Posts Tagged ‘spirals’
7 Skulls
Monday, March 18th, 2013
7 Skulls by Amy Crook
Whimsical cartoon skulls are rolling around on a background full of spirals, with a lovely blue-black painted border that emphasizes the natural torn edges of the paper. Each cartoonish skull has its own character, just like the real ones we all have hiding under our skin.
7 Skulls, 9″x7″ watercolor on paper.
7 Skulls, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a detail of the skulls and the thick, textured paper they’re painted on. Below, I’ve put them temporarily in an 8×10 frame, so you can get a feel for the actual size of the painting.
7 Skulls, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Zombies, Skulls, and Other Morbid Things
Tags: blue, for sale, skull, spirals, watercolor
1 Comment »
Ghost Moon
Monday, March 4th, 2013
Ghost Moon by Amy Crook
I can’t honestly remember now which came first, the Ghost Spirals Bookmark or the trees in this piece. I definitely painted them on the same day, but then I came back to this later and added in the moon, and then in a third pass I added iridescent blue stars with the purple meteor, a shine of subtle iridescent green to the treetops, and silver on the moon.
I’m sometimes torn about using so much iridescent and metallic paint. On the one hand, it feels a bit gimmicky (and can’t be made into prints effectively), but on the other hand I think the pieces are more beautiful with the shimmer and shine. And since the real point of my art is to put more beautiful things into the world, I’ve decided to go with what feels right.
Ghost Moon, 7″x5″ Japanese watercolor on Arches cover black paper.
Ghost Moon, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a bit of the green shimmer on the trees, the silver shine of the moon, and the blue and purple stars, shooting and otherwise. Below, I’ve got the piece in a frame, so you can see how it sizes up to my iPhone.
Ghost Moon, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: black paper, for sale, iridescent, japanese watercolor, moon, shooting star, spirals, tree, watercolor
1 Comment »
Pink Roses Bookmark
Thursday, February 28th, 2013
Pink Roses Bookmark
by Amy Crook
I started this bookmark by doodling long, slightly uneven stripes of gold glitter pen, and then I took my pink and green and made fat spiral roses all through the gold, 13 in total. Perfect for keeping your spot in a romance novel.
Pink Roses Bookmark, 1″x4″ pen & ink and glitter gel pen on cardstock, nfs (sold).
Pink Roses Bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the bright pink and shining gold up close and personal. Below, you can see the wee bookmark hanging out on the hardcover book. I think it prefers paperbacks, myself.
Pink Roses Bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, so treat your new bookmark to something special)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, comic backing board, glitter gel pen, pen and ink, spirals
Ghost Spirals Bookmark
Wednesday, February 27th, 2013
Ghost Spirals Bookmark by Amy Crook
It’s always interesting to me to see the way the Japanese watercolors sink and fade into the black paper as they dry, losing some of their opacity and leaving behind a complex texture of paint and paper. These spirals looked ghostly to me in the way some of them faded almost to translucency, which is where they got their name.
Ghost Spirals Bookmark, 4″x1.5″ Japanese watercolor on paper, nfs (sold).
Ghost Spirals Bookmark, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the delicate traceries of dried paint within the thick, translucent spirals. Below, you can see this bookmark hanging out with my book, just waiting to find a new book and a new home.
Ghost Spirals Bookmark, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, you wouldn’t want it anyway, it’s a boring book)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: black paper, bookmark, japanese watercolor, spirals
1 Comment »
Spiral Bookmark 6
Tuesday, February 26th, 2013
Spiral Bookmark 6
by Amy Crook
Today’s bookmark reminds me of sun on the ocean, lightening up the top layer that then gets darker the deeper it goes. The sun is in a shimmery copper, while the ocean is three levels of three spirals each, from a pale aqua that my scanner loves to hate, through a brighter blue and then finally a soft greyish sapphire. All of the paints are iridescent, and catch the light beautifully.
Spiral Bookmark 6, 1.25″x4.5″ watercolor on paper.
Spiral Bookmark 6, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see some of the sun-changed colors and get a different hint especially of the deep blue and pale aqua. Below, you can see it hanging out with my trusty hardcover book.
Spiral Bookmark 6, with book, by Amy Crook
(book not included, as books often aren’t)
Categories: Abstract and Just Plain Weird, Daily Art, Series and Books
Tags: bookmark, buy a bookmark, for sale, iridescent, spirals, watercolor
Storm
Monday, February 18th, 2013
“I hope the Dwarves find some shelter before those Stone Giants really get going.”
Storm, The Hobbit fan art by Amy Crook
My tiny fandom obsession continues! The mountains dried with lovely blue-violet swirls in their depths, and now there’s Gandalf, contemplating the oncoming storm as he starts to head into the Misty Mountains after Thorin et al. He’s done all in shades of grey as is appropriate, with Glamdring at his side and his staff in hand. Plus the pointy hat, of course.
Storm, 6″x6″ Japanese watercolor on Fluid watercolor paper.
Storm, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see a close-up of Gandalf with the colors tweaked to help bring out his eyes, er, details. Below, you can see it snugly resting in an 8″x8″ frame, waiting to find a new home.
Storm, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, People, Figures and Faces, Series and Books, Things I'm a Fan Of, Whimsical and Strange
Tags: for sale, gandalf, hobbit, mountains, sky, spirals, tiny fandom, watercolor
1 Comment »
Sunrise Crows
Monday, January 21st, 2013
Sunrise Crows by Amy Crook
The colors of this sunrise will seem familiar from Friday’s post, I hope, with gentler clouds and the birds to bring it out of abstraction. There’s still shimmery spirals in blues and golds, but they’re softer, fluffy clouds instead of stormy ones. The three birds are flying along not really in formation but just hanging out, the sunlight shining on and through their feathers, making them almost ghostly in the morning light.
Sunrise Crows, 7″x5″ watercolor on paper, nfs (sold).
Sunrise Crows, detail, by Amy Crook
Above, you can see the sunlight glimmering off the iridescent paint, and the tiny feathery details in the middle crow. The golden clouds get hints of rose and orange, while the blue ones go softly aquamarine. Below, you can see the piece hanging out on my writing desk in a frame, waiting to fly off to their new home.
Sunrise Crows, framed art by Amy Crook
Categories: Daily Art, Flowers, Trees and Landscapes, Sea Creatures and Other Animals, Series and Books
Tags: blue, crow, duochrome, gold, iridescent, nfs, sold, spirals, sunrise, watercolor
« Or Head Back That Way
More Art This Way »
