Intro: Week one of the 29 Faces Challenge for February was great and very productive. I was able to get the first two faces done in one day... but then this weekend got really tiring and just not healthy. I was not able to create face #06... Looks like this week I'll be playing catch up. I was able to get #06 to #24 all sketched out and ready to go! #06 is still an ATC (for this swap) but the rest are all on 4"x6" postcard canvases. I already went ahead and purchased an simple leather album from Hobby Lobby (only for $3.49) to start collecting postcards in. My first blind postcard from a PIF already came in, plus I'll be getting 2 more from MMHs so it looks like the album should fill up quickly. Especially when I have all of these faces completed.
What I created: I made all of the faces on ATCs sized canvases (2.5"x3.5"). The first two have already been traded for personal trades (so quick!). And the next three are for the Paying Tribute - Celebrities We Lost in 2016 Swap. All were done with watercolor paints plus detailing done using Le Pen markers and white gel pen. Further thoughts: I am not so sure if I'll be able to get the bigger sized canvases done all in one day now.. I found that working with the faces on ATC sized canvas was pretty quick even with details. But the details did get difficult to create even with a really tiny brush. It looks like I might need to purchase markers/pens for detailing seeing as the brushes are not working out. At any rate I am still going to stick to my goal of finishing one face a day even if they are on postcard sized canvases now. No further requests came in for portraits but I was able to get a really lovely collection put together on Paint My Photo plus some images from a Facebook page (with permission). I still have 5 more faces left to think about... I might use the Facebook page for those seeing as I have not used any of their images for reference. For the upcoming week I'll have my first 3 requests completed. I have already sketched a self-portrait so I'll not be shying away from that. I am going to keep the last 5 slots open still just in case I do get a request.
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Intro: Just catching you guys up on recent art that I have traded already. I specifically made these for personal trades set up on ATCsForAll.
What I created: All of them were made using watercolor, Le Pen marker, and white roll gel pen. The Stained Glass Rose and the Heart inchie both have puffy paint used for outlining. I made three ATCs (2.5"x3.5") and 6 inchies (1"x1"). Further thoughts: I was recently feeling very inspired by Art Nouveau stained glass art and had decided to create a bunch of ATCs and postcards that a similar style. I already knew I was going to be using puffy paint as a replacement liner (gutta) for the stained glass art and Chinese watercolors due to their stained look. So far I was not exactly pleased with what I created due to the tip of the puffy paint bottle not behaving properly. I am going to get a fine tip liner bottle and try again to see if I am able to get better results.
Intro: The start of a new month... and the start of a new challenge: 29 Faces! A challenge started by Ayala... it is held every February and September. The goal is to draw, illustrate, or paint 29 faces (yes that means those dreadful portraits) and have them completed by the end of the month. Some artists work on really detailed and time-consuming faces and thus cannot complete 29 faces in one month... but there are no set rules saying that you have to complete that many.
February 2017: So for the month of February 2017, I'll be working on portraits as well. I have had a similar project come up in the past that after not much activity ended up at a standstill. I am going to bring that back up once again to see if I can get two birds with one stone. I have a list of friends who have already signed up (eons ago) to have their portraits done by me..and the invitation is still open to everyone. If I do not get to your portrait this month then I'll get to it in September...so do let me know if you want to help me by being a model. You can send me an image to work with as that works out best... due to location differences it can be difficult to do live modeling but we can attempt it. You can read about it all on my dA journal. I'll be posting my works for this challenge on here once a week... you can keep tabs by selecting the #29faces category on this blog. My theme: There is already a theme set as it is about faces but I wanted to get more specific... I have previously done portraits in pencils...colored pencils and pens so this time I am going to focus on watercolor. I am going to put my Strathmore Visual Journal to use by filling it up with these 29 portraits. Who knows...if I feel inspired enough I might switch over to some acrylic portraits...maybe even oil paint (I have doubts about oil paint). I am going to stick to postcard sized canvas to try out portraits on a smaller scale. I do not think I am yet ready for ATC sized ones but perhaps when the challenge happens again in September I might be ready. References: for those needing references feel free to browse Paint My Photo. I am going to be referring to PMP when I run out of requests. There is also a whole thread focused on free-source reference photograph websites on ATCsForAll. Check that out if you need more references. Do share links to where you are going to be posting if you are participating in the challenge! Intro: I had previously created 12 twinchies for this series (Valentine 2017 Series) and decided I wanted to create a few ATCs while the season is still around I'll be re-porting these two ATCs when I upload new ATCs in this series. What I created: I just wanted to share these while I could (before I forget). I wanted to try a new technique which I used in the "Board Hearts" ATC. I simply used watercolor to paint the background and then created designs in marker on top once it was dry. On a separate sheet I used watercolor to just lay down a bunch of pinks and reds with no intention to create a pattern. Once that dried up I cut it into strips (0.20"x3.0"). I then laid them down and drew a heart shape onto the strips...which I then cut and glued on the background. I really liked this idea that I used... I am thinking about creating some collage pieces with this technique. The second ATC was a combination of two Valentine themed sugar cookies that I saw on Google. they were depicting Charlie Chaplin and Marilyn Monroe but I decided to combine them together to create my own version of a poster that I really like: Further thoughts: I think the trick that I used to create a double layer for the "Board Hearts" could be quite useful in coming up with my own unique "style" so to speak. I am going to continue making ATCs and other sized art for this series so I'll post them upon completion. These two cards are currently available for trade (view their status).
I already have signed up for a few more swaps with themes all across the board: animals, songbirds holidays, and so on. i'll post those ATCs once I complete them. I am also preparing for the #29face challenge that start in February (just around the corner). Intro: I decided to start creating art for two separate series of my own: Skyscapes and Whimsical Landscape. I was recently requested to participate in personal trades that required me to create a nature themed ATC that could include trees or animals or just landscapes.
What I created: I ended up making two ATCs that have trees in them (both inspired by simple Smartphone Emoji) and a third ATC depicting a sunset with birds flying. I liked the idea and decided that I needed to keep these two themes going in the future and thus added all three cards to series. All three were created using the typical watercolor paint with detailing in Le Pen marker and a white gel pen. Be sure to see more art from these two series in the future as I have already gotten requests for more cards to be made in both series. Trade status: All three have been traded upon uploading to ATCsForAll. Intro: I decided to use the rest of the page that I created my works for the Valentine Twinchies Swap. I ended up making eight more twinchies and three domino tiles.
What I created: The twinchies continue the theme of Valentine's Day and hearts from the swap. I used Valentine themed cookies as inspiration for the hearts that I made. I also created rose flowers on three small sections that were left over (1"x2"). I have been wanting to dedicate art to the Beauty and the Beast story from Disney for a few months now but just could not come up with what to create. Seeing as I had practiced making a rose using a tiny brush already on one of the twinchies I decided to create just that... the rose given by the evil fairy in the story. Because I already had three tiles that I randomly put down gradient colors on I decided to paint the same rose in different colors on the other two. The hearts are a continuous part of the Valentine 2017 Series as I might still continue to make more art with that theme. Note: All of these are currently available for trading/swaps except for the red rose tile. I might end up using a few of these to create a cover page for a journal but in the meantime everything is available. Domino Tiles: A little bit about Domino Tiles... First here is an example of domino tile art found on Etsy. When referring to domino tiles it can mean work created right on top of a normal domino tile or a tile that is domino tile sized. The dimensions should be 1"x2" in order for it to be considered as a domino tile. Some artists even complete a collection and create Domino Books. I'll be writing more about this when I create a Domino Book of my own but for the moment I leave you with just this information. Feel free to Google Domino Books if you want to know more about them. YouTube also has tutorials on making them too. Intro: My first twinchies were created as part of the Valentine Twinchies Swap. These are 2"x2" as the name states.
What I created: I made 4 twinchies for this swap - one for the host as a gift and three for the actual swap. All of them were done in watercolor with details added on using a white gel pen, Le Pen marker, and Puffy Bead Paint. All four have been mailed off...now waiting on my swaps. Intro: I participated in a swap called Animal Play ABC. Currently the first the letters of the alphabet were focused...with plans for the future to continue doing swaps till we have the entire alphabet complete.
What I created: I made three cards as required for the swap plus an extra as a gift to for the host. All of the cards were done in watercolor, with Le Pen marker and a white gel pen used to add the finishing touches. The animal/card details in order:
Intro: The second ATC swap that I have participated in has a bit of historical theme - Moulin Rouge. The Moulin Rouge Swap is open to all media and had no real hard rules... just the typical ones that all swaps have.
What I created: It was a challenge in picking exactly what subjects to choose for the cards... I ended up painting 2 different Can Can Girls and the famous Moulin Rouge Structure which looks like a windmill. Again I used watercolor to paint the basics... then finished off with Prismacolor Colored Pencils and Le Pen marker. Final thoughts: I honestly think I need to invest in a marker that has a really fine tip...this fine tip is not fine enough. Creating the details like the features of the face was difficult as the line was too thick. I am not even sure if I want to spend time editing any of these cards... I feel like just creating more cards with this theme and perhaps trying different markers. Again details on these cards can be viewed at any of my 2 galleries that I post actively in along with better quality images. Intro: my first ATC swap!!! I participated in the BEES Knees Swap on ATCsForAll and created 3 ATCs - as required.
What I created: The theme was bees... there has to be at least one bee on the card and the media is unlimited. As long as the card can fit in a penny sleeve it works! I wanted to create something childish so for one of the cards I created a "pop art" type of background with greens and yellows. Then I painted small bees scattered around on the card. I even went in and added pathlines for the bees to give it more of a childish look. For the other two cards I wanted to actually spend some time painting an actual bee...and in a way get comfortable with the shape and form of a bee. All three ATCs were created by first painting in watercolor then adding on details where needed with Prismacolor Colored pencils and Le Pen fine tip marker. I have a link to my ATCsForAll gallery as well as my DeviantArt gallery in the Author section of my blog as buttons. Feel free to browse. |
Author: RejiI used to be a digital artist but switched back to traditional art as I feel more connected with the art I create this way. Currently, I create art whenever I can for art trades and commissions. I have worked with clay (earth clay to modern forms like Polymer, Sculpey, even Air Dry clay) along with watercolors, acrylics, oil paints, pastels, charcoal, pen and pencil drawings, India ink, Chinese Colors, wires, felt fabric, yarn, weaving, basket making, and the list goes on and on. I am currently working on exploring nail art, make-up, dress making, scrapbooking, and small canvas art. Archives
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