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Yesterday, sitting at the very tippy top edge of the sailboat...feeling the air move around me, feeling the sun kiss my toes, feeling the cold water splash up onto me...I felt complete. Peace.
Pet Blessings, etc.
I have started working on my new store (again). I promise I will get it up and running soon. I will sell prints of caged bird and pet blessing (I'm glad you liked it)! I am facing my fears of paypal...I just feel like it's so complicated. Probably because I've not dived in completely yet. So I guess I have to do that. Why am I so scared of it? Lots of people do this all the time!
Anyway, the pet blessing image came from a story Colin and I covered for Nuvo Newsweekly. They sent us to cover the pet blessing ceremony at a local church. And of course, we took our dog Vince to have him blessed. He liked it especially because he got a snausage afterwards. hee... We met lots of sweet dogs...some dressed up for the occasion by wearing pearls.
Dogs in pearls. Can't beat that.
Oh, and Kelly asked if there was anything local going on. Well, Kelly...yes! Lots! All the time! For starts: Silver in the City has a bunch of my stuff up (including a few prints as of this afternoon)! You can check that out.
Also, ArtHouse 60 will be hanging a few of my paintings this weekend. (I took pictures and put them in the gallery section of this site). I'm not sure when the big opening is yet. I'll letcha know.
And, last but not least, June 3rd is the Big Car paper hanging show opening. I'll find out more about that and post it later. What I know so far is that it's all unframed art. I'm one of four artist participating. Should be fun!
Have a great Memorial Day weekend everyone!
Awestruck
God bless your little hearts. Everyone who bought a print today...I want to thank you. I want to hug each one of you (except if you're a boy, then you get a sturdy handshake and maybe that guy nod thing). They sold out in one day! I don't know if it's because you like my work that much, or if it's because you wanted to support the ASPCA...maybe a combination of both.
In any case. Thank you. So much. You all made my day. And I'm sure there are some little fuzzy paws giving you a wave, too. :)
Print for Sale!!
I am very pleased to announce that Tiny Showcase is selling one of my favorite pieces on their site this week. You can buy a print of Caged Bird for only $12.00. (So cheap!)
I am donating all my proceeds to the The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. The ASPCA provides effective means for the prevention of cruelty to animals throughout the US, offering programs in humane education, public awareness, government advocacy, shelter support, animal medical services and placement.
So not only are you getting a great piece of art (for cheap!), you can feel good about helping a little animal have a better life.
Go buy one now!
My mom came down this weekend to help me with my yard. You see, she is a greenery guru. She can whip the ugliest yards into spa like settings. She turns every place into a sanctuary where you want to be. Just be. And I think on this particular trip she had an ulterior motive. I think when she said she wanted to come help me, she meant with more than just the yard...she wanted to help me let go.
And she did.
Yesterday I was the dirtiest I've ever been. I even had dirt in my ears. (no, I'm not kidding.) I let go of all the stress I've been under lately and just dug in. Hard work. Sweat. A little blood. And it was gone. All my stress and my worries about my life and my career seemed to sink into the grass with the muddy water. It disappeared. I feel healthier. I feel stronger. I feel really really tired. :)
Together we built a place where I can retreat. Two adirondack chairs face a large fountain built from an old fire pit. The sound of the water helps me feel centered. And there are flowers all around (which forces me to twice a day take time out to water).
Mom, if this was your little scheming plan to get me to be less of a workaholic, it worked. Thank you....
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note: the above illustration is my impression of running water...and also my submission for this week's Illustration Friday theme: Aquatic.
Illustration Friday: Nourishment
The other day I overheard someone say "Not kill two birds with one stone...nourish two birds with one worm!" And the illustration popped right into my head. All I needed to do was create it.
Last night I had this dream that I was standing in front of three people sitting down before me. They were all milky white in color and transparent, kind of like ghosts. I could see the chair through them. I wasn't scared of them. It wasn't a scary dream. I was very calm.
I looked down at them and noticed that each of them was me. Three of me sitting in the chairs. I had to decide which chair I wanted. Which chair I would sit down in and fill in that milky me. When I decided I sat down on her lap. I sank down and merged with the transparent me, forming an opaque colorful me. Then I woke up...It was very strange.
I wonder if it means anything...
I am so excited about this!
I've never been to San Francisco before!
Above illustration by Michael Mabry
This is what I would look like if I were an antelope.
(illo dedicated to Keri and Kate who picked me up today and made me laugh.)
I got it all chopped off today. It was bugging me. Took too long to dry. I have super thick hair. It's kind of ridiculous actually. Colin also has ridiculously thick hair. We joke that instead of having a baby, we will have a rhino (because you know, rhino horns are are made of stiff matted hair, not of bone like the horns of other animals). Our little rhino baby.
Inspired by the song "Let Go" by Frou Frou. Listen to it real loud. Make the windows shake. It will make you cry.
Q/A, part two
Danna Asks:
Do people stare at you alot because of your height and what do they ask?
Yep. I am forever catching people looking at my face and then watch their eyes immediately stroll down to my feet to see if I have heels on or not. It doesn't bother me, though. I love being tall. I wouldn't trade it.
I am always asked if I play basketball. And the answer is no. I stink at basketball. I played volleyball in high school though. I got the bad thumbs and messed up knees to prove it, too.
Yesterday I did a bad thing. I went to the post office at quarter till 3. Big mistake. I know, because I've done it before. You see, when you get to the post office at that time you get stuck by a bajillion busses that are taking kids home from school. I counted yesterday. Twenty-eight. (side note: they all only had like 5 kids in them...didn't seem like the most economical way to bring kids home. Is this what my tax money is paying for?) Twenty eight busses all stopping at the tracks right outside the post office takes a long time. At least this time I had my sketch book with me.
* * * * * * * * *
A couple of things I've been doing:
I've been working with Jill Sobule on some animations for her site. The second one is not quite done, but it's looking pretty cool so far. I had to draw cars, too. I stink at drawing cars. But I think these turned out okay. I gave up on trying to make them perfect...Check it out!
Also Dress for Success Indianapolis chose me as their Woman Artist of the Year. So I get to do a painting for their big event called "Stepping Out in Style". The idea behind the painting is pumps and purses. I have my sketches done and approved. I can't wait to start this painting. It's gonna be great!
Colin and I covered Art vs. Art last weekend for Nuvo Newsweekly. It was an art competition where art was destroyed brutally if it was beaten out by another piece. It was a lot of fun. Lots of chaos. I did this illustration for it:
If you're in Indy, pick up a Nuvo and read Colin's article. It's awesome. He's a brilliant writer (and I'm not saying that because I married him...he just is.) Oh and check out my illo in print. If you are not in Indy, you should read it anyway. Click here!
Q/A
Wendy asks:
How did you finally decide to give up the safe job and become an illustrator?
I was first introduced to illustration when I worked in advertising. As an Art Director, I would get giant glossy books in the mail with all the latest illustration. I would get postcards and ingenious little mailers designed to capture my attention. Anything I liked would earn a space on my bulletin board...maybe someday I could use it for something. And occasionally I would. I'd hire illustrators for specific projects, and it always thrilled me. I loved using the illustrator's brain to solve problems.
But I also drew. I went to college for fine art. Have been drawing for ages. So I started hiring myself to illustrate things instead of hiring someone outside the agency (my reasoning was that it saved the client money). I did some Steak n Shake schoolbook covers with fun illustrations. I illustrated storyboards for TV spots. I loved to concept for ads, using sketches and drawing to show my ideas. I started to be the person my coworkers would come to if they needed any drawing. And I loved it. I would love sitting at the table in the middle of the agency with my pens and colored pencils, just drawing and sketching out ideas.
All that drawing paired with all those glossy postcards got me to thinking..."Hey, why don't I do illustration, instead of advertising?". But I thought it was a pipe dream. How do you break into a new field? I knew illustration from only one perspective. I didn't know if I had what it took to compete. I didn't know what to do to change my career.
So I took baby steps.
I put the word out that I could draw for hire. And some of my friends and some acquaintances took me up on it. I did some illustrated books for mothers-to-be gifts. I drew invitations. I made greeting cards for other people. It was enough to make me decide that illustration is what I wanted to do full time.
And by that time I had a little portfolio built up from all the stuff I was doing on the side. So I threw together a website one weekend. And I did two careers for a while. I was doing advertising during the day. And I'd come home at night and work on all my illustration projects (some for friends, and some for brave souls who hired me at first). I was exhausted. It's hard to concentrate on two things and give both all of yourself. So eventually it came down to chance.
Was I brave enough to risk my wonderful, fun and growing career in advertising for my crack-pot idea of illustration? Was I okay with giving up regular pay checks? No 401k? No benefits? Hanging out all day with all my witty friends in the business?
I didn't know. And it was really scary. I thought and thought. I am positive I drove my husband crazy talking about the possibilities constantly. (Sorry 'bout that Colin. You were a trooper.)
And it eventually came down to "now or never". If I didn't do it, I would always think back on it and hate myself for not taking a chance. For not being brave. And I just couldn't live with that. Plus, if I really thought about it, what was the worst that could happen? I could go broke, be hungry and be forced to get a job in advertising again. So what was I really losing by not risking it. Right?
So one day I decided to do it. I'd just had my review. I was moving up. And I knew it was time before I chickened out and did the safe thing.
I quit to pursue this dream. And I have not looked back once. It just keeps getting better and better.
Illustration Friday: Mischief
Thank you for all the questions! You can keep asking if you have more... I'll start answering them in the next writing post. For now, I did this week's illustration Friday topic early. When I thought of mischief I thought of a mischevious little snail who tried to win the race by strapping on a jet pack. Dirty little devil. hee...
For some reason lately I am feeling self-conscious about journaling. Like I'm not really saying anything of interest to you. And I don't know if that should matter to me...should I be talking to an audience? Or just to myself? I don't know... The word journal implies that it's for me...my thoughts. But I really like talking to you. I like your feedback. I like the emails of encouragement and the kind words you say in my comments. I like to check out what your sites are all about when you leave comments. But I'm feeling weird lately. Hard to explain I guess.
So I thought I'd take a little break from pouring out my thoughts for a spell. Instead, I thought I would just ask you what you'd like to know. Do you have any questions for me? Anything you'd like to know more about?
You can ask questions in the comments or just email me. And I'll try to answer them till my self-consciousness has lifted.
p.s. Thank you for your compliments on the new site! I'm glad you dig it!
Doc said not to get out of bed. So I redid my site. The blue was giving me the blues...
I also added a bunch of new stuff to the portfolio...All the stuff I've been busy working
on lately. Let me know if you find any glitches!
Well, it finally happened. I missed an Illustration Friday. I am trying
not to feel bad about it because I can only do so much. I always
think I can do everything. I always say "yes". But I'm starting to
realize that I can't. This week I am still swamped with client work
(knock on wood). And I find myself really sick again. I have croup.
I think I'm the only adult I know of who gets croup. (I had it a lot
as a child, and I guess I'm just still susceptible to it.) So, I'm sitting
here wrapped in a blanket with vick's vapor rub slathered under my
nose, trying to feel better and trying not to feel guilty. Ugh.
But I'd like to give you some good stuff to check out till I feel better...
This is taken directly from the last newsletter I sent:
Need some inspiration? I have just the thing. "In the Realms of the
Unreal". It's a movie showing in different arts theaters. (Or you can
just check out the website...but it's no substitute for seeing it in person.)
It's about a poor recluse named Henry Darger. He didn't have much
going for him in his outer life...he was a poor, simple janitor who spoke
to no one. But his inner life was a very rich one. He created
heart-breakingly beautiful paintings, wrote epic stories about characters
he made up, and got lost in his own world of art. He didn't show anyone.
They only discovered his space when he died. His small apartment filled
to the brim with pastels and watercolors, photo references he snipped
out of newspapers, reams of butcher paper... A whole world waiting
and sleeping till it was time to be found.
The film does a really good job of animating his paintings. Children
with elaborate butterfly wings fly around, dragons with rabbit faces
slither through the sky, trees sway in the wind. It's so dream-like
and fluid.
I left the theater feeling like the whole world was just little bits of
wonder waiting to be pieced together into art. I just had to get off
my duff and do something about it.
So, please see the movie. You'll love it.
Click here to see the website: In the Realms of the Unreal
One of the paintings I will be selling at Silver in the City Friday:
I named the dog Francis McSwah.
Pardon the short notice...
This Friday I am part of two shows going on in Indianapolis.
One is at Silver in the City on Mass Ave. It is one of the venues participating
in the Spring Gallery Walk. I have a huge wall there (thanks, Kristin!). So come
see me and while you're there check out all the goodies for your apartment
at the store. Yum!
The second is in Fountain Square at Big Car. It's a new group that promotes
lots of different kind of art: writing, visual art and performance art... Really
cool group. Really cool venue. Come see the piece I have there!
Friday night is actually a really big night for the arts in Indy. The IDADA
gallery shuttle tour lets you park your car at one gallery, then just ride the
free shuttle to all the different galleries in the city. So much fun taking in
all the art. A great way to be inspired! Come play!
Wow, the anniversary road trip was incredible. We visited wineries,
went caving, stayed in a charming B&B, watched the sun set over
the trees, went hiking... More than I even hoped for. I did a little
illustrated interpretation of the trip if you're interested:
Just click here!
It's funny how stepping away from day to day life can give you some
much needed perspective. Things seem shaper and more manageable.
I'll try to write more on that later. But now I gotta check the zillion and
four emails in my inbox.
Hope your weekend was blissful!
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© Penelope Illustration. Stealing
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