Tile Painting

I recently started a project in porcelain painting for a class I'm taking and I am getting really into it. This tile is only a smaller study/sketch for a much larger platter, but that will get posted later.

It's just such an unusual medium (especially to be studying in an illustration major) but there is something so great about having a three dimensional object in the end.

'Under the Grass' Tunnel Book

The book in it's box.


The box.


The book outside it's box. Watercolor on bristol.

Kingfisher Book

Front cover

Inside - The end sheets are handmade marbleized paper.

Front cover detail - Acrylic on handmade linen book cloth.

And the back cover.

Some Artists Worth Looking At

Always a favorite of mine is Rob Ryan, a paper artist based out of London. His colorful paper cuts are rich in detail and works of poetry within themselves. Heartwarming and delicate, his work is just asking to be loved. My plans for the summer include traveling to London, and going to his store, Ryantown, is one of the parts of the trip I am looking forward to the most.

Check out his blog here:
http://rob-ryan.blogspot.com/

or his official website here:
http://www.misterrob.co.uk/






Another recent addition to my bookmark tab is artist Jeremy Holmes. While his talents range all over the board (including some very nice animations), his book "There Was An Old Lady" has been pulling in awards all over the world and it's very obvious why. His beautiful textures and oddball style is slightly creepy but at the same time entirely charming. I know as a kid I was always drawn to children's books with an excessive amount of detail, but lately I have seen a trend in these books to be more minimal, trading in spreads rich with detail for simpler illustrations. While there is a beauty in this simplicity, I prefer all the little bits, so I hope there are many more of his kind of children's books on the way.

Check out his website, Mutt Ink, here:
http://www.muttink.com/index.php

And then there is Sophie Blackall's blog "Missed Connections." While I am not very familiar with the rest of her work, this is a blog I make sure to check every week. Here Sophie illustrates those posts people make, looking for the one person they shared a moment with, no matter how brief. The oddness of this practice is expressed so well in her bizarre paintings. But while these pieces are so unusual they are at the same time so genuinely delightful. A few weeks ago, a friend of mine interviewed her over at AudreyMonroe and it was wonderful to see what she had to say about her own work.

Check out (and religiously follow) "Missed Connections" here:
http://missedconnectionsny.blogspot.com/

To The Circus ABC Book

A two page spread for what would be an alphabet book of acts seen at the circus:

Watercolor & Gouache on Arches Paper, hand lettered

More Sketchbook Pages

I have been a little obsessed with walruses lately.

And I have been attempting to loosen up my style, allow the spontaneity of the watercolor to help shape the image.

Sketchbook Pages - February

A smattering of pages from some sketchbooks:

You Make Me Happy When Skies Are Grey

So recently in Boston the weather has been a steady something like this:

But there's no pick me up on the walk to school quite like this:

That one has been there since I moved into my apartment two years ago. But then a few days ago, right before this endless downpour started I found yet another one on my walk to school:

Makes you forget about the rain for just a moment.

Concertina by the Seashore

Front

Back
The covers are made of paste paper: graphite drawings on toned paper sealed with rice paste.


The book gets its name from the concertina fold that connects the covers and which all the pages are attached to.


The pages inside have windows that frame pencil and ink drawings on handmade abaca and iris paper:

"Please Hold Both Handles" - Recycled Sketchbook

The pages are made out of old grocery store bags and the spine is a piece of tyvek mailing envelope.

Some of the pages are treated with acrylic gesso so the surfaces are stiffer and can be used for painting.



The cover paper is hand drawn.


One of the first sketches in the book.

Valentine's Day

It's almost too easy to make Valentine's Day cards: just throw in something, anything really, with some hearts, pink and red, and possibly even glitter (oh no!) and you have the perfect Valentine's Day card. They look something like this: