June '15: Doodle Day Hand Lettering

I hadn't done any hand lettering to speak of since my teaching days. These were for the facebook page, Doodle Day. I pretty much chose my own words for this month. It was fun. I'm feeling more confident about hand lettering after this month.

52 Week Illustration Challenge: My first two posts.

My first post on the facebook page 52 Week Illustration Challenge was from the prompt AFRICA. I wanted to show the patterns and rhythms of Africa. I wish I'd used bigger paper and stepped back from the subjects just a bit. It looks cramped here.

 

My second post was from the prompt: LAND. Here I chose to illustrate: "The land laid down beside the river and watched the clouds roll by." Changes? Perhaps used a more traditional patterns in the fields, but I was pleased with the colors in general.

May 2015 Doodles

Fish Painting

 The theme this month on the facebook page, Doodle Day was animals with machines. (And a few artist's choice days.)

Here are my sharpie marker drawings, with comments.

Fish Painting: My perspective is waaay off on the bench and tableau, but I like the overall effect.

Love the over-sized Bear sewing. If I had it to do over I'd back up the base board. I drew it too close.

Bear Sewing

Bunny using a blender

Bunny using a blender: The bunnies were drawn the first of the month, I can see how 'stiff' the drawing is compared with the Pigs bouncing which came later in the month. [I entered the pigs in the SCBWI monthly contest illustrating "Bounce"] #scbwidrawthis

Pigs bouncing

Dog using a treadmill

Frog on a tractor

Dog on a treadmill. I liked the line variation here. The treadmill legs were an afterthought. It shows.








Frog on a Tractor. Frog, ugh. I should have looked at a frog. But I did like the contrast between the foreground and background achieved by varying the line thickness. Yes, I know the perspective on the tractor is off.






Giraffe on the plane is successful to me except for the top right line which is off. I should have tilted it more to the left. Perspective, Ugh.

Giraffe flying a plane

Goat making ice cream

Hamster on a tricycle

Kangaroo using a jackhammer

Cat Fishing

Miss Bird in her office using a computer

Sarge opening a can.

Sheep mowing

I'd like to say I used Asian perspective on the goat making ice cream, but it is what it is. Loved doing the goat hair. Is it called hair? or fur?









Hamster on a trike. Lesson here: Look at a trike, yikes. Love the hamster's fat little body.
















Kangaroo using a jackhammer. OK.











 



Cat fishing. Once again an earlier in the month drawing. Stiff and tilted too much.

Fish typing

Elephant on a bike

Chickens on an assembly line: Making an Urban Chicken.

Miss Bird typing: Needed to look an an office. I was blank when it came to what to put in the drawing. Can you tell?











Sarge opening a can. Having fun with lines here. Kinda scarey dog.











Sheep mowing. I added color to the back of a velum sheet of paper on this drawing. Kristi Valiant suggested I try this. Need to do with paint. Hopefully next month.













Fish typing. Pleased with this one.































Elephant on a bike. Passes my inspection.











The chicken assembly line is ok. I couldn't get my two drawings for this to line up in the computer program I have. Not entirely pleased with the humans in this one.

That's it for my May doodles. Next month were are doing lettering. That should be interesting.

April 2015: Prepositions

The Doodle Day* prompts for April 2015 were prepositions. Just for the challenge, I decided to try to do them all in one image, a la Richard Scarry. Some of the prompts were: aboard, above, across, against, along amid among, around behind beneath, beside between beyond, by, down, following, inside, near, off, on, outside, over, through, towards, under, unlike, up, with and without. Can you find the matching images? Good Luck!

 [*See Doodle Day on Facebook]

Creating a drawing with so much going on is no easy task. I was adding a few images at a time without much of a master plan. I started at the bottom and worked my way to the top. It was very confusing.  Note to self: PLAN AHEAD next time.

My inspiration came from Richard Scarry's BUSY TOWN. I think I out "busy"ed him. Yikes.

March 2015 Doodles

A-Z Creatures based on the facebook page "Doodle Day" monthly prompt

I gave myself permission this month to step out of my comfort zone, to explore media and my imagination.

Drawing from a three year old's scribble.

I participated in an online drawing based on a 3yr old's scribble. which in turn led to more scribbles, freeing myself from the confines of my tighter more controlled style.

Composite of doodles expanded from my own ink scribbles

What I'd like to do in April is take the scribble drawings and refine them using the basic shapes from the scribble but eliminate the original scribbled line. 

February 2015: Changing like the weather.

February Doodles. Most based on prompts from Facebook Group Doodle Day

 This month was a mixed bag for me. I was bored working with colored pencils, so I did a few watercolors and even made a drawing inspired by a 3 year old's scribble*. #3yroldscribble

I enjoyed working at my studio despite the jog through the snow. Having brush in hand was liberating and terrifying at the same time. It has been a while.

Don't know where this journey will end but I am enjoying the ride.  My favorite image this month was "Fox Found", watercolor and ink.

January 2015: Inspired by Matisse.

The prompts on the facebook page, Doodle Day, this month were "opposites". I chose to illustrate the prompts with cut paper. I'm no Matisse but I was inspired to experiment "drawing with scissors" by the airing of a Matisse segment on Good Morning America. I think I'll stick to drawing. This was fun but I hate glue.