the illustration board

deleted

2011-07-31T10:50:00.002-05:00

Something not quite right with this

2011-04-12T15:22:00.000-05:00

Hi, everyone! So I've been getting my Masters and this is for a Graphic Design Project due soon.
Basically we have to use Illustrator and create an illustrated page as if from a book. This one is heavily influenced by one artist from dA, btw.

It's not finished yet, but there is something off that I can't put my finger on. I'd really appreciate your help! (The house is an eyesore, I know.)

New E-BOOK IS OUT! animals MUST BE is now available.

2011-03-22T16:34:00.003-05:00

I just finished and placed the book on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. This one has been a long time in the making, and is all in oils.
I love that there are apps on the sites to be able to put it on other devices. Diving into this area has been an adventure, and I am still learning a lot. Very exciting and changing times.
I have the details on my blog. http://pattigay.blogspot.com/

Web site home page final

2011-03-04T10:54:00.003-06:00

Thanks for the wonderful comments on my earlier post. Here's the final look for the web site. I am creating the new body of work now. Some of it has even found it's way into my galleries.

I am very excited with my progress on several projects. A few of which I can share soon.

The biggest thing going on is I am creating collections for art licensing. Between that and dealing with elderly relatives, I don't seem to do much else these days.

If you have a moment, stop by my blog and check out my daily doodles and upcycled clothing creations. Leave a comment and I'll visit your blogs, too. :D

This is my most recent coloring page. I hope to send out once a week. Ramping up my artistic output is the plan for the year. Can you tell I have big dreams?

New e-book Amanda and Max, Friends

2011-03-01T12:26:00.003-06:00

I recently did my first e-book. It is about a big orange tabby cat and a little dachshund pup and what it means to be a friend. There is a really great article about it on Kate Harper's Design blog.http://kateharperblog.blogspot.com/2011/02/how-to-publish-childrens-e-book-one.html

I also created a blog for kids in the character's voices to go along with it. http://amandaandmax.blogspot.com/

Illustration Friday-reverse

2011-02-05T23:40:00.002-06:00

Wondering if the scooter goes in reverse. This was just a character study that I happened to do in watercolor.

New web art

2011-01-20T14:11:00.002-06:00

I'm in the process of completely revamping my web site. This is the new masthead art. Once I get all the pages converted, then I will be jumping in with both feet to create a new body of work.

Illustration Friday-Mail

2010-12-21T18:17:00.002-06:00

Here was my image for the topic. This is oils on illustration board. Working on movement and expression. Fun to do.

Illustration Friday: Mail

2010-12-20T03:15:00.000-06:00

Will wonders never cease, I have something to critique!! Ha ha. Anyway, I did this sketch for Illustration Friday but want to paint it (hopefully digitally if I can figure all that out) and would love some pointers on anything it might need.

If - Topic Phenomenon

2010-12-12T16:11:00.002-06:00

I did this recently and put it up on the Illustration Friday blog for the topic, phenomenon. This was done in oils on board. I love painting people and animals so this was a lot of fun.

...And another update! Also, great illustration tips series link.

2010-12-04T17:53:00.000-06:00

It's about time I checked in here as well... I feel bad for my prolonged absence! Anyway, I wanted to share this in case anyone here doesn't follow Holli Conger's blog -- she's doing an "Illustration Tips" series every day this month of December and it's really good so far:

http://agirlwhocreates.com/

Since getting married in June, my husband and I sold our house and moved across the country to South Dakota! It's been some crazy months, heheh. Oh yes, and I took my husband's name so I'm in the process of re-inventing my art business under Carmen Medlin now instead of Carmen Keys. (Which means my portfolio website has changed to www.carmenmedlin.com!) It just felt better to me to do it that way, even though I know I have to re-market. Hopefully I've made it relatively easy to still find me if searching for my maiden name.
Most of the artwork I've been doing these days has been for licensing or commissions, so I haven't had much to critique lately. I'm not used to not being able to show very much work publicly, at least before it is released. I'm starting to look at doing more and more work digitally, especially since my husband just gave me Painter for a surprise (yay!). I have already transitioned into digital for the licensing work I'm doing and it's really helped with the revisions and such. Now, to learn how to use Painter for my other children's illustrations! I feel optimistic about the new direction and really getting my feet wet working with an art director.

Update

2010-12-03T18:47:00.000-06:00

Hi guys, I keep thinking I am going to get more together and get some more samples posted in here and I do have some for the private blog coming very soon...I swear it. LOL

We moved not too long ago (it has been a few months already) and I started a new business in May and I feel like I have been sinking ever since. LOL Mostly in a good way, but my illustrations have turned into portrait-style stamps and not so much into finished illustrations that I would be proud to post. It is quite a dilemnia.

I do have a book coming out soon...or so they say. LOL
Here is the link to Oogle Flip.

Here are some line drawings that have a tiny bit of action, but I need more if I am going to try to get published some more..... LOL I just haven't had any real finished color work now for almost 6 months, so this is what I have to share...happy to take thoughts on them though. :)

Here are two colored pieces I made just for fun...They are both done digitally in PS.

Thanks for any comments or suggestions. :)

Bobble head

2010-12-01T12:21:00.001-06:00

I've been sitting on this for 2-3 weeks now. It started out as an excercise where I don't think ahead and I just draw, but as usual I started overthinking, and ended up experimenting with textures using soft pastels and a brush...And that's where I got stuck because afterwards, it was as if I woke up from a trance and said, "Oh, where was I going with this?" I'm sure you know the feeling :)

Close-up so you can see the brushwork.

I'm not feeling the blue on our right side of her face, but now that I'm looking at a picture of my drawing (and it doesn't look too bad), I have some ideas about where to go.

My NEW book ships tomorrow

2010-11-28T11:04:00.002-06:00

So after the success of my first book, Drawing Animals With Numbers I was able to use the money I made on that book to print Drawing Monsters With Letters. I am really excited about this book. After learning so much about self publishing I was able to loosen up and have more fun with this book. The other nice thing was getting orders for the book a month before it came out. People really liked the first book and that only makes it easier to sell the next book. I have had a blast promoting the books all over the Mid West and talking to so many kids and sharing my love of drawing with them.

My iPad drawings

2010-11-28T11:00:00.002-06:00

I created these on my iPad in Sketchbook Pro on Thanksgiving Day.
The iPad is not an easy thing to draw on. It's like drawing on glass with a marshmallow tipped pencil. But Sketchbook Pro is the bomb! For iPad it works great and on my computer it's the closest thing to drawing on paper.

staying fresh

2010-11-27T13:01:00.004-06:00

i painted this gal before (you can see the acrylic version on my personal blog) but wanted to see how she would look utilizing some of the more gestural painting techniques i've been employing lately. its faster, messier, and riskier (for me, anyways) - but i enjoy it!

color continues to be a challenge. i want to get to a point where i'm developing shadows from other hues, rather than the standard darker version of the local color. back to the drawing board!

lions, tigers, and bears...oh my!

2010-11-27T10:56:00.003-06:00

the wizard of oz reference in this painting was completely inadvertent but really funny when i made the connection! and, yes, i live in kansas, so maybe its something ingrained...

anyway, here's part 3. i'm currently trying to figure out how to get these three on the mailer. i'm very guilty of not having the card design in mind first, but oh well.

hope everyone had a great thanksgiving!

Illustration Friday Topic-Burning

2010-11-13T15:33:00.002-06:00

I just added this image to Illustration Friday's blog for the topic, Burning. This is in oils on a gessoed board.

what's wrong with this turtle?

2010-11-12T11:43:00.001-06:00

I went ahead and colored it - and I really like how it turned out! It might be the bg color and sky that's a little more colorful than my usual blue/white...I think the turtle looks more turtly when done.

I'm working with a writer who's coming up with a concept for the square animals...and she suggested a turtle character, so I thought I'd work one out to add to the list of characters I already have. I'm still open to suggestions, if you have any things that might make it a stronger character...and now Ill even take color suggestions!

Finished Color

First pass at color

what could possibly happen next?

2010-11-11T13:42:00.002-06:00

one more to painting to go...then it's mailer time yet again! thanks go to steve for suggesting the 3 part illo on the next postcard. any and all crits welcome!

thank a vet today!

Illustration Friday Topic-Afterwards

2010-11-05T13:32:00.002-05:00

I just submitted this image for the Illustration Friday Topic of Afterwards.

gesture painting (oil)

2010-11-01T19:46:00.003-05:00

so i'm delving further into the realm of gesture painting. rules of the game? pick a portrait, landscape, or still life and paint as much as you can in 30 minutes. i'm impressed with how quickly the time goes and how tempting it is to keep painting even when the timer says, "stop." also, no predrawing - just a quick painted sketch and then block in color like a madman!

Woah, guys! Easy...don't critique this one!

2010-10-26T13:38:00.002-05:00

Here's the cover for my first children's book! It's at the printers as we speak!
It's a really great story about a lazy dog who learns to get fit from an energetic elephant. I like that the story fits a niche market - we see lots in the news about kids needing to be more active and I have great hopes that this book will find its way into many school libraries.

what do you give a guy who can't fly for his birthday?

2010-10-24T15:01:00.004-05:00

here's the latest. i found myself wanting more animals in the portfolio, so went this route. feels unfinished to me so i'm happy to get input on what you think it may be missing.
(oil on illustration board)

Santa Panda's Sleigh

2010-10-15T14:21:00.005-05:00

Now don't pay too much attention to the color, I actually did each of the reindeer on it's own layer in illustrator so that way, once it's colored, I could still move them around and even use each deer individually, if I want to...

But composition - whatcha think? Oh, and the blue ones for the reins are all very simply done and aren't finished...

This is the same thing with better color:

I think the trees will be a little more green with snow on top...I'm working on putting a sort of square feel to everything (even the trees and bushes), so each drawing I do will probably have a different bg look, while I try out different looks (for the different bg elements).

And this is it in Photoshop with all the revisions but without texture and fully rendered color:

nuts...I just noticed an ear tangent...

And here's the final illustration:

Snow White: Don't eat that apple

2010-09-30T09:17:00.001-05:00

For promo card. What do you think?

its all about the garnish!

2010-09-29T20:21:00.002-05:00

watch out! BEAR! ...making dessert... carefully.

Eeek! That monster stole my cookies!

2010-09-04T21:11:00.003-05:00

can you pickle a star?

2010-08-30T11:48:00.003-05:00

well, here it is...oil on canvas. i finished last week and am working on making it into a postcard today. i like how it ended up and decided to make it my next mailer. here's to finding a big-time publisher to fulfill my dreams! :)

hope all is well with everybody!

Squaremania - title page

2010-08-20T12:13:00.000-05:00

So I have a couple of variations - any thoughts? I think it's done, but I would like suggestions on which one is stronger...

The last two are pretty much the same, but the title is a different color...

something borrowed...and something original...

2010-08-18T20:06:00.004-05:00

I did the copycat picture (above) from "The Frog Prince Continued" (illo by Steve Johnson/words by Scieszka). This one was a challenge to copy because the reference was tiny. If you have Salisbury's "Illustrating Children's Books" you can find this image on page 17. The reference was about 3" X 4" which I exploded out to around 9" X 12". For the life of me, I couldn't mix turquoise for her dress...amazingly frustrating. Anyone know how to get a bright saturated turquoise from the old palette? Probably would be easiest from the tube, I guess...

I can't resist the urge to do something of my own lately, so I'm cheating on my plan a bit here. This one is for IF (Illustration Friday). The topic is "star gazing." I spent some time mulling it over and came up with the the notion of having some weird alien smitten by our local star...and just enough so that it decides to jar it up and take it home. Those surrounding circles are the planets and there will be a pretty developed asteroid belt and nebula in the background. Its early to post, but what the heck...I'll never meet the Friday deadline anyways. This will be my largest oil painting yet (14" X 15"). I hope to refine it to great detail. See anything major needing refinement?

I have about 3 paintings going at once now. Thanks to Isaac for suggesting multiple works...that's a great solution.

Shy Monster

2010-08-17T20:54:00.003-05:00

I never know what to title my art. I hate trying to come up with new names for illustrations so let me know if you have a better name for this piece.

peter paul rubens...

2010-08-15T21:06:00.005-05:00

oil on paper
Selection from "St. Ambrose and Emperor Theodosius" (a MUCH larger work)
Peter Paul Rubens

I'm still amazed at the youtube oil painters who work alla prima. For example, this guy...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OVU7tKxki8

It takes lots of confidence to lay in the proper colors on the first stroke like Greg Manchess. Practice, practice, practice.

Squaremania!

2010-08-14T11:39:00.000-05:00

Hi there folks,

This is an illustration I'm working on - it's going to be the title page or whatever (the front image?) that I'm going to be sending to licensing agents (and, if they all say no, then to potential licensees)...any thoughts? Obviously it needs color - and I'm thinking that the blocks with the letters in them are going to need lines (as they kind of stand out for not having lines while everything else does)...

Interesting

2010-08-13T19:02:00.001-05:00

This was posted on the illustration board I'm on and if you are a fan of David Weisner as I am you'll enjoy! _http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZuIsAIKiNgY_

My book's video trailer

2010-08-09T21:21:00.002-05:00

Just thought I'd share.

Smoky and the Feast of Mabon

Still working on goaty pirates.

Feed back appreciated

2010-08-08T21:57:00.001-05:00

Just finished this piece and would like to hear some comments. Good or bad.

to license or what...?

2010-08-08T18:58:00.000-05:00

So I've been researching licensing all week long - thanks to some links from Patti I've had quite a lot to go through. My first try will be to find a licensing agent (I have a list of 3 of my dream choices, followed by 3 or 4 second tier ones...and then a bunch of 'if I can't find anything better' types)...and go from there. If the agent doesn't work, then I'll attempt to license them myself and if I have any success with that, then I'll reattempt to contact an agent.

But going into this I have a prominent animation producer who says he likes the characters so much he 'wants to eat them up' and the president of nickelodeon said they were a breath of fresh air. So I'm going to be overusing those two quotes as much as possible until someone of prominence sees these and does something financially fantastic (for me) with them.

At least that's the idea...

I'm still putting together a title page and a little blurb about them...so those are the final hurdles...I should be finished with it in the next week and a half or so...and then I'll be casting it out and we'll see if I have any bites...

Landscape study

2010-08-08T15:20:00.002-05:00

Just finished my landscape study, focusing on color matching/mixing.

Ichabod...

2010-08-04T09:44:00.002-05:00

color study
oil on paper
from "Ichabod Crane" (N. Rockwell)

Here's my latest copy. Rockwell is no easy guy to copy...there are such complexities in the way he uses color. I find myself wanting to work bigger and bigger (mine is about 11 X 11 inches - I'm sure Rockwell's was much larger) to accommodate all the details. Its hard to match all those colors when my smallest brush is still too big. Oh well, it was still fun to develop. The likeness to the actual/original is not that close again.

Pete

another cat and dog drawing

2010-07-29T16:25:00.000-05:00

I don't know if you remember me posting a picture of the cat and dog in the trunk as a plane flying marshmallows towards the sun...well that was their imagination - and this is the reality. I finally got around to drawing and coloring it.

alla prima #2

2010-07-29T15:37:00.003-05:00

Here's my second alla prima, with more emphasis on accuracy. I'm still learning on the colors and will probably be making one of those color referencing gadgets (basically a black and white card with a hole punched out) to reference color more accurately. There were so many tints shades of blue and green in this one that I started to get lost! I'd say total time was near 3 hours.

Promo Postcard pencil

2010-07-28T19:12:00.001-05:00

Comments, suggestions and gentle criticism welcome.

my new postcard

2010-07-27T18:50:00.001-05:00

I had mocked this up previously - but this is the final one - unless you can see anything wrong with it - I originally had the cat character in there - but have since removed it because I couldn't fit her into the jumping dog one without it looking too awkward.

Let me know what you think as I want to print these as soon as possible!

Of course it won't have a grey square there but I just don't want any of you coming to my house.

And anyone going to the LA conference? I probably should have (for the second year in a row) especially considering it's right around the corner from me...but maybe next year...I'll have even more stuff to show at that time...

1 hour alla prima

2010-07-26T22:03:00.003-05:00

oil on paper
5 X 7

Found this portrait picture in a National Geographic magazine and though I'd do a one hour painting again. The likeness isn't really there, but maybe with practice it'll improve...

Pixar painted...

2010-07-26T21:58:00.003-05:00

oil on paper
10 X 10

Here's the final. Learning, learning, learning...

What is it?

2010-07-26T21:07:00.002-05:00

Something I saw on vacation at the Jersey Shore you might want to check out.
[LINK]

going down a different path...

2010-07-25T17:32:00.001-05:00

So this is for a brand new idea I have - I have to pitch it to my partner to see if it's even something she'd want to develop a story around...but, if nothing else, it was a fun little drawing that was outside of my usual.

Sort of...I guess I put a lot of what I usually do into this one as well - like the stumpy arms and the eyeballs...but the color and stuff...what do you think?

Nick Jr (Nickelodeon for lil' kids) is coming back to town in the fall and I want to pitch them something crazy. I started with the three characters - one is a circle with a toe on it's head, another is a triangle, and the third is a one eyed square.

And i always seem to draw my characters running down a path...I need to broaden my bg drawing a bit...

Not sure about this one.

2010-07-23T11:53:00.001-05:00

I found this in my files. One of my many unfinished works. I kind of like it and I kind of hate it. I don't know where I went wrong with this so any suggestions are welcome.
Thanks,
Steve

The saga continues...

2010-07-22T16:01:00.004-05:00

I did a painting for the IF title, "Diary." Sadly, that painting ended up in the trash. In that version I tried to use flat acrylic colors underneath the oils, but the colors all competed with one another. Then I started contemplating the underpainting more...and I came to the realization that I really like my burnt umber underpaintings (even the acrylic ones) more. I always enjoy seeing the stage where the light is planned out and tone is stated in one color. I continued reading and looking for online references and ran across the schoolism website (as recommended by Steve).

One of the current teachers, on that site (Thomas Fluharty) is running a class about oils, so I looked into it further. I watched a quick video segment in which he suggested the importance of the underpainting. I continued thinking. What is it that I like so much about the underpainting and why am I still struggling color? Well, I think I found the answer. I destroyed and currently destroy my underpainting my working too opaquely. On top of that, I'm going to way too much detail too fast. I'm overdoing it.

I think I'm still stuck in the "I better get this paint down as fast as possible before it dries" mode of acrylic painting.

I'm going to do this screenshot from one of my favorite Pixar movies while trying my hardest to preserve the underpainting while glazing in color layers. The goal is to still see these values and to trust the underpainting.

I've also decided to give up creating anything original myself until September 1st. I'm going to steal and copy paintings I like while focusing entirely on oil technique. Hopefully at the end, I'll have a method to apply to my children's art that will allow for more creative freedom...instead of frustration.

ugly colors a bit better

2010-07-15T11:15:00.002-05:00

So I tried to take your suggestions into consideration - what do you think of this? I went into Adobe Illustrator using the colors that I did for the characters and used Illustrators 'color guide' to match the pink of the cat and the blue of the dog to complimentary colors.

From the original - I wasn't happy that the bed was one color...and the floor bothered me. Also I took Pete's suggestion of doing something out the window - I then went on a different layer and painted over it to make it look more abstract and window like.

What do you think?

revision!

I feel the need...the need for speed!

2010-07-13T15:51:00.002-05:00

I'm not completely happy with the way this one turned out. I like the light source mysteriously emitting light from within the trees and the mood created by the expression on the giant.

The biggest hurdle I'm dealing with is the drying time. "Fat over lean" is really slow for me, so I'm going to try an acrylic underpainting with flat colors as a base next time. The layering and layering and layering kinda limits how much I can accomplish in one sitting. And doing "Alla prima" all at once with no mixing is beyond my experience at this point. I've heard of painters combining acrylic underneath oil, so we'll see what happens!

stupid Diary topic

2010-07-12T01:04:00.000-05:00

This illustration took FOREVER! so annoying - and I only did this drawing because the illustration friday topic was diary. Anyway - I need help with color...you would not believe what this looked like after my first pass...I sort of like it now, but what do you think?

Delayed and well overdue update

2010-07-11T13:56:00.003-05:00

Hi guys,

Unbelievably, my book is still not done. I am doing my final revisions/corrections this week and then I should be done. Now that it is almost done, I can be introspective and see what I have done and how much I learned. I am glad I took on this project...:)

I am moving into town this month and I was sick almost all of June, so my time now and over the past 2 months has been really, really tight. I am still working on digital stamps and rubber stamp designs as my main source of productivity and income, but I have a goal of changing that this year. I have a new focus on creating a portfolio for children's books, instead of portrait shots for stamps after attending an excellent conference with Terri Murhpy and Kelly Bennett. It was very inspirational. Terri is the illustrator of many books and over the two-day conference I really enjoyed picking her brain, learning how her technique developed and just how she goes through the process. It also made me decide to give myself a break and take the time needed to be as good as I can be now and take more time getting better...looking over illustrations from 2 years ago, it is amazing to me how much change has happened. LOL So the main idea is that, you are never anywhere but where you are so, so you are as good as you are now, and in 2 years you will be better...

That was the main message I took away from the conference...stick to your style, develop it and be true to that...no matter how long it takes.

I don't have any new pieces started for that process, but here is one shot from the book that should be completed this week.

Chugging along...

2010-07-08T22:09:00.004-05:00

Here's my current WIP. More oils, more liquin, more odorless turpentine. I'd say its about 60% done and hope to finish by Sunday evening.

It's for Illustration Friday and hopefully my next postcard. I'm going to try to produce about 3 high quality portfolio pieces per month and select the best for marketing. I'm planning on sending postcards out every 2 months.

Here's what I've learned thus far about oils...

1. They dry sssssslllllllloooooooowwwwwww.
2. Liquin helps to keep the finish matted while working and expedites drying.
3. You can't use the same brush throughout the painting. I'm constantly switching and washing.
4. Oil paintings start out looking pretty awful until the layers of paint build up. But, good news, they start looking better the more you work them. I'm just now starting to think this one's going well.
5. Areas of color (including shadows/highlights) have to be preplanned or I make a muddy mess of color. Mixing wet in wet is difficult.
6. I feel like I have more control of this medium to make it perform the way I like. Acrylic is nice - but I like this better already. I'm not turning back.

I like that we're posting more. See you on the board!

Piano playing

2010-07-08T13:52:00.001-05:00

So I don't know if I've said this already - but Nick Jr (nickelodeon for lil' kids) passed on my pitch. From it I found a pitch partner (a gal who also pitched, but is also the script coordinator on Fairly Odd Parents and Tuff Puppy, and she's written an episode of Fairly Odd Parents AND she has a reality tv show in development) and we're going to retool my pitch (and hers) and see about getting it stronger and eventually we'll re-pitch them to studios around Los Angeles.

It's weird how solo children's book companies want everything to be - but animation really encourages collaboration. So we'll see how it goes - I figure that if we don't get something made into a cartoon (which is very likely considering how hard it is) we can attempt to adapt them into children's books...or even, if the characters are strong enough, try to license them. But we'll see...it's the beginning of the process and we have a ways to go.

Anyway - here's something that doesn't relate to the above - but I just finished it and wanted some critique!

Character tonal study

2010-07-05T23:33:00.001-05:00

This was done in Photoshop - any suggestions?

So I did a little bit of a revision - popped more of the highlights and changed the shadows:

Style?

2010-06-28T12:31:00.002-05:00

Working on some black and white images of children. I did a bunch of sketches that are more realistic, but wanted to try a little looser stylized look. Here's what I have so far.

First true oil...

2010-06-24T14:40:00.003-05:00

So, I really like oils...the way the paint can be worked and reworked is truly cool. And I found a method/technique that I like (which has room for improvement).

I did this for Illustration Friday. The painting is still wet, so I'm getting light weirdness happening all over the place, but this shows the gist of it.

Hope all is well with everyone.

Big changes...

2010-06-16T21:05:00.005-05:00

Hey everyone. Well, in the last couple of weeks, my family made a pretty big decision. I retired from teaching middle school (after 8 years) to give this children's illustration dream of mine the full attention I think it deserves. I'll also be able to stay home with our 2 kids which is awesome! So I'll be around lots more now, as I'm going to be kicking myself in the pants pretty hard to stay up on creating new, dynamic, and exciting pieces for my portfolio. I'm hoping to be submitting to agents as well. Prepare for the blitz!

I'm also giving oils a try in earnest now. It's what I really want to be working in (acrylics dry to dang quick) and I want to maintain a "fine art" quality to what I produce.

While trying not to seem too redundant, I selected another Rockwell for a color study. The line drawing has some pretty obvious flaws, but I'll be really focusing on color. Anyways, that's what's going on with me and what I'm working on.

Back O' the postcard

2010-06-14T10:30:00.002-05:00

Hi there folks,

So here's the finished comp for the back of the postcard. i put it all together, but have each element separate so it can be moved around. I originally had my website under my name - but it just got too muddled, so I moved it into the tree to, hopefully, have it stand out from the rest.

What do you think?

Should the grass below the cat flow up like it does in the first one? Or circle around the character like in the second one? I don't know which one looks better...I originally made it like the one above because I thought it would look better if the honey from the cat's hand overlaps the grass...but now that I redid it with it under, I don't know which one looks better. Any ideas?

And I did the two drawings as if they were two separate illustrations because I wanted to show on the back of the card that I could do the spot illustrations as well as the full page ones....so I don't know if that helps with deciding which direction to go with the grass...

Recent Image

2010-06-08T15:46:00.002-05:00

I've been doing work for licensing lately. This image will be a flag next Spring. I've also been working on dummies for my book agent in hopes that she will find them homes. Nothing yet but I am working on a new one now. Hope everyone is is busy with lots of work!
Patti

Something fun since I haven't posted here in a while.

2010-06-07T16:07:00.001-05:00

postcard back!

2010-06-06T23:59:00.000-05:00

This is going to be the back of the postcard that I'm currently working on. I did the front illustration (I decided to turn the dog jumping for a bee hive into an ensemble piece with the other two characters, and that illustration I'm now revising)...

But what do you think of this? I still wanna color it...

What do you think of the word placement and such? And the composition?

Do you think someone will question that the tree doesn't have all the branches that the front side does? I actually used a different tree for this one because the other one was too busy...but does it matter? Is a tree even necessary?

Update

2010-05-31T16:32:00.002-05:00

Hi guys, there is not much going on with me. I will have an update to post next week to the private side---still can't share the alien book. I haven't been around much because I have been swamped with creating a digital stamp store where I sell digital line art for crafters and stampers. I also was asked to work on a self-publishing book and I need some suggestions with handling that. I will be back next week to give a better update with pictures. :)

I hope everyone is ready for summer....I am very happy school is over. :)

My Book has been delivered

2010-05-31T15:21:00.003-05:00

How sweet it is. My first self published book is finally here. What an adventure it has been so far and I'm only getting started. Now I have to market and sell this book which is a whole new learning curve for me to deal with. I posted a commercial for it on You Tube [LINK] if you want to see what the book is all about.

Another good thing happened. A lot of work came in this month, which was a huge relief. I had my worst year ever last year and I know that I'm not alone. It was a hard year for every industry.

Lloyd and Bees

2010-05-21T11:09:00.000-05:00

So this is part of what I've been working on. Sadly it's not all as interesting as this - as I've picked up some really mind numbing freelance...

But I'm still working with a writer to pitch a couple of shows to Nickelodeon and other cartoon networks. This was just a doodle that turned into an Illustration Friday drawing and then I felt like I had to finish it up - and it contains a character from the show I'm working on pitching, so I felt like it sort of counts as working towards that goal...

Whatcha think?

Need Suggestions

2010-05-18T11:51:00.000-05:00

Posted some thumbnails for book project in secret blog. Please take a look and give a quick feedback. It will help SO much!

I see it's been kind of slow, and that's fine. I'm happy to see everyone having projects or if you're like me, a lot of family events going on. April and May always seem to be VERY busy times of the year. I truly hope everyone is doing well and filled with joy.

God bless,
sara

new kid praying

2010-04-13T10:04:00.001-05:00

So I took your suggestions and changed it to night - I also changed the character into a boy (but only because I had already done the other one with a girl...and changing it to a boy makes it a completely different illustration that I can submit to the stock image sites). I also took care of the knee problem by blocking it's view with a bed. Anyway this is a more traditional illustration of a child praying...and it was done in Adobe Illustrator. It's taking forever to finish though as I can't seem to draw it without effects that keep getting messed up when I resave it as an illustrator 8 file (I use cs3 and the stock illustration sites all require 8 eps files). So it's been uploaded to two sites (which accept Illustrator 10 files) and I have to redraw the light and sky and the highlights on the boy if I want to submit it to any other site. Not that you need to know any of that, but I thought I'd share.

Concurrently I'm retooling the pitch I did for Nickelodeon (as it was turned down last month). I've picked up a pitch partner who's a script coordinator on the show I work on and she's even written an episode of Fairly Odd Parents. I never thought I'd be spending my time trying to pitch a tv show (because it's so incredibly hard to get it on air), but I figured that I could at least use the story ideas and drawing concepts to make a children's book. But we'll see...

EDIT: Here it is again - with a bit of a change from the outer space window...

all the blends have been changed to gradients because when they're back saved to illustrator 8 eps, all the blends freak out and turn into 25 or so color shapes and make the drawing look sloppy. And the light in the sky was originally a 'lens flair' gradient that, when back saved, turned into a series of bitmaps. So it was changed to just a simple gradient...and now, thanks to Steve's suggestion, the gradient goes to blue, not black...and the stars stop at some point. I should have added trees or something, but I was having such problems with this illustration that i thought it was fine enough without it.

Me drawing a bug

2010-04-12T07:20:00.003-05:00

I just posted a really short video of me drawing a bug on You Tube. I hope to start doing more of these types of videos. [LINK]

Glitch in Blogger?

2010-04-06T22:52:00.002-05:00

I am not sure if anyone else is experiencing this but I wanted to mention in case someone did. I commented recently on Issac's pink angel and later I saw that the post was deleted. It was strange since I did not delete it myself. Is the comment box giving you problems also?

Finished Project

2010-04-06T15:04:00.002-05:00

Hello everyone, I just wanted to post something since I have not done so in a while. This is the cover of a book I've been illustrating for children ages 8 and up. Just completed the last of the interior illustrations. Happy to have it completed.

There's a Monster in the Fridge-changes

2010-04-04T20:03:00.003-05:00

I made changes to the girl and fixed some other things in the illustration that were bugging me. Everyone's feedback was really helpful and I think the piece is 100 times better than before. Let me know if you see anything else that could use a tweak.
Thanks again illustration boarders.

little girl praying...

2010-03-31T10:03:00.000-05:00

I posted this on my website - and I put it up for a contest on Dreamstime. The theme this month is spirituality and religion.

I did it completely in Adobe Illustrator (version 8) as that's what one usually has to use for stock illustration sites. I really like how it turned out - and I'm thinking of doing another one with a boy praying at night but with a more translucent glow...

There's a Monster in the Fridge

2010-03-26T10:37:00.003-05:00

Here's an illustration I've been working on for a couple of weeks now.

Sketchoholic.com

2010-03-25T08:52:00.001-05:00

Was on sketchoholic last night [LINK] watching Bobby Chiu's latest live streaming video and participated in his live drawing contest. Have to draw a given subject in less than an hour. The participants upload their art and then vote on the art posted. It's a fun event and I actually won last night. Get an original Bobby Chiu art sketch/painting.

something is lacking...

2010-03-24T17:07:00.000-05:00

I can't put my finger on it, but this piece is lacking something...anyone have any suggestions? I tried to do the whole thing in Adobe Illustrator, which is why there's so much flat color....

1 hr paint session...

2010-03-20T18:27:00.003-05:00

If you haven't been to Steve Harpster's blog in awhile, then I suggest you take a peek. Not only has he been going over some pretty interesting self-publishing content - he's been doing really great color studies that have inspired me to kick my art up a notch.

As mini-break from the book I'm illustrating now, I decided to take one hour to study on of my favorite painters - Norman Rockwell. I gotta say, this was really fun. An hour has never gone as quickly as it did. I was frantically mixing and looking to get as much done as I could inside the time limit.

Here's the result! Hope everyone is well and I can't wait to see more of our group's work. I'm going to try harder to post more often.

Student contest's grand prize now includes $200 cash

2010-03-15T12:35:00.002-05:00

The Bollywood Movie Poster Design contest I mentioned before now includes $200 cash in the Grand Prize. Entry form is online at http://www.laralakshmi.com/contest.html - Please encourage your students to enter.

Where I've been hiding or I gave birth to a new book!

2010-03-10T09:23:00.003-06:00

So I dropped off the face of the planet. Well not really, but for all intents and purposes I have been absent from a lot of places in the last several months.

I just gave birth to a bouncing baby book. :D I delivered all the final art to the pub on Monday. I still can't share inside spreads (15 full bleed spreads!) but I can post the cover as the book is up for pre-order on amazon and the pub's web site. :D

My next project will be hand painted leather masks. And then onto a new book, hopefully. I have to get some postcard art created to send out as a mailer for that to happen.

Portfolio Booklets on my blog

2010-03-03T11:33:00.002-06:00

Hey everyone. A member of this site e-mailed me last night asking about advertising in the Directory of Illustration. I told her I thought it was the worst decision I ever made. I decided to post my reasons on my blog for anyone interested. LINK

I'm also venturing into the realm of self publishing. I'm keeping an online journal of my thought process as I go through this adventure. I should be going to press soon and if you have any interest in self publishing or reading about me having a nervous breakdown while I go through this make sure to check my blog from time to time.

Thanks,
Steve

Refined Storyboard

2010-03-02T09:13:00.001-06:00

{ haha, boy in a square! }

In the private section updated storyboard for new book...

I'm in a group gallery show...

2010-03-01T10:20:00.000-06:00

And it completely snuck up on me. I was able to get this piece finished over the weekend - and I have to get it printed by some time tuesday. Hopefully at least one of you will read this and critique it - is there anything I missed?

It's IG-88...

I meant to do something spectacular for the group show - to stand out...something with my own characters, but then I got it into my head to do IG-88...and this is what I spent all my time on...any suggestions?

Rough Sketch

2010-02-26T15:55:00.002-06:00

I need to work on drawing children more so started to do a little sketching. Here is a rough sketch of a girl reading. I may try painting the same image to see how it comes out. I need the practice.

Design a Bollywood Movie Poster - Art Contest for Youth Grades K-12

2010-02-26T08:55:00.002-06:00

Hiya fellow illustrators, I know some of you teach art to young people, so I hope you can pass on this fun contest information. Deadline is March 31, 2010.

Details at: http://www.laralakshmi.com/contest.html

Spread for Critique - Symbols of India

2010-02-23T15:57:00.001-06:00

I've posted an image from the book I'm illustrating in the private area ... pretty please, can I get some feedback? Thanks!

Are you submitting?

2010-02-22T14:51:00.004-06:00

SCBWI Bulletin

Something I don't know how many of you consider, but are you submitting to the SCBWI Bulletin those sketches that are sitting around? I have found it very helpful! It's making me think more about how I'm drawing my characters, trying to bring more life and purpose into them. So when I'm randomly sketching or sketching for IF I try to make them useful. It's definitely worth a shot if you haven't, and so easy to do! Plus, if you get in, you get paid. On top of that, then you have some work published no matter how little or small it is. Definitely something that keeps your spirits up and feel great about.

I would love to hear or see everyone here submit at least once or twice this year. The bulletin comes out every two months so there's definitely plenty of opportunities! If you don't know how to submit let me know or post a comment, we'll get you set up! Good luck!

I'm gonna eatchu little fishies!

2010-02-21T14:07:00.002-06:00

I did this as a stock illustration image - what do you think? I have yet to upload it because I wonder about color and other things...your thoughts?

I've actually already changed the colors - whatcha think of this?

Storyboard

2010-02-18T09:54:00.002-06:00

New post in private section of blog. Would love some feedback on it! :D

what do you think?

2010-02-15T19:52:00.000-06:00

hey-ya folks! what do you think of this one? I knew it would end up being a lot of blue - and I"m fully prepared to change the color slightly of the water or something to make the character stand out a bit more, but I thought it was fine this way...what do you think?

With the wood between the character and the water, i thought it would help him stand out against it...

Post it note Monsters

2010-02-11T20:39:00.001-06:00

Just started drawing on post it notes and really like it. Then one thing lead to another and now I am painting the post it note drawings in photoshop. Kind of a fun quick exercise.

What You Look'n At?

2010-02-01T22:14:00.003-06:00

Just want to know if this has a pop to it?
Is the lighting good?
Does it have a mood to it?
There's a certain effect that I am trying to achieve and I am getting close, but just not there yet. Let me know your thoughts.

A little help please...

2010-01-27T20:47:00.003-06:00

Hi everybody,
I was hoping some of you could sneak over to the private side and give me some suggestive criticism or help. :) I am running into trouble with the main character of my book and I am not able to post it publicly yet. Pretty, please...I feel like I should be able to solve this, but I am pretty much blocked. :( I need a fresh perspective and eyes and I would really appreciate the help. Thanks!

Something new

2010-01-27T12:35:00.002-06:00

This is still really rough, but I am trying to color my sketchbook art in Photoshop. I have colored this one four time now trying to get something I like and I think I might be close. Still not done, but I wanted to post it and see what I think about it when I see it online. Any advice?

Sorry I have been missing

2010-01-26T12:59:00.002-06:00

Don't think that I haven't been working. I have, just have nothing all that new to post. Hope to have spread for a book that I have been working on done and ready to look at next week sometime. I am also posting on a blog called Sketch a Day where the members have to post a new sketch almost everyday or you get kicked off. The sketching isn't the hard part, it's the taking the picture and posting that I find tedious as hell. So here is a samp of a sketch on mine that you would find on that site. Oh, and here's a link too LINK

Spacey thoughts

2010-01-18T20:15:00.003-06:00

Hi all,
This is the spaceship design for my book and I was hoping for feedback on coloring and design. The kiddo and his pet (thus the two chairs) that go inside aren't done yet, but I wanted to play with colors and see what worked in space. Any thoughts? This is all done in PS in CS4.

February Postcard Finished

2010-01-13T14:33:00.004-06:00

Last night right before bedtime I finished the illustration for my promotional postcard. Thanks everyone for confirming my personal thoughts and to my advising husband for helping last minute. :) First mail out of the year. Surprisingly enough, while playing in photoshop for layout, it wasn't nearly as hard as my postcard last year. I don't know if it's because there isn't as much pressure (Brian having a new job), or if it's what I hope it is. That I have enough faith and trust in God that I just keep doing what I'm led to do and let Him take care of the rest. A running theme this year I think. :)

I would appreciate any feedback about layout. Especially in on the back. I realized I hadn't done any illustration to take from the front and transfer to the back. So I decided on illustrating a beach like (Columbian?) girl, all the way across the ocean from where the kids on the front are from, receiving one of the loving thought letters. Placement and color was the only real issue I ran into. Couldn't decide.

What about this for the back? Just thought of it. :P

If you have thoughts, opinions, for either the front or the back, I'm all ears. I'm hoping to get these ordered tomorrow or Friday. :)

Thanks!

Update on WIP

2010-01-12T15:04:00.002-06:00

Any comments or suggestions would be awesome. I've been staring at this WAY too long. :/

Snowed In

2010-01-12T11:23:00.004-06:00

Totally enjoying my new sketchbook. Its like drawing on bristol all the time with a paper that isn't pure white. So so nice! This is my illo for this week's IF "confined". A lot of snow we've received this month here in the midwest.

I haven't taken a picture of my progress on the "Hatchlings of Loving Thoughts" illo. I'm kind of frustrated with it, but will get to it after lunch today. I hope to fix a few things and move on. :/ Here's an inbetween picture of it. I'm further than this now, but it's a slight update from the image from previous post.

Hopefully by tomorrow I'll have a new photo to show you. :)

My resolutions are:
Read through the Bible in one year (following each day with wendypope.blogspot.com)
Get three promo mailers out
Gain a larger network through blog and twitter
Put together a strong portfolio
Sketch IF every week
Never forget how much I love my husband and thank God for him every single day

There's more but they're tiny. I know these are going to be a bit more difficult to keep in habit. :)

Chocolate Feeding Frenzy

2010-01-12T08:55:00.002-06:00

Cool, I think this one is done. Now it's time to send out the files to print my portfolio. I agree Isaac that you need pics of the same characters over and over again. Maybe that will be in next years portfolio.
Thanks for all the help on this one, but let me know if there is anything else that's just not feeling right with this piece.

Patti wanted to know of good sites to learn digital painting. Here are ones that I like
-Dani Jones has a great blog http://danidraws.com/blog/
-Schoolism.com has classes you can take. I've taken four of the online classes. they not only teach but the instructors go over your work and show you what you need to work on more.
-You tube has a ton of videos on digital painting. Some are good and others are bad, but you just have to go through them all.
-Ustream has some people that draw live on the computer. you can watch them work and ask them questions.

Hope those help a but.