This was an assignment for my conceptual illustration class. We chose an article and then had to conceptually illustrate the issue. The article I chose is about protecting animals. The animal humane society is trying to pass a law to make it illegal to sell puppies, kitties, or other animals out of parking lots or on our own. They want to pass this law to protect the animal because so many pets purchased this way are brought to the vet with diseases or other problems, and without knowing the animals origin the vet cannot always help.
At the same time however, if it is illegal to sell animals as the AHS is trying to prohibit, this won't stop people from letting their pets breed. This only means people will have to find some other way to get rid of the animal which in the end doesn't protect the animal at all.

Happy Valentines Day!

I've been really bad at posting since school started back up after the Holiday Break. I'm in a conceptual illustration class this semester which is all new for me. I've only ever done narrative illustration. It's interesting thinking conceptually and trying to create an image with deep meaning hidden behind metaphors. These keys are a part of our first assignment. Each key has to represent a different mood. We had to choose from the following list: Humor/Levity, Foreboding, Despair, Age/Decay, Rebirth, Loneliness, Authority, and Trustworthiness. We could only use angle, color, and perspective to show our meaning...no other objects. Can you guess which ones are which?

And the answer is....#1 Foreboding.  #2  Humor/Levity. #3 Decay. #4 Loneliness

Christmas card for Trent

So I made Trent an awesome Christmas card...well, I love it (and I think he did too :) ) Here are some pictures of it. It opens to show presents in his belly and then opens again to the actual card. Don't try to read what I wrote on it and be all snoopy though because that was for Trent's eyes only so you won't be able to see anything anyways :)

Round 3

Here a few paintings from the final round for my head painting class. I had to do 18 for this round but only a couple are here:

3 bears

This was an assignment for Digital Painting. We had to do something with the '3 bears'. Because it was getting close to Christmas I wanted to do something in the spirit of the season.

End of School

The semester is finally over! There was a lot of work this semester so I am so glad for the Christmas Break. Anyways, here's some stuff I've done this semester. Most of my classes were study classes so we spent the entire semester practicing. Here you go:
Head Painting:
These are all speed painting except for the self portrait

This was from the first 1/3 of the semester

  

 Final Project:

Some practices from Round 2 the 2/3:

History of Illustration:
      Our assignment in this class was to choose an artist and create a piece of art copying that artists style and method. I chose to do Carl Spitzweg. Spitzweg is a romantic German artist who creates pieces showing everyday life with charming characters. Here's is my project:

Presidential Campaign 2012

My latest digital painting assignment was to create a piece representing something about the then upcoming election in one of about 5 different styles. I chose to depict the debt of our economy in Surrealism. It seems like we're always looking for a candidate who can pull our nation out of debt, but we're always using so much money that it never stacks up, we just keep losing money. 

Scccrroooogggeee!!1

It's mid October--and what's after Halloween? Thanksgiving. And what's after Thanksgiving???Christmas!!!!

Yeah, yeah I know it's way too early for Christmas stuff, but...in my digital painting class we are illustrating the Christmas Carol which we are going to compile and put on ibooks for free! So anyone who wants a free ibook of the Christmas Carol with super awesome illustrations can have it--for FREE! Anyway, we have to do the work early so there's time for it to go through the whole process of being published. I'm not 100% sure how it works but I think it might not be ready until next Christmas...oh well, that gives you something to look forward to for an entire year. So...yes, you are welcome for making your dreams come true.

The scene I illustrated for the Christmas Carol is of the third Spirit.

The Last of The Spirits

The Phantom slowly, gravely, silently approached. When it came, Scrooge bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery.

It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. But for this it would have been difficult to detach its figure from the night, and separate it from the darkness by which it was surrounded.

He felt that it was tall and stately when it came beside him, and that its mysterious presence filled him with a solemn dread. He knew no more, for the Spirit neither spoke nor moved.

"I am in the presence of the Ghost of Christmas Yet To Come?' said Scrooge.

The Spirit answered not, but pointed onward with its hand.

'You are about to show me shadows of the things that have not happened, but will happen in the time before us,' Scrooge pursued. 'Is that so, Spirit?'

The upper portion of the garment was contracted for an instant in its folds, as if the Spirit had inclined its head. That was the only answer he received.

--Charles Dickens

So...drum roll please.....

Gallery of Terror

Uvu is doing a gallery of terror show on the 5th floor of the library. This piece is done in photoshop.

Villians

This is the first assignment from my digital painting class. We had to choose a villian and illustrate them in Photoshop, Illustrator, or Corel Painter. Since I've never really painted much with any, I chose photoshop. My villian is Andrea Yates. She is a mother who drowned her 5 children in the bathtub. It's a tragic story so if you're too kind hearted don't read on. Otherwise....
Andrea suffered from post pardum depression (depression after having a baby). She tried to commit suicide a ton! and finally was told by her doctor to quit having children. Andrea and her husband new this preacher that told them to live in a bus for awhile (which would not help the depression). I don't know what religion they were a part of, but she got pretty intense about it. Family and friends had said it was scary how tightly she'd clung to each of the preachers words.  Her husband convinced her to have their 5th child which pushed her over the edge. The doctors instructed the husband not to leave Andrea alone with the kids. She was unstable and it was unsafe, but her husband believed that a person in depression just needed a kick in the pants to get out of it. So he started leaving her alone an hour a day. He'd leave an hour before her mom (or his mom...i can't remember) came over to watch her. It was then, one day, that Andrea drowned her five children. She was taught by her preacher that a 'bad mother who's going to hell will bear bad children who will go to hell". Personally, I think Andrea was a victim to her psychosis, but it doesn't change what was done. After she drowned her children she tucked them all into bed.

This painting is done from the point of the view of the bed as Andrea brings in the last child from the bathroom. 

Bride

I did this drawing probably a year ago. I loved the idea of her mascara dripping from her eyelashes (that's how I feel, if not every girl, when they cry and are wearing makeup ). When I did the original sketch I had the proportions to her body all wrong! And her dress was tattered:

Original Sketch

So I used the same idea with her face and makeup but gave her a real wedding dress. It's pretty fun playing around with Photoshop! Lemme know what you think! :)

Carnival

This is the first painting I've ever done in photoshop. It was fun to do, but a problem I noticed with digital painting: Because I can zoom in I do a ton of detail only to find out when I zoom out that you can't even see it. That was good to learn though since this painting was just for practice and now I know for all the other digital paintings I do.

I have been wanting to do this piece for so long! but I kept having problems transferring it and then I'd get too busy with school, but here it finally is. It's a painting of my nephew that I did for my sister. 2 years ago she knew I wanted to work on it, but it's been so long that she'd forgotten. So, I painted it in secret and made a print for her. Now I think I'm going to have to do one of all her kids so no one's left out ;)

Contest

Check it out! Great artist!  http://mrtoastedtoast.blogspot.com/2012/08/win-poster.