Fork Forged from a Forget-Me-Not

For our final project in my drawing class this semester, our teacher asked us for ideas on what we should do. We came to consensus that we would pick three to five words from a dictionary page and put them into a cohesive drawing. You know how excited I was about this project, especially as I got to provide everyone in class with a page from my beloved dictionary.

The page I got was forfend - forked

From this page, I chose these words: to forge, forget-me-not, and fork.

Above is a sketch of a forget-me-not and a rough idea for my drawing.

By the end, this is what happened! First, the final piece, then some details (remember to click on them for a closer view.)

Thus, a fork forged from a forget-me-not.

Here are some of my source images. I really did go buy a forget-me-not plant!

Less Than Perfect

It's hard to show off stuff I haven't finished, or worse, stuff I plain don't like. But part of being an artist is making things that don't work--there is still value in the process and the outcome.

In drawing class these last couple weeks, we've been working with pen and ink. I actually love this medium, but our final pen & ink project was tough! We had to create a utopia or dystopia within the silhouette of a living thing. You can't see mine very well because I ran out of time before I could get the more contrasting darker colors in. Here's what I turned in: a young woman's head filled with a "city" of bookshelves. My utopia: education, community, clean air and water, no hunger, health. Click on it for a closer view.

Here you can see it up on the wall with some other folks' final pieces during critique, along with my two favorites, below.

by Anders Carlson

by Sophie Peterson

Here is another unfinished piece of mine, now that we've moved on to pastels! Even though it's not finished, I like it. Especially the cup!

Drawing Class Projects

We had our mid-semester review this week and had to lay out all the work we've done so far on the floor. I thought it was really fun to see everything I've learned in the last 8 weeks. I loved every minute spent with my instructor. She is such a great guide for getting me to understand a new project or material or concept.

A couple of closer-ups:

The little skeleton on the right is our most recent project. We had to create the fossilized skeleton of a mythological creature. First we had to cover the white paper completely with compressed charcoal (synthetic charcoal with pigment in it), and to get the image, we used our erasers to reductively create the image.

This was after the first night of work. You can see I hashed my skeletons together on the computer first.

And the final outcome! Something from the bat family for sure, but with no wings... hmmm... 

Atmospheric Perspective

I thought you'd enjoy this progression of the drawing I worked on for my class last week. The point of the assignment: to create the illusion of distance. We had to bring three photos with us to class: foliage of some type, a building, and and animal/vegetable/person. 

It is probably most fun if you click on photo #1 and then Blogger will show you all the photos in a row, so you can toggle back and forth to see the differences in each one. There is at least an hour of work between each of the photos here.  The fourth photo is the final (taken at night, thus the yellow coloring). 

People in my class really liked it, and the teacher put it up in the hallway's glass case!  I feel like I'm in 1st grade with an accolade like that!

Negative Space & Card Swap

Here's a bicycle in the studio. Now, draw it. No, not by focusing on what it is, but on what it is not!

Progression:

You are invited to participate in this year's 6 Degrees of HLM card swap!  Here is how it works:

1. After I hear from everyone who wants to participate and I give you the signal, you'll have 8 weeks to make ten (10) greeting cards, most often somewhat identical in design (although this is not required).  These cards can be any shape or size, blank on the inside, themed wherever your whimsy takes you. Every medium is welcome: fabric, stamping, painting, beads, collage, photography, papercraft.... Most important is that whatever you make fits into an envelope that can be mailed either domestically or abroad. NEW THIS YEAR:  Please make your card within the theme or concept of "blue" or "mountain." No need to be literal about this--be creative!  What images, thoughts, words, or inspiration do these words invoke for you?  Please interpret as loosely as you need to.

2. On the given postmark deadline, you'll send all the cards you make to me with enough envelopes for each card and a couple of dollars (international folks exempt from having to send me money).

3. Once I receive everyone's cards, I'll divvy them up so that every person receives ten cards from other swap participants. Using the couple bucks, I'll send them back to you.

4. You'll receive a set of handmade greeting cards to use over the next year in the mail for just the cost it took to make yours and ship them to and from me.

Here are the dates you need to know:

·   RSVP to participate in the card swap by next Saturday, February 22, either by leaving a comment below or writing me at the email address to the right.

·   Start thinking about/making your design as soon as you can.  You'll be surprised how quickly that deadline will be here.

·   I'll host a Work Party at my studio in Fort Collins, CO on Saturday afternoon, April 5th--anyone who participates in the swap is welcome to join us.

·   Monday, April 14 is the postmark date for getting those cards, enough corresponding envelopes, and cash in the mail to me. (If you're local, you obviously don't have to bother with the sending business--we'll just rendezvous!)  

·   I'll send out a reminder about 4 weeks through.

·   Around May 1 is when I will hopefully send your cards back to you.  This is a fuzzy deadline, as the nature of having an international card swap greatly affects postal travel.

Please DO forward this invitation to any of your crafty or arty friends and have them RSVP directly to me if they'd like to participate.  Anyone is welcome (even if card-making is not their main means of artistic expression!).  My only request is that everyone who signs up follows through to make/swap their cards.

For inspiring close-up images from last year, click here.