Charitable endeavors

For the second time, my coworker is auctioning off handmade items for charity on her blog. I wanted to create something different than last year, and what better inspiration than my recent trip to Italy with my husband?

The first time I visited Rome, in 2004, I returned to the Colosseum about four times, alwaysat different times of day, to see how the light changed the shadows and colors of this amazing ruin. This trip was no different, and I was especially inspired by a photo I took on our last night in Rome -- accidentally in sepia tones because I was screwing around with my camera settings.

(Inspiration: Monet's Rouen Cathedral series, which I've been obsessed with for years.)

Since I screwed up the color settings of the photo, I just painted it the way I saw it in my head. I knew I wanted to use many transparent colors, and watercolors are great for that. I hadn't put any real efforts into using watercolors since high school, and when I realized I wanted to use watercolors, I went out and bought a set of eight. And came home and realized I really need to inventory my art supplies...

(You can't have too many!)

A few sausage-making shots, taken with my cell phone camera, just because I think it's interesting to see how these things evolve. In my case, it was layer by layer by layer; I just kept painting until things looked pretty to me. It took a few hours total, long enough for "Blazing Saddles" and Part I of A&E's "Pride & Prejudice" to play on the DVD player in my craft room. :) (What can I say, I have diverse tastes!)

In the end, I'm happy with the way this turned out. I didn't quite get the perspective I wanted, and by the time I realized that, it was too late to fix that problem, but I accomplished my goal of rediscovering watercolors and painting the Colosseum the way I saw it -- in so many different colors.

"Colosseo, Roma," 8" x 10" (matted to 11" x 14"), watercolors on paper, 2011

Blast from the rockin' past

I just found these (blurry) pictures on the hard drive and they made me smile. I sketched this, I think, during the summer of 2001 (10 years ago?!) while hanging out at my sister's and listening to some Aerosmith. (We went through a serious Aerosmith phase.)

It looks better in person; the paper was cheap, and wrinkled a bit under pressure, and the sketching pencils I used don't photograph well because they're a little shiny. Even so, I remember being a little in awe of how well my experiment turned out. I keep it around to remind me how much I love to draw and to see my style evolve with time and practice.

Graphite on paper, 2001(?)

More Feathers

Bigger birds; a house-warming gift for my brother and his girlfriend. (At her special request, the design was largely taken from a print she saw at a department store; I tried to improve upon it.) The canvases are now framed in white and brightening their kitchen. :)

Acrylics on canvas, 2011

Birds in a field

What could be more fun than taking three white 5" x 7" canvases, painting them three pretty colors ...

... to eventually become these? (For a friend's charity auction; final price, to my friend Becky, $65. Thanks, Becky!)

Creative process: Sometimes messy, always a good time. In the background are some notecards I used for inspiration.

Acrylic on canvas, 2010

More cartoons, by special request

A few more cartoons, also for a nursery. The first one is probably my favorite! (The shading on the edges is from the scanner; I can master colored pencils, but not technology.)

Colored pencil on vellum (2011) ...

Back to the Days of Pooh

Catching up: A gift for a friend's baby shower. Little Robbie's nursery theme was, obviously, Winnie the Pooh. These two sides of the unframed canvas were lilac and yellow; the other two sides are blue and green. Not an original quote, but an original design, and really fun to paint! (I am way behind; the baby is more than a year old now!)

Acrylic on canvas (2010)

Rediscovering Seuss

Many, many moons ago, when my good friend Jessica got her first teaching job at an elementary school, she asked if I would mind drawing some pictures for her classroom to go with her Dr. Seuss theme. It's hard to say no to someone as sweet as Jess, so of course, I was happy to do it. I worked really hard on the drawings (winter of 2006-07) and finished four 8"x10"s in colored pencil on vellum. And then I mailed them to Jess. Or so I thought...

Until I found them tonight. In a manila envelope, in a portfolio in my closet. Oops!

The funny thing is, I visited Jessica's classroom this past January with my brother, who has benefited from her generosity and the generosity of her class while he's been deployed to Afghanistan. I thought it was strange that the drawings weren't hanging up, but I thought, "Well, maybe she didn't like them," so I didn't even ask.

Jessica assures me she will hang them up, if she ever gets them! So here you go, Jess -- coming soon, three years later than promised. :)

Also somewhat delayed

I finally declared Michele's drawing finished, even though the perfectionist in me is still not satisfied and I've threatened to come over sometime with charcoal and erasers to tweak it. :) Here is the semi-finished drawing in the frame and mat she chose.

Charcoal on vellum

Somewhat delayed...

I finished Lyndsey's gift a long, long time ago. And forgot to post. Here it is. :)

And another work in progress

Lyndsey has a big, white, empty space on her apartment wall, so I'm painting something for her to hang on it!

It's BIG and bright and a departure from my normal style, and I'm really having fun with it. But unfortunately I can't post any pictures of the entire thing for you yet, because then it wouldn't be a surprise for Lyndsey's 25th birthday! So here are some close-up teasers.

Acrylic on canvas

Work in progress

For Michele -- a portrait of Venice (which is taking me FOREVER). I'm thinking of naming this drawing "Never Let Perfect Get in the Way of Good," because my perfectionism is why it's taking so long.

Fortunately, it's almost done now (much further along than in these pictures, complete with polka dots and gondolas), which means Michele might get it a year after I promised it to her. Hey, I've been busy! :)

Charcoal on vellum

Angel, 2005

Chalk pastel on vellum

My mother-in-law loves angels, so I drew this angel for her as a Christmas gift (when she was still just "my boyfriend's mom.") The dreamy style and the medium were really a departure for me, but I really enjoyed drawing this. I used several pictures as inspiration, but the final product is mostly from my imagination. It's pretty large (I think 11" x 14") and hanging in her living room now.

Venezia, 2005

Charcoal on paper (probably resume paper!)

A tiny (4" x 6") sketch I did one night during my senior year of college, because I was bored and tired of working on my resume. I mailed it to Shane. This is a good example of how I use art as a stress reliever. A little sketching does wonders for the soul. :) (Although some would just call it procrastination!)

The Old Guitarist, 2004

Charcoal on paper

This has always been one of my favorite paintings, and not just because Picasso's Spanish. I feel like Picasso painted an emotion when he painted this -- loneliness. This simple drawing was done in college, when we had to do a study in black and white of a famous work.

Here's a bad photo of me with the original in The Art Institute of Chicago, about 5 years ago (time flies!):

Cowboy, 2004

Charcoal on paperboard

On Christmas Day 2004, my sister told me she wanted to decorate her living room in a southwestern theme, and she wanted a "big picture of a cowboy." I had nothing better to do than eat Christmas candy, so I drew one for her!

A rare glimpse of the artist at work. (On the living room floor, NOT being helped by Lucy the cat!) Also, some in-progress shots that show the random photo I found on the Internet and used as inspiration.

And here's my sister, delighted by the final product! :)