In The Pink

I came across a fantastic company this week called Artsy . Their mission statement is to make all of the world's art accessible to anyone with an Internet connection. In their own words they are a platform for collecting and discovering art. While it is unlikely that I will be doing any collecting I welcome the chance to discover art and view favourite pieces. Check out their website HERE.

I use Picasa, Google's free photo editor, to edit my photos and love its simplicity, ease of use and handy tools. I like to play with my photos or scanned images and was delighted to see what pressing 'invert colours' has done to a recent drawing. I love it! I wish I could have drawn it like this...maybe I will have a go.

I have had a go with my soft pastels and oil pastels added after for texture and am quite happy with this but it is very hard to get those amazing dense white bits in you get on storm clouds, I am not sure how to get that definition. Also I am struggling to get the perspective using colour which is something I have been practising recently on other pieces. So I am off to research the colour wheel and see if I can figure it out. Lots of fun though!

I have a fancy to get better at drawing skies and clouds, in particular storm clouds, and thought I would start with a clip-art type approach. They are, not surprisingly, not as easy as I thought but this was a lot of fun to do and quite simple once I had figured out how to do the face. There are masses of examples on the internet that you can use for ideas and then find the way that works for you. 

The current theme for Creative Tuesdays is 'Toto, I've a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore' with the brief being to create a scene conveying that you are no longer in quiet and comfortable surroundings. I decided after much deliberation to utilise the film the theme title is taken from and have produced this. Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My. The Wizard of Oz was a very significant film in my childhood and my sister and I watched it every year, often from behind a pillow. I don't know if anyone remembers but a few years ago they used the Wicked Witch of the West in a series of adverts and she still scares me! So I decided to let myself get lost in remembering the film and all of the images and feelings that came to mind. The line 'lions and tigers and bears oh my' kept popping into my head and as such this piece was born. I imagine anyone would feel they were no longer in quiet and comfortable surroundings if they walked into a wooded glade and...

I have started joining in an art meme recently. The first couple of pieces I produced I was so worried I would mess them up and have to scrap them altogether that I didn't push myself as much as I would have liked. I was pleased with the outcome, although they could have been better, but it was a good starting point. Yesterday I spent 8 hours working on my third piece and have learned some things that work and some that don't; unfortunately in the process I have messed it up completely and need to start again but I feel ok about it.  I am quite surprised actually but in a good way. I am going to have to find some time to get back to the point I am at with it now but the process shouldn't take so long and I have learned some great news skills through trial and error. I also spent most of last night dreaming about doing it again and how it would best work so the planning bit is all done! Image Credit: Quote Counterquote

Well I didn't get to have a go at the body today so far but I think I made improvements on the head. I have messed up one eye but perhaps he has had a heavy night!

The next theme for Creative Tuesdays is up and has found me exploring the imagery from The Wizard of Oz. Like many people this film was a staple of my childhood at Christmas. My sister and I would be allowed to pick some chocolate from our selection box and watch the film every year. It wasn't until I started thinking about it and making some notes that I realised just how much of an emotional rollercoaster that film was to me as a child!  Anyway I decided to start with drawing a lion. I have always stayed away from drawing animals as it is so very hard, but recent efforts with a barn owl and raven silhouette have given me the courage, (that's C-ourage) to have a go and I am not too disappointed with my first efforts. I am going to try again now with some colour and see what I can produce. I may even try a body rather than just a head!

A few years ago we bought a jigsaw for my husbands parents for Christmas depicting bears standing on their hind legs in a meadow as swarms of butterflies ascended around them. It is the most beautiful jigsaw I have even seen and the image has stayed with me. Recently I have started looking for another copy to do myself as the image is so calming and it finally occurred to me to search for it online.  That lead me straight to the artist himself, Robert Bissell, and if you are not already familiar with his work I highly recommend you visit his website and have a look for yourself. I would dearly love to post a picture of his here but feel it unfair even with image credit without permission. So please believe me when I say it is worth a look. If nothing else go on Google Images and type in Robert Bissell Bears and Butterflies, or click HERE. I am also delighted to say that his website features a shop selling jigsaws, prints and note-lets amongst other things and anticipat...

As an arborist I predominantly manage amenity trees, and the frequent conflicts between them and people; this includes consideration of the wide variety of wildlife that rely on trees for habitat, food and navigation. As such I chose my tree house to be more natural and depict some of the creatures I have to look for and consider as part of my job inspecting and managing trees. This has been a great challenge and encouraged me to practice drawing some new things which has been a rewarding experience. This piece was created using soft pastels, coloured pencils and black pen. To join Creative Tuesdays (and its not too late to submit for this theme, the deadline is 18th October) or view other participants click on the banner below.

I am practising drawing a Raven in silhouette, I mean how hard can it be, there is no shading to do, no features to add, its a silhouette! But, it must be said, practice is making for small improvements!

So sleep alluded me last night and after deciding against the Wellingtonia I settled on attempting to draw a maple. These are my results in transition. Its not brilliant, and I hope to try again and improve, but I discovered some interesting techniques along the way and thoroughly enjoyed the process.

I have been doing more and more artwork these past couple of weeks since I joined in at Creative Tuesdays (CT) and have really enjoyed messing around, already noticing some improvement in my output. The next challenge for CT is a tree house and in preparation I have been mulling over some ideas and produced this during a sleepless Friday night. Its a cedar specimen and I am quite pleased. I am actually half hoping I cant sleep tonight so I can have a go at another tree I want to try, Wellingtonia ( Sequoiadendron giganteum ), as the wee small hours are quiet and free but that is only half hoping, sleep would be better!

I have had a great couple of days with my sister during which time we indulged in some art and doodling. It was brilliant fun and very therapeutic and these are my efforts from yesterday. Very topical I thought. I really enjoyed trying something new and just playing at it. Taking part in some kind of art is such good fun, there is no right or wrong, no good or bad, just the fun of your own expression.

This is my first submission for Creative Tuesdays, the theme being Little Red Riding Hood or Snow White. I decided to join as I really liked the brief for the scheme and thought it would be a great way to get my hand back in at art as it has been some years since I have done anything regularly. As always when starting again what the brain conceives the hand often struggles to re-produce however I am quite pleased with my first efforts which have culminated in this and am looking forward to seeing what other participants have come up with. (Image drawn with oil and soft pastels,  and a black pen for outline.) To join Creative Tuesdays, or view other participants work, click HERE .

Inspired by the findings of my last post I have been searching for sculpture closer to home and have discovered this chap, Sultan the Pit Pony located outside of Hengoed, created by Welsh Artist Mick Petts . Image Credit Steve Brockett Isn't he stunning! From the images I have found he is definitely something to be appreciated best from the air which I won't be able to do myself but I am still looking forward to visiting and getting a feel for this piece of work from the ground.

I came across these amazing sculptures via a blog post by This I Do for Sky Watch Friday and had to share them. They are 30m high sculptures created by Andy Scott to acknowledge and horses that worked for many years on the adjacent canal and took 8 years to construct. I find them absolutely stunning. The name Kelpies relates to the mythological beast, a shape-changing aquatic spirit said to haunt rivers or streams usually in the shape of a horse, and possessing the strength of 100 horses. I do so love blogging, I always learn something and enjoy exploring and sharing our amazing planet.  Image Credit BBC Today I have learned what Kelpies are, who Andy Scott is (the most amazing sculptor) and added somewhere to my list of places to visit.