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Sometimes I explore intuitive painting with acrylic. More to come soon.
Acrylic, graphite, and pastel on paper. 24x36
9x12 acrylic, pen, and pastel on stretched canvas. Original is available.
Original: 20x24 Acrylic, pastel and graphite on stretched canvas.
9x12, acrylic on paper
Paintings where the primary medium is acrylic (could include some mixed-media work) but that did not fit in the abstract category.
I used a photo I took at Slate Coffee Roasters in Seattle of their succulents. They have the cutest tiny succulents there. The coffee is good too. This is 8x10 mixed-media on canvas board.
Just a little painting of a whale. This painting was actually 24x36 inches, acrylic on stretched canvas. There is a tiny boat in the upper right.
Like watercolor, alcohol ink is another great medium for intuitive painting. The ink and alcohol react and move in unexpected ways and the best results happen when you just lean into it and relax. These are alcohol ink on Yupo.
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
5x7, alcohol ink on yupo
Artist Trading Cards, or ATCs, are 2.5 x 3.5 works of art that are traded between artists. Sometimes created based on a specific theme. ATCs are traded on many sites. I trade occasionally on ATCs for All under the name Empress_Dragon. I’ve made notes of the theme if there was one.
I created this ATC for ATCs for All (AFA’s) monthly contest. This little penguin won the month. I still have it. I have not been able to trade it yet.
I created a few stencils from some of my favorite faces that I drew during my “100 days of faces” challenge in 2015 - just to see if I could create a stencil with that much detail at ATC size. Turns out I could. These are all traded individually and were not part of a themed swap.
I hosted an eraser carving swap. This was my contribution to that swap.
The theme was hand drawn whimsical birds.
The theme was for mixed media whimsical faces. That first one sent me down the path to the whimsical people that I draw today.
The left-most person is the original Whimsical Person. I drew over twenty. The right-most is red riding hood. She was an ATC special request. These, as well as the others not shown, were all traded individually and were not part of a themed swap.
These were created as individual ATCs in a small series. They were traded individually and were not part of a themed swap.
The theme was to extend the image in the postage stamp.
This themed project included the challenge of selecting reference photos and then drawing them by looking at the photo upside down.
We were to draw cupcakes with tangle patterns inside.
The theme was hand-drawn fantasy faces.
This series consists of watercolor, graphite, and ink on mixed-media paper. I love working through capturing a loose style with these natural objects. Sometimes I had to work wet near wet and enjoyed watching the water wick into new areas.
I may have mentioned on this site before that drawing and painting faces are my jam. Here is a series of women.
8x10 Acrylic, pastel, and paper on canvas board.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original was sold.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
8x10 on watercolor board. Original is available.
The GelliArts gelli plate is one of my favorite tools. It is amazing for creating great monoprints. These are some of my favorites. The works in this gallery were created with monoprinting the main image. Then additional layers and text were added after to complete the works.
This entire image was created on the gelli plate. Except for the lines near her eye, my name, date, and the lines on the shirt near the color. This is my absolute favorite print I’ve ever pulled. It is grungy and textured and gorgeous. The original is 9x12 on bee paper rough sketch and is available.
Recently, I participated in an awesome class about modern Paper Mache taught by Kim Baise. I was inspired to do more! More photos to come!
Paper Mache sculpture of a happy little succulent in a clay pot. Maybe one of the few plants I can keep alive!
This page shows some of the relief prints I have carved and made over the years. I often use a rubber substrate and linoleum cutters. Occasionally, I use rubber stamps, acrylic paint, or ink to print the image. I’ve also used embossing and mixed-media powders to add color (like on The Fool).
I created this 1x1 inch stamp as part of a community challenge. It has now become my logo and one of the marks I add to the back of my Artist Trading Cards.
End of year holiday stamp.
Just four little birdies sitting on a branch. The word “family” is carved in the branch as well. (Just in case you didn’t see it straight away.)
I used Ranger mixed-media powders, metallic gold paint, and watercolor to bring her to life.
She knows a lot, that, Julia.
A little pin-up action.
I took a workshop in March 2018 at Art and Soul in Portland about using Zentangle® patterns to create a garden scene. I enjoyed it so much I created many gardens with surreal humanoids. In July 2018, I launched a Kickstarter project to turn the drawings into coloring books. The coloring books are currently available on Amazon!
Surreal Humanoids: Portraits in Headdresses
Surreal Humanoids in Gardens
These works were created with combinations of watercolor, gouache, and ink.
6x9 watercolor and ink on paper. Original is available.
6x9 watercolor and ink on paper.
This one used a photo reference. Pinterest unfortunately did not link to the photographer. I made this is 2017 and could not find the photo again on Pinterest. However, here is a link to the Instagram post I made that shows the original photograph.
This one is watercolor in paper in one of my art journals.
Watercolor and Stabilo on paper - in an art journal
Since 2015, I’ve been practicing drawing faces. Somewhere along the journey, these whimsical versions of people were born. Requests started coming in for holiday cards and other memorable commissions.
In November 2018, I launched a Kickstarter project asking backers to collaborate with me to create some of these whimsical illustrations of humans and pets whom they love. The project was successful and many of the illustrations on this page are from that project.
9x12 on Strathmore bristol using inktense pencils
9x12 illustration on Strathmore bristol board using inktense pencils.
9x12 inktense on paper.
6x8 Inktense on paper
This was commissioned for a wedding. The cute couple were wed in Aug 2018.