 Comment »
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