Regret

I've been told that sometimes when I do a sketch off of a reference photo or image, I'm too derivative. It's too obviously a copy. I've been told that I need to take the ref image as a starting point and do my own thing with it, tweak it and add more of myself into it. But usually if I pick a ref image there is something about it that speaks to me, an emotion, lighting, color that moves me to enjoy looking at it. And it is that that makes me want to replicate it. I want to capture for myself that which inspired me in the first place. So here it was her back. The long line if spine curving into the blackness of her dress. But I moved her. Twisted the shoulders, rotated the head, gave her an emotion that wasn't part of the original photograph. The emotion that I felt was best for her was regret. Sadness. A loss of something we as a viewer don't know, but can hopefully feel from her...

Maybe it works and maybe it doesn't. But I need to move on with my art, and though mimicry can help, it only helps to a point. I need to go beyond that. I need to find that well of unstopable images I had as a younger artist but with the skills the years have given me. Here's to hoping that that is what I am doing.

Enjoy.

Colored sketch of a doll

This sketch is based off a photograph of a hand made doll. She had a lot of beautiful coloring and materials and I loved the delicacy of her posing as well as the twist of the torso. I tried to capture as much as I could of the eclectic textures and colors while at the same time not loosing the feel of the paper and the colored pencils on it. I do know that I need to get back to doing more original pieces not based off other people's photograph and art, but I also feel that I haven't been doing enough general art on a consistent basis to feel comfortable doing that. Maybe I'm just scared (common enough in artist) and am using that as a crutch. But I do feel that skill wise I am getting better and I should try to incorporate a bit more my own "visions" into my art and not just repeat and repeat and repeat. When should the dancer stop basing her moves solely on choreographed work and start moving to the music on instinct?

I'm feeling crabby

And so should you. And snaily, a little jelly fishy.

Knitting, knitting and more knitting

I've been working on a couple more knitting projects. Trying to design a nice little crop top and more shrugs, since LA is too hot for proper sweaters, but I still gotta knit. This is the beginning of a sleeve for a crop top that will be knit in 2 sections sewn together off center in the front and back. There is a lot of math going on here, but I didn't want to make the same mistake I did for the previous shrug in which I had to frog the back portion at least 3 times since I didn't take notes, or stop and truly think about it while I was knitting. That one is still not perfect so I won't show it to you until after I "fix" it properly. Here's to hoping that I've learned something from the last one and this one is not only easier, but looks better as well. I may possibly type up the patterns of both of them, but I have to see if I like then first.

Haughty Taughty Woman

Another quick sketch. Trying to keep my hand in it so to speak.

Fish head

After an unfortunate water bottle accident I had to scrap my old sketchbook and start over. This is one of my first "doodles" in it. I like it. It's fun and a bit random.