Anahita - sketched quickly with a black fineliner. She was originally a character from one of my stories. The provocative pose says nothing of her true character, which I later determined was a prim and composed, but weary, leader. . . . Freudian?
Astrian & Eve - sketched first with ink then prismacolors added along with flecks of acrylic paint here and there. This is the upper left corner of a much larger piece of work that took me close to a year to finish. I donated it to
this e-zine about three years ago. Again, these two are characters from my stories. When I can't write, I draw; when I can't draw, blah blah. Much of the inspiration for my writing comes from envisioning the characters and some of their "adventures", then putting them in ink. I can't say that's what I set out to do; it just sort of happened. I've got about a hundred sketches of these particular characters in various poses, clothing, armor, naked, etc.
Aylea - another fast sketch, this time in pencil. Aylea is the protagonist of a novelette, written by a friend. I finished her story then picked up my sketch book, drew Aylea, scanned her, and sent her via e-mail to my friend. She was very happy. And so was I, because she was.
Reaching - a not-so-quick sketch done in black charcoal and a black fineliner. It's a da Vinci homage. Specifically, to
this drawing. After studying his work, I became fascinated with armor and helmets, shields and swords, etc. There's a Japanese flavor to this one, of course. Overall it is, hopefully, a genuine blend of styles between
Yoshitaka Amano's work and Leonardo da Vinci's.
English Landscape - I shot this piece with my iPhone. Oil pastels on yellowed parchment; originally finished overnight, due for an assignment the following morning. I was convinced I couldn't produce anything worthwhile with oil pastels. I'd never tried them before. The medium is pretty challenging, too -- oily. But it quickly became fun, and once I got the hang of it, I deliberately used every color in the box. Got no sleep, but did receive an A and have since become open to all mediums and combining them.
Dragon Eye logo - a quick little inking -- literally little, only about 3x2 inches -- that I doodled on graph paper (maybe during math class). It's obviously assymetric, while the graph lines hold it steady. I imagined it in the upper left-hand corner of a t-shirt for some reason. That, or a tattoo.
Firefly - a work in progress, all bold ink lines that are dying for some color. I'm posting this one to show how I go from zero to 100 colors using pencils (truly wonderful pencils. Truly). This image is a photo shot with my iPhone in our dining room. The sunlight in there was perfect; certainly better than the light inside my scanner, which tends to bleed through grainier types of paper. I started this picture out by measuring several triangles then figuring out which body part, sword, or wing fit non-awkwardly into each one. It's striving towards geometry and assymetry at once, while keeping the body in "motion." It was a challenge for sure, and at first I wondered why I gave it to myself, but pushing the boundaries simply gets you better results. And I'm satisfied with the results, if a little hesitant to place permanent color on her, knowing how specific each area was and how dramatic the lighting will have to be, Rembrandt dramatic, maybe. Again, Renaissance cuisine with Japanese flavor. This one's next on my hit list, after my current WIP.
- I snapped a photo of the piece with my iPhone. India ink and black coffee were combined to stain white illustration board. This painting is an oldie, but a favorite. My husband says it's gotten better with age as the coffee's grown yellower, almost gold -- and I agree; the stains finally resemble the sunbeams I intended. It was my introduction to using India ink with calligraphy pens and rabbit hair brushes. He is the wind, and she is the rain.
The Fleuracle - the foreground is ink and pencils, the background velvety black marker. The moon aligns with her crystal ball as she sprouts up like a night-blooming flower. She was for a Halloween short story idea that included many tiny creatures such as faeries and elves and insects.
Mushrooms and Moonfrogs - Ink, color pencils, some crayon, another one shot with my iPhone because this one's too delicate to crumple into a scanner bed. I wanted to create the most vibrant nightscape possible, everything shining and bluish and surreal. If the little frogs are poisonous. she doesn't care at all.
Patron Saint of Nursing - black fineliner and marker. Yes, there is a patron saint of nursing. While drawing her I thought 'tattoo' because it seems like such a definitive stamp: medical professional, geeky-cool, rebel with a clue.
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