the Fib-Sniffer 4000

Wow! I've been digging through my closets today in search of artwork I can sell..... and I found this guy! This is my very first official clay illustration. It was for an advanced Illustration class at Kent State in Spring of '01, so nearly 10 years! It looks so.... primitive. :~)

Those hands make me laugh! ...and how my businessman is flat, with his mouth completely punched out. Those lights around the border are glow-in-the-dark.

I'll keep practicing & see how things look in another 10 years!

Polymer Clay Cactus Gardens!

Hello! Look what I did yesterday :~)


I'm preparing for my first outdoor art show next week, and I decided I needed something fun to sell that doesn't go on the wall. These little polymer clay cactus gardens are fun to arrange & re-arrange..... I'm thinking of setting a fixed price & letting people pick out their favorite 5 or 6 cactus components?


Close up of the rounds.


Plenty to choose from!


I've made the bottoms all pointy nubs; easy to stick in a little pot full of sand. (or grits, or lentils....)


I'd love any feedback on these! Should I sell the pieces individually? ...or pre-arrange the pots?
My first show should be quite the learning experience ;~)

Spot Illustrations

Well hello! Here are 4 of 6 spot illustrations I've just completed for Cleveland Magazine. It's for an article discussing private schools, and places where learning actually takes place.
This one is "The Great Outdoors."


"At School." I tried to keep these pretty simple, as they'll be printed somewhat small...


"Beyond Borders."


"In the Workplace."


.....here's how the sketch phase looks!

Clay/Art News!

Hey!
I got to meet one of my all-time favorite illustrators, Chris Sickels of Red Nose Studio.

It's so inspiring meeting other clay artists!!!
Red Nose Blog
Red Nose Studio.com


Me being cheesy. (...Is that an autographed Look Book you're holding?)


ALSO:

I've signed up for Art in the Park! (I'll get the official word in about a week....cross your fingers!) It's a huge outdoor art/craft show in northern Kentucky, and I've been preparing & framing my polymer sculptures to *hopefully* sell.


....and finally, here's the next step in my illustration. Still tweaking things a bit. Final + spots due Monday!

Have a good weekend ;~)

Clay in Progress!

Here's what I'm currently working on! Part of a full-page illustration for a magazine article about schools, and where learning actually takes place. This is a fancy, fancy private high school in Hudson, Ohio.

I'll post the finals soon!

Sketching away....

Working on a Tshirt design! This is cut out from a sheet of freezer paper..... I wonder if this design has waay too many tiny little details for spray paint! ???


A page in the life of my sketchbook. A full-page spread + 6 spots all due this Thursday! I'm looking forward to showing you those finals. ;~) OK--back to work!

Colonel Windpipe!

Hello, all!

A friend sent me a link to this fun Flickr illustration group:
Colonel Windpipe Needs You!

This is my entry! (It's going to be part of a large printed poster with proceeds going to charity.)
It struck me in a creatively-inspired groove ;~)

Edgar Allan Poe Progress!

We're getting somewhere! This is about 7 hours of sculpting. (...and a terrible snapshot!)

Edgar Allan Poe.

A personal piece in the making! (inspired by my most recent trip to SC.)

...two pages of brainstorming in my sketchbook. I want to show Poe writing 'the Gold-Bug' on Sullivan's Island.





Here's a more finalized sketch. Still a few things to tweak here & there, but I think I'm ready to begin with clay....

Polymer Space.

Here's what my desk looks like tonight:


I'd like to blog my polymer life more often than I have been, so it looks like you'll be getting more 'in progress' views!
This is the start of an outer space scene. Nothing like a deadline to get me moving! ;~)

Right-hand corner: my trusty-rusty pasta machine.

Dinosaur Study!

A dinosaur study for a proposed project. This took me about 2 hours.
Love, love, love dinosaurs!


I've been adding some chalk pastel to my clay creations lately after they're come out of the oven. I'm digging the new look!

Begin Within

A recent commissioned piece. Polymer clay and chalk pastel on a (homemade!) wooden frame.

Figure Drawing in Chalk.

Yup, I'm on a serious CHALK fix right now! This is from my figure drawing group tonight. I'm pleased with the figure, annoyed by the overworked/fussy chair + cloth! I need to learn 'less is more' in my drawings, but that will come with practice. That's the whole point, right? Flexing the brain ever so slowly :~)


Here's where the group meets: MANIFEST
I feel creative just walking in that room!

Cluck.

Looking through my sketchbook..... found a little Trader Joe's humor ;~)

Garlic Study

A personal piece. This is chalk pastel on wood panel.

Cherry Blossoms in Cut Paper

Not feeling very well today--but not bad enough to be in bed-- so I broke out the DVD's and Xacto blade! I had found a plastic + wire faux tree branch at Hobby Lobby recently.... time to transform it!

Amazing what a few cuts and folds can do to paper...


...now I have a cherry blossom branch for my bathroom :~)


**You know, paper crafts definitely help an upset stomach....

Spaceman Progress....

About an hour.5 of progress...............

the Start of a Spaceman...

Here's the start of a book cover illo!

Welcome, Little Peanuts!

Just finished this piece for a friend of mine. She had twin boys, and their nursery is all decked out in elephants (...only with their trunks UP--that's good luck, she says.)
PS: I hope you're not checking my blog, Vanessa! You don't get this until Thursday.

If you know me, you know I love making EPIC blog posts showing my creative process! Enjoy.....


Here's the basic sketch I settled on. I got really frustrated just sketching new layouts, so I cut out each of the elements I wanted to work with & taped them into new positions on the page until I was happy with it all.


My collection of wool roving. I wish they'd sell more colors. (This is 100% wool, basically right off the sheep...cleaned & dyed.)


This is where it all starts! Poking the wool with that barbed needle forms it into sturdy shapes. ( Similar idea to dreadlocks?) I poked my fingertips way too many times doing this >:~o


Connecting shapes together....


...creates a basic elephant.


Next day! Here's my Mama elephant.


Seeing how they will look inside their frame. I've added more colors of wool & beads for eyes.


Sculpting little peanuts from polymer clay! I originally wanted to use real peanuts, but couldn't find any for sale with shells. ???


Placing all the elements together.


Starting to cut my banner.


Gluing down letters. (Not fun!)


The finished banner.


Cut baby names. Should I leave them in the negative or back them with another color?


Gluing foam-core and cardboard to the backs of those hearts so they'll have a tiny bit of dimension.


The finished piece! (Sadly, I made the sculpt too thick to fit behind the frame's glass. Oh well, skip the glass. Just the frame.)


A close up.


Close up of the Airedale!


.....and now I get to clean up my messy desk.

Hope you enjoyed the process!
~Paula P.