Valentine Animal Babies

{Watercolor, 2012}

{Watercolor, 2012}

I couldn't sleep-in this morning, even though it's Saturday. I got up, made some coffee, and decided to play with my watercolors. All the stores have Valentine's Day stuff out, so it makes sense that when I sat down to draw and paint, I decided to make everything pink, purple and red. Anyways, these two illustrations are what I came up with. I wish pink fawns with heart markings really existed. I also wish bears wore suspenders in the wild.

Critters!

{Sketchbook, 2011}

{Sketchbook, 2011}

Just a few sketches of some of the furry little visitors that I often see wandering around my yard. Of course, the deer around here don't usually wear scarves! (The squirrels certainly DO hoard acorns, though!) I think the squirrels and deer are really enjoying our mild December so far. They are much more active than they normally would be this time of year.

Illustration Friday - Scattered

{Oil on Board, 2011}

This is a small part of a larger illustration that I have been working on. I started it quite a while ago and am now chipping away at finishing it. I thought it worked well for scattered, since thats what animals tend to do when startled. I still have quite a bit of work to do, but I don't think it will be done by the time the week is up, so I figured I would post what I have.

Canoe Explorers

{Graphite on Paper, 2011}

I'm planning on using oils to complete this illustration. It will be used for my portfolio. This piece was inspired by some of the hiking I did with my husband during the summer.

Lurking in the Studio

{Oil and Colored Pencil on Wood Panel, 2009}

I know it happens to everyone... You start a piece of art with the willpower of a million fires... and then something comes up, followed by something else and so on. Well, that was the deal with this piece. I finally made my self add the last few details so that I could consider it a done deal. I showed the drawing for this painting on THIS post. I wanted to try a slightly different technique for this piece so I combined colored pencil lines with oil paint. I think looking at a lot of tattoos lately inspired the black line art. I also just really love lines! This is a symbolism painting... I hoped to convey innocence, purity, strength and hope.
EDIT: As my friend, Sara Butcher, commented in the comments... "what about a background?" I had the same thought. I was thinking a wispy and light background but couldn't decide quite what to put there. Any other ideas? Hmmm... maybe its not quite a done deal yet! However, this piece will hang, as is, in the faculty exhibit at the Des Moines Art Center into October... which gives me plenty of time to think of a background.

Illustration Friday - Wrapped

{Colored Pencil on Wood Panel, 2009}

This is a symbolism painting that I am working on. I decided to wrap the young woman in a flowing dress with peonies around it. Peonies, which are my absolute favorite flower, symbolize dignity, healing and glory and are often referred to as "roses without thorns". The deer represents purity, regeneration, creativity and spirituality. I'm working on the painting portion right now, so I will have it posted in a few days.

I'm an Urban Naturalist

{Bumble Bee on the Morning Glories, 2009}

{Fawns with their Mother, 2009}

I promise to have some art to post later this week. I wanted to share a few images of the things that are right in my own backyard. Literally! Nature is so inspiring, and I am always delighted to see God's creatures roaming about! The top picture is of  bumble bee that was flying from flower to flower, crawling all the way in each Morning Glory. The second photo is of a local deer and her cute fawns. While the deer limit certain plants that I can put in my garden, they sure are sweet looking little things! Hope these pictures are inspiring to you, and spark a little creativity too!

My first ATC

I made my first Artist Trading Card today. I used a stamp that I had created from an illustration I had done. (the deer) And I used acrylic, gel medium, paper scraps, ribbon, thread and some wallpaper. It's pretty much mixed media at that point I guess. But I think it's cute. I figured it would be good to do at least one per week as a gift to myself and for myself. (the time, not the card) I'll be putting in on Monday Artday tonight!

Sketchbook!

These are just a few of some recent sketchbook images. I'm trying to do more with animals, because I usually like to focus on people.