Mona Lisa my way

Acrylic on canvas board

5 x 7

I did this one for an upcoming show at the The Shoe Factory Art Co-op. My first submission to a juried show. Got my fingers crossed!

I expected this to be a mildly boring piece to do ... friends were suprised I didn't through skulls, bats or the random seahorse into it :)... but I really enjoyed it after all. I was forced to look much closer at the original than I ever had before and it was inspiring :)  I'm thinking of doing the girl with the pearl earring next.. maybe.

Mermaid tattoo redo

Girl stopped by the shop recently with a very large mermaid piece that covers her back that we will be reworking. Not all reworks/cover ups are a good time, but I'm looking forward to this one... sometimes it's fun to be able to bring out the potential of a piece a customer isn't satisfied with. This is the result of the first sitting.

H is for Harpy

graphite on bristol

Another beastie for the #alphabeasts project. My husband's been chasing harpies all over his God of War game and keeps pointing out that she should be ugly. Ah well, maybe next time :)

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• Hi. I'm an artist. I'd like to participate through G+ Is H the next letter? May I draw a beast for it? (alphabeasts.tumblr.com)

Then and Now

Seahorses 2000 - 2011

A week or two back we got talking about the early flash sheets we'd done when we first started tattooing. This led to us digging them up to share and giggle over. My first sheet was heavily influenced by David Bollt, I just adored his stuff.

Having old work brought out to mix and mingle with the new stuff is a real eye opener. You know you've improved over the years but.... wow LOL. I think most of us artists tend to keep an eye on those we admire, those we think are so much better they wouldn't give us the time of day, that we don't fully comprehend just how far we have come over the years.... and just how far we will continue to go.

This was fun, we joked and disparaged our work that we were so proud of at the time, but there was an underlying tenderness toward our baby steps and wondrous excitement at the thought....

"Holy Crap! how good will I be in another 10 years????"

I think we all need to be able to encourage and even pat ourselves on the back once in a while so if any of you  post some "then and now" pics, send me a link and I'll feature them here and give some props to your growth. :)

Petunia

Petunia

Acrylic on watercolor board

Candle Lillies

Candle Lillies

Acrylic on watercolor board

Chimpansy

Acrylic on watercolor board

A lovely example of rare primate foliage. Difficult to keep as a house plant. Prefers a steady diet of venus fly-traps, pitcher plants and the occasional psychedelic mushroom. Also enjoys fligging poo at household pets.

Octo Pansy

10 1/2" x 13"

Acrylic on watercolor board

Because I just can't make up my mind.....

10" x 10"

Acrylic on watercolor board

Yup, it's the same tree as the last post. Loose and flowy? Tight and cartoony? how does one choose? I like this one better... I've always been drawn to the bolder looking stuff but I seem to be fighting it, trying to do other styles that just aren't me... why? probably because I look at this and think "it looks too easy... not enough work went into it" which isn't exactly true, it just looks that way. 

it also seems to have grown some boobies lol

Acrylic tree painting

10"x 10"

Acrylic on Watercolor board

I've been in quite a bit of a slump lately so I've gone back to something I enjoy doing.. trees :)

Hawk Moth redux

8" x 8"

watercolor and colored pencil

Wasn't overly happy with the last one so I did it again.

Hawk Moth

6" x 6"
acrylic on board

medusa cherub

8" x 7"

Colored pencil on pastel paper

Wow, this was rough... I gave up on it at least three times... but here it is! I still like the idea, but I kinda want to redo it... maybe try painting it, but not for a while.

Fu Pug

This little guy was thrown out of temple-guarding school for chasing butterflies.

Colored pencil on pastel paper

Flamingo

Colored pencil on pastel paper

I don't really think swallows suck, but sometimes you gotta do something different....

Skinny Jeans and Fat Girls con't.....

Miss Blossom

5" x 7" 

Acrylic on Arizona boot cut jeans wrapped frame

Another piece of jeans bites the dust... check out my previous post on the subject.

I haven't posted much at all lately but not because I haven't been busy... work has picked up and I was feeling flat out exhausted for a while... yay :). Things have now mellowed to a dull roar and I've got plans, ideas and random sketches littering the house. I've promised I'd crank out a few more bird skull watercolors for a show at a local coffee house so my goal at the moment is just that... then on to more BBWs and a host of small works.... I'm going to need a break from big paintings after I do enough for the show :)

Skinny Jeans and Fat Girls

Well, I've hit middle age and my cut-off weight.... the weight that has always compelled exercise. But ya know... I'm ok with it, I've decided to keep it this time. Amazingly, I'm more comfortable with myself now than I was 10 years ago and 10 lbs less.... and a little extra weight smooths out wrinkles, right? :) So... what to do with the FULL drawer of jeans that will never again be worn? Turn 'em into canvases and paint pretty fat girls on 'em....

Miss Pitty-Pat

5" x 7" 

Acrylic on Arizona boot cut jeans wrapped frame

Beware what you ask for...

Well, a post or two back I was fantasizing about locking myself away for a week and just doing art. I got my wish... sort of. I threw my back out last Thurs. at work and have been in bed ever since. Aside from feeling guilty for not being at work, and not being able to just jump up to get more coffee, go to the bathroom... anything, I did get some artwork done sitting on my butt all day. I completed a larger scale version of the osprey skull I posted earlier and am so pleased with it! No, it's not a grand work of art... but I like it. That's a huge achievement for me. I've come across two new thoughts also... it's ok for art to look like art, instead of what  exactly what it's of, and art's not a competition. How often do artists look at a finished work and think of some other artist who could have done it better? I do all the time... it doesn't measure up to my idea of what someone else's standards are.... well, that's just stupid and it cripples me.... so in the process of repainting the osprey I kept thinking "do I like this? does it please me to look at it?" When I could answer 'yes' to those questions the painting was done and I find myself content about a piece I did. YAY!

now if only I could convince my best friend of all this....

Cat skull update and new 'support system'

I remembered that I'd once heard a watercolor artist mention that she stretched her paper over a frame like you would linen for an oil painting, so I googled it. Apparently this isn't as uncommon as I'd thought when I heard about it so I thought I'd try it. I now have 2 5x7 watercolor paper canvases... so far I like working on it alot, no warping, no having to tape it down, it's lovely. I'm doing the cat skull and I think it's coming along ok so far.... here's a work in progress shot...

Forgotten long nosed armadillo WIP

I mentioned I'd be working on a cat skull next, and I am, however I remembered this piece I started a few weeks ago....

I came across this little guy in my search for interestingly shaped skulls and thought he was just about the cutest thing I'd seen in a long time. I think I'll finish him up first.