Coloring and Doodling and Working

Hello Friends.......

I've been working! Working on new stuff for my "inspired by" section. Only that this is a style that is part of my artistic roots, and I'm slapping myself silly 'cause I don't know why I ever gave it up. Hmmmmm I sense there is a story coming up sometime soon. All I can say is this...."It is good to branch out and try new things but there must be one or two things you are really good at and most of all love to do. Why not dig in deep and try to perfect that one thing, even as you continue to experiment and learn new things? It is then your unique style will emerge."

Yes indeed there is a story or two in there. In the meantime, here is a doodle page in my Butterfly Art Journal  For Suzi Blu's Fairy class.

Hope you all have a productive week.

Sitting Scratching My Head

I have been struggling for a while now to work with cracking medium. I have 4 different brands of this medium, and I am convinced that I am doing something wrong. A few months ago I bought 2 bottles of colored cracking medium, and today, only today opened one bottle to find it almost dry.

I painted my page purple, and while waiting for that to dry, I mixed the crackle paint to get it to a gooey consistency. It was not spreadable with a paint brush so I used a palette knife to spread it, and left it to dry. Visiting it a few hours later, I took one look at it and walked away disappointed. Sure the thing cracked but the cracks were raised off the page and you could actually use a nail and scratch the cracks off. No clue now with what to do with this page. Can't tear it out because I have something pretty on the back. AAAARRRRGGGGG!!!!!!

Another couple of hours later I used acrylic gloss medium to cover, hoping that the medium would stick the flaky bits back to the page. It did. Left it to dry. The outcome, something like leather.
I didn't like it at all. The color of the paints, the cracks, and the leathery look. But I needed to keep going and turn it around to something I would like.

 The photo does not do it justice, and I'm not sure what to make of it.

Two 3-D liner paint pens saved the day. A few doodles and swirls and a hand made flower sticker turned it from disaster to victory. Now I just need to find some thoughtful words to add to the page. Not one of my favorite projects but I learned something new, and I did not give up!

Doll Dreams June Challenge

Adriana's Challenge over at Doll Dreams.ning.com this month is Markers. I have not done a picture in only markers for a long time so I decided to give it a go. Adriana did a whole course on using copic markers but at the time, copic markers were not available in my neck of the woods. I eventually discovered BRUSHABLES - I've never used copics, so I can't compare but I'm happy with my find.

Brushables come in a package of 4, each marker with two tips. The color, and the tint. Great for layering and coloring faces. The colors are basic; Blues, Greens, Yellows, Browns, Reds, purples, greys to black. But what more do you need?

Here's a little slideshow I made to show the process of the piece.

This was really fun to make, and I was so grateful for the template. Next time I won't be lazy. I'll draw my own doll.
Enjoy!

Inspired by POM and ME

Murakamis' POM AND ME

Self-Portrait of Murakami and his dog, POM

I like that he created his self-portrait in different colors. Materials used to make the statues: acrylic, carbon fiber and corian base.

And now for my rendition of POM AND ME

materials used:

Prismacolor -colored pencils

graphite Pencil

Faber-castell makers

pitt pens

rub-ons

 

Inspired By -Takashi Murakami

I learned about contemporary artist Takashi Murakami recently, when I took the kids to his "EGO" exhibit at the Qatar Museum Authority. Naturally one is drawn to his whimsical characters KaiKai and KiKi, and the bright fun colours he uses in each piece.

The first thing that gets you when you enter the gallery, is the giant inflatable balloon of himself, sitting there like a giant Buddha. The likeness of him is amazing. I knew it was a balloon because this girl had to touch it. No detail was spared in this giant image of himself. Look closely and you will see the hairs on his legs; even a few scratches and sores.

Photos were not allowed inside the exhibition, so I have to rely on Internet photos to display some of his work here. There is an excellent review of the exhibition written on Buddhist Art News.

Self Portrait Of The Distressed Artist - 2009

(Credit to www.picassomio.com)

Time- Camouflage Moss Green - 2009

(Credit to Artobserved.com)

His whimsical flowers and colours

One of many KiKi and KaiKai Paintings