Showing posts with label sale. Show all posts
Showing posts with label sale. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 6, 2012

Those other updates I was telling you about!

Hi all,






I painted another Austin scene for work, only this time in glazes instead of gouache, and on a plate instead of paper, which is a lot more difficult! We are using it as a sample right now, to show all the different sizes and shapes we have to choose from. I love to see my work in a different media like this! It's really rewarding, knowing that it's something useable. Eventually I'd like to make more pieces like this.

Also, I have some of my old prints hanging for sale! My boss, Kelly, was nice enough to let me test out the waters a bit, to see if anyone is interested. I've had a lot of positive feedback, so hopefully a purchase or two will be on the way!





And again, make sure you switch over to my Tumblr page, so I don't lose you when I make the final switch! That's all I have for you today. :)
adios,
caitlin

Wednesday, April 21, 2010

Long time no... write.

Yikes... Sorry it's been so long! I got caught up in being busy the last few weeks and didn't have time to upload the scans of my artwork. So here's an update on everything I have been up to.

Kellan and I did get into the SCAD Con Artist's alley a couple weekends ago. It was a really good opportunity to get our work out to the public, by way of business cards, portfolios, prints, and original work. It was in conjunction with the Career Fair, which we also participated in. I showed my portfolio to a few companies and got some pretty good feedback. First I talked to Odopod (www.odopod.com). The man was very kind and sincere, but did say that they had been somewhat falsely advertised and weren't really looking for illustrators as much as artists of a more graphic nature. He did, however, take a card of mine (I used postcards instead of business cards because they catch a client's eye more, and they can stick it on their bulletin board for future reference. I also made several different kinds displaying different styles I am capable of, allowing them to choose.) and he seemed to enjoy getting to pick one. Then I talked to Gallopade International (www.gallopade.com) who work with children's materials, including literature and products for schools. The woman was very nice, although rushed because of the long line, and told me that they may be interested in my black and white line work. She gave me what they called a "free pass" for SCAD artists, and told me to contact them for either freelance work or internship opportunities. She took a postcard and a copy of my portfolio. Next I spoke with people from Wild Apple (www.wildapple.com), which is a company that creates artwork to be sold to home decor lines. I really love their stuff- gorgeous floral patterns are right up my alley! She seemed to like my work, took several postcards, a copy of my portfolio, and suggested I try for an internship (which I did apply for later). And I got a free bumper sticker reading "buy art!" I felt very comfortable with these people. If I don't end up working with them at any point, I know I'll at least be a fan of their product! Lastly, I talked with a woman from an animation studio, which I believe was simply called "The Studio." The line to see her was over an hour long, and people were not getting good reviews, but she surprisingly liked my work very much. She said that although it didn't fit what they need, she was personally inspired by my illustration (claiming to even "love" it! a rare word in these situations) and took several of my postcards for her bulletin board. She was very nice, and even though I won't be getting any career relations from that interview, it sure was a confidence boost to get feedback like that! So, after a long and informative day, Kellan and I were just about to pack up, when we were told by the man in charge of SCADCon that corporate employees from Scholastic had been there. We waited a little while, hoping to get to see someone, but alas, no one showed. The really wonderful SCADCon coordinator took a copy of our portfolios to give to the Scholastic people and said there would be a good chance they'd be back next year. Something to look forward to! All in all, it was a very successful day.



Me with my table at SCADCon!

Last week, we went to a lecture about the future of illustration and graphic design with the upcoming technology. The illustration and graphic design departments had some really incredible guests to speak: Bridgid McCarren, Cristoph Niemann, Tyler Darden, Christopher Sickels, and most impressively, Yuko Shimizu and Anita Kunz! It was a very important lecture, and made me proud to be involved in the word of illustration. There are a lot of inspiring people in the field.



An illustration by (and copyrighted to ©) Yuko Shimizu.



A depiction of Martha Stewart by (and copyrighted to ©) Anita Kunz)

Other news: I entered my Big Bunny from Winter quarter (look back in the entries or on my site to see it again) into the Spring Open Studio for printmaking. It'll be for sale, if anyone wants to spend a bunch of money on an awesome one-in-three-kind print!

More exciting news: I found out last night that all three of the prints I submitted into the Alexander Ink exhibition were accepted! Two of the three will be displayed in the main foyer, while the third will be in the printmaking gallery space. This is a pretty big deal, considering the juror chose less than half of the entries to hang in the show! Two pieces you may recognize from last quarter: "What Will You Strive for in Your Life?" and "To Love Any Art Form." Look on my site or back a few entries to see them again... or better yet, come by Alexander Ink in May! And what is the third piece, you may ask? It is something new! I bet you were waiting for that.



"When Nini Meets Clarence, 2/3" Lithograph Print, 2010.

This is my first assignment from Introduction to Lithography. We used pronto plates for this assignment, and here I have used a total of three-- one for the yellow, one for blue, and the last for black. The image was originally scanned from a pen drawing. I know I said I would attempt to explain the steps of lithography, but now I think I might change my mind. It is a very, very complicated and confusing process. Maybe I'll take pictures during my next assignment of the process... no promises, though! I just turned in my second assignment today, which I haven't scanned yet. It's done on an aluminum plate, and next we will be using stones. Very exciting stuff! Oh, and what's this? More new art? Hurrah!



"Whales," Gouache and Digital, 2010.

Did you know that there is a sanctuary for fin whales and striped dolphins in the Mediterranean governed by France, Monaco, and Italy? Did you also know that this "sanctuary" is not being treated as sacred in the least, and tourism, trade traffic, and gas treatment plants are all really placed in this area? And would you guess that because of these things, the populations of these aquatic species are dwindling quickly? I didn't either. That's why I chose this subject for my social awareness poster. This image will be entered into two separate poster contests-- one online and one with the school. Hopefully this image will be going places!

Well, not much to show you in Ancient Art and Architecture, although I could write another paper on the comparisons and contrasting elements of the Orientalizing Period's "Maiden of Auxerre" and the Archaic Period's "Anavysos Kouros." Doesn't sound appealing? Didn't think so. It actually is very intriguing subject matter, though. I just have a hard time remembering all the Greek terminology! I had my midterm yesterday, though, and I think I did pretty well. Hopefully all A's so far!

Other than that, not much else is happening. I'm trying to figure out what classes to take in the Fall, but there aren't too many options now that I only have three quarters left (eek!). I'll give another update after sign up. And this weekend is the Sidewalk Festival! Kellan and I are sharing a space, just like last year. I hear a rumor that the people from Cartoon Network are judging, so maybe we stand a chance! Pictures will be posted later.

That's all for now! If you made it this far, kudos!
adios,
caitlin

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

The Birth of an Illustration

Happy Almost New Year!
I just finished a piece yesterday for the SCAD Society of Illustrators Humane Society show, and documented the making of it to give you guys an inside peek into how I work. Let's dive right in, shall we?
First off, I always like to look up some inspiration, whether it be reference photos of my subject, or other artists' work. For this piece, I knew I wanted to illustrate a cat, which can be much trickier than it seems. Often, "cat art" can seem too childish, or on the opposite end of the spectrum, old-woman-ish. I wanted to try and put a new spin on my feline subject, so I researched a bit. I came across this work by Johanna Ost that has some lovely line work in it.

"Moon" ©Johanna Ost 2007, pen. www.johannaost.com
I also looked at different quirky styles. I love MarmeeCraft's work, and found this adorable illustration that gave me some ideas.

"Precarious Uniwig" ©Marjorie Liucci. (not sure of date or medium) www.marmeecraft.blogspot.com
Almost done with inspiration- now I top it all off with some wonderful music! (Please excuse the poor quality of some of these photos- they were taken with my phone- the only handy thing available!)

Time to sketch. I usually sketch in pen- just a personal preference. Pencil smears too much for my taste! Pen makes me much more of a brave sketcher. I started with a more naturalistic approach, and quickly realized that wasn't going to work for me, so I drew from MarmeeCraft's "thick-necked" look and sketched several possible backgrounds, choosing the yarn pattern.


My piece needed to be 8 1/2 inches by 11 inches, so I then taped my paper according to size, with a nice one inch border. The paper I used here is some from an Arches Watercolor Block.

Then I mapped out my composition with a mechanical pencil. I tried to not use too many lines, because often those will show through. I just need enough to get the idea.

Next, I started with the watercolors. The paints I used were a variety of brands- Cotman, Windsor and Newton, and Grumbacher, but it's always nice to squeeze a little of each onto a seal-able tray for easy mixing and re-usage. I always like to test my color a bit on the extra space on the paper, just to be sure. Then I began to paint! I just wanted a nice coffee stain look for a backdrop, and mixed a variety of yellows and browns. I first added a layer of clean water, and then added paint, letting it do as it pleased. The messier the better! I wanted some "mess-up" spots on purpose to give it some character, and splatted water here and there.

After that layer dried, I went in again with some darker hues, using a little blue mixed with darker browns. This change is subtle, and hard to see in this picture.

I realized my cat wasn't standing out enough from the background, and since I wasn't planning on adding any more color to her, I needed to lift up some of the color using a clean brush, water, and a tissue to dab it with. The paper's natural selection of what color to keep made a really lovely stain.

I then began to work on the more specific colors for the yarn. I still wanted to keep it loose, since I knew I was doing ink line work over it. I chose subtle purples, blues and browns for a nice complimentary contrast to the yellow hue underneath. Here again, I used a tissue to dab off some of the wet paint for an aged look.

One final touch with paint- the eyes and nose!

I needed to let the paint dry completely (not even having the paper cold to the touch) before I did my line work, so there would be no bleeding. I took a dinner break and came back to paper that was ready to go! Then I began the tedious task of patterning. It's very relaxing- until your hand starts to cramp!

And then I'm finished!

Here is the final work, sans tape and cut to size. If you have fallen in love with my kitty and live in the Savannah area, you are in luck! The piece will be up for sale within the next couple months. I'll have updates on the show in the future.

"Cat" watercolor and ink, 2009.
Another bit of good news- my book came in today! It looks fantastic. The colors are a bit more saturated than I thought, but it really works nicely with some of the images.


That's all for now. Have a wonderful New Year!
adios
caitlin