day 4

(actually this happened yesterday cause i have to do it first to be able to show you all) i am laying in more of the background, and trying to develop the other ducks, i can't find the reference picture i was referring to for lillianna (at the top) so i have to bring my drawing to the computer screen and draw off that -----this part is now pretty slow... i am filling in the gaps in the background

i am liking how it appears to swirl around with the darks and lights, i even like the heavy darks at the bottom center, as to my eye it is giving it weight and a base, or some gravity, which makes sense to my eye.

i like how the leaf forms sort of sweep into the curves of the ducks, and i am thinking that the dark and light balance is good. i am thinking that momma at the bottom pops at you. what do you all think?

you know, this whole take a digital picture really really has helped my work, as i can see fast how it's going to look printed, and also i can step back and see the actual bones of it.

the other cool thing is i can flop an image.....which is FANTASTIC for seeing what i've done in a fresh way, plus i can see area's that could be a problem, like momma's beak right now, i have to extend that dark area in front of her beak down quite a bit for it to work right, and most likely also over so the end of the dark is sort of UNDERNEATH her head and neck, i wouldn't have noticed it if i hadn't flopped the image (we used to use mirrors, and look at the work in a mirror) i am also thinking that it is 'atmosphery' (is that a word?) it's sort of dark and shadowy which is a good way to show you fear, right? aren't we afraid of what we can't quite see? of the unknown? i also like the fact that the monsters don't really have a lot of depth, because these are unfounded but really immediate fears for the ducks--- now this all came out, i didn't totally decide this ahead of time.. it sort of developed as the drawing did and i liked it so i pushed it that way. (and if my art school instructors ever hear this they most likely will either drop dead, or roll in their graves... cause this is called 'how not to do a commercial illustration')

now, yesterday at one point i was just bored with dots, and took a bit of a break- but that could have been because i was transferring the baby budgies to the new cage......which is like us living in a 10,000. square foot house...........they were lost for a while....
ok quick aside, budgie baby update: i rigged the two cages sort of together with the doors open......so that they could get into the new cage, and yet not get loose in the studio.

i put their favorite toys in the new one.......... and their food bowl in the new cage on the door...mrs fezziwig (the little piglet) went in first.......and started to eat, which naturally got captain cuttle interested, he was hanging upside down in the old cage with his head in the food dish of the NEW cage....pigging out......he finally went in-------------then they sat there like budgie statues........i played budgie videos for them to chirp to, which they did

i went about my business and while i was drawing in the late afternoon, they decided that the new cage wouldn't EAT budgies and started to chirp, then play, then pig out on the huge spray of millet.....(they ate the WHOLE THING) then preen etc

so i guess they are now mostly adjusted, they won't go down to the bottom of their cage, but that's ok for now. they will eventually, and i am in no hurry for them to, until i get a good seed catcher down around there and put some small tree branches in the center. meanwhile they have two good apple branches and a comfy perch, grape root perch, swing......wooden tree toys...---in other words a very comfortable budgie home.

ok back to the drawing board, i am remembering to take enough breaks, actually this type of illustration makes you, as your eyes start to swim. i need to get back to the art supply store, i need more of the disposable technical pens, especially the finest point(nib)

i could use some stuff that acts like treated acetate, which is a clear overlay, that you can draw and paint on, the mediums don't crawl or flake off, this new sheet is archival and doesn't get funny with age like the acetate does, so i want some for overlays

*** this picture has a protector sheet over it so the oils in my hand won't dirty the surface, you can also see the color charts i made for the inktense i use, and the storyboard***

i am also wondering if instead of watercolor i should go with pointillism for the color work? that would also be something i would work out on the clear overlay. i am no seurat and i don't really LIKE doing the pointillism for color work but it would work with the black and whites for this.... or i could try color washes over the ink, but do them on the overlay, they would have to be color separated at the printer anyway so that may work.

right now the point is to do a body of work, have fun, experiment a bit, limber up my hand/eye... and see how far i can push the envelope.

see how exciting i can make the images, or how interesting and different.

and try to play with how an audience (so to speak, a person who is looking at the drawings) sees the story.

now when i first learned about all this, it overwhelmed me, it took me time to grow around it.

but it's pretty cool now. now if only i could get the ducks to cooperate when i need to take a picture of them doing something duck like but from a weird angle.....like looking UP at them......that isn't easy you know....their legs are only about 3'' high.

now i didn't get as much done yesterday as i would have liked, as i had to do dishes, clean the kitchen a bit, bring in wood, bath the ducks and sweep the studio floor...plus i cleaned off my little white workbench

and i am making a sort of turkey thing for supper. it's cubed turkey left over from the 25# that i roasted in november and froze some, plus made broth and canned some... i make a sorta cream of turkey sauce and have mixed veggis in it with cheddar and the turkey and serve it over rice or something (baked potatoes are good too) tonight it will be over leftover rice

it's fast and bernie may be late..(ok tonight is going to be actually LAST night cause this will post tomorrow..) OH and i put together this post, and the pictures and all --- but i still didn't get the last of the laundry out of the washer as i can't reach it! so my dainties... (hahahaha think of cow dainties..... hahahahah) are still waiting for their turn in the suds, maybe i should have put them in with the ducks?

ps: catherine, there is a link to my dolls up at the top of my blog, it says 'gallery of my work'

someone posted them online a while ago, maybe....... 3 years ago apparently to a list or something i never did find out what list though