Struggling with Hair

I asked someone if she liked the latest project, or if it was just strange. She says, “It’s a departure of style for you.” Yes, that’s probably true. I think not her style either, and it’s probably why I have been struggling with new components since I laid the face onto this quilt. But I am enjoying the process.

My first struggle was the body. Trying to be too realistic with the stylized face just seemed out of place. I think I like what I have now. I think it’s stylized enough to look like it belongs with the face, and representational enough so you can tell it’s supposed to be a body. I will need to deal with hands later.

My current dilemma is the hair. Half done in this photo, but I guess you can see where I was going. Too much orange. Reducing the contrast between the figure and the background. And hiding the angles on the face that I was contemplating leaving. I think all that orange I just cut out is coming off, but I don’t want to leave her head totally bald. 

I’ve started looking through my fabrics for something that could substitute for traditional hair. Maybe she would like to be adorned with flowers and leaves.

Tink

Hello everyone, my name is Tink! I’m another of Camilla’s creations. I really like jewelry and other pretty things. My necklace and bows make me feel wonderfully amazing! The bells in my tummy make me very magical, and I make jingly noises when I flitter about.

Summer Sewing Projects

School is out for both Camilla and me, so we have time to do some sewing. Camilla is working on another sock creature. I decided to try my own hand at creating a stuffed creature of some sort. I began by looking through my scrap bag for an interesting start to a face, and continued with no plan and no expectations. Now that the face is done, I’ve decided it should be part of a quilt, and not a dimensional creation.

Then I set it on top of this quilt. I started this quilt three years ago in a Pamela Allen class. It has been on my design wall since then, because it needed something and I wasn’t sure what. Maybe it needs a colorful figure. With wild orange hair? And a guitar? Or a flute? Or a …? And a colorful bird in the palm tree? There’s a temptation to cut the face into a more traditional shape, but I think I like it cut with the wonky angles straight from the scrap bag.

Invisibility Spray – the Gardening Version

For my final Illustrator project, I decided to reinvent invisibility cleaning spray for use in the garden and create an advertisement. I added weed killer to the product, so that weeds can be killed while they are invisible. Now your garden can look instantly better, even while your weed spray is still doing its job.

I used bits from my Illusion Spray concept design and bits from my Dandelion Wine illustration.

I got a bit frustrated mid-project, having given myself a near impossible task of creating a focal point which looks like it’s vanishing. Making the whole dandelion semi-transparent was the first idea, but made a weak focal point, and turned the flower a strange orange color as it blended with the curtains behind it. I think my final partially filled in line drawing has enough contrast for a focal point. Does it look like it’s disappearing?

FisherPoet CD Cover

Has it really been nearly two months since I’ve posted? I forgot I drew that tree house. Our next project had nothing to do with perspective. The next assignment was creating a cover for a music CD, so I went in search of an actual CD that might need a cover. My brother-in-law Jon Broderick, who organizes the yearly  Fisherpoet Gathering in Astoria, produces a yearly CD of FisherPoet songs with his friend Jay Speakman. There lastest cd can be downloaded from this page: http://www.sesameandlilies.com/links.htm

Jon sent me a list of songs which will likely be on the next CD along with some photos. I would have liked to put a relevant photo on the cover, but the assignment required a photo with higher resolution than I had. I ended up using a public domain salmon drawing from Wikimedia, and used it to create an underwater scene. I don’t know yet if they will decide to use any of what I have created or not.

"Those Days Before the Mine" is also a song title and refers to the proposed controversial "Pebble Mine" copper and gold mine in Alaska which is in the area where Jon fishes every summer.

Tree House Sketch

We have been learning about the perspective grid in Illustrator class. I'm guessing our next assignment will involve using the perspective grid.

I created this tree house today just for fun. Not with the perspective grid, but with the pencil tool mostly. If it fits with my next assignment, I will use this one as a guide for drawing it properly. Although I think it may loose some of it's character if I square everything up. If it doesn't fit with the assignment, oh well, I had fun today.

Revolutionary New Concept in Cleaning

A concept design for a product that doesn’t exist yet.

Invisibility Cleaning Spray doesn’t work like magic; it is magic. It will render dirt, grime and clutter invisible. It is formulated to detect clutter from normal stuff, so normal things will remain visible. It is ideal for quick cleanups when unexpected company arrives.

Develop the formula, and you could make a fortune selling this stuff. When you do, I want royalties for developing the original concept.

(image updated with some minor changes 4/10/2011)