Do What Makes You Wonder

This was a piece I created for my Graphic Illustration class but ended up not using. Though, I still love it a lot. The assignment was to find a magazine article and create an image for it, apply negative space somewhere in the design, then apply a layout to the image to make it look like it belonged to that magazine. The article I did end up choosing was one about the Mars rover Opportunity and her being shut down after 15 years of service. For this image, I was looking through different articles about anxiety but couldn’t find too many that related to what I was actually looking for. I wanted something that explained to others what anxiety was, what it felt like, what it looked like. That the reality of the matter was that it could look like anything- be anyone. I wanted to show that even though you looked happy outside, smiling and laughing, you could still be crying and incredibly upset on the inside. I also wanted to show some of the physical aspects that come along with anxiety and depression. Tear stained face, pink cheeks and nose, messy hair, raw and bloody lips, heavy purple bags under the eyes, etc. I’ve been struggling a bit on and off with anxiety through the semester so this was a bit of an emotional piece that I vented into, however, I still love how it came out. I like the colors, I like how I blended the colors together and layered them up. I haven’t used too much watercolor and I’m slowly starting to get used to more traditional forms of media, but I am getting better and I believe this really shows it. There’s still a lot of work I could do on it for sure, but for where I am I’m content.

What inspires you? For me, I find inspiration in the smallest of things. A pattern on a snails shell can turn into the background image or color palette for a character and the first 3 notes of a song can turn into and the entire story of cave delving and monsters. Inspiration can be found in a plethora of ways. What I take inspiration from most however is medieval clothing and architecture, Renaissance paintings, and Venetian clothing. I create characters a lot for when I play Dungeons and Dungeons. Since I’m primarily a dungeon master (the one who creates the story) I think of concepts for a lot of characters for my players to meet and interact with. I love having visuals for my players to look at and I love being able to transfer what’s in my head to a page for them. I think it makes it much more appealing as well. Because of this I find myself looking at a lot of Venetian and Byzantine-like clothing as well as other art for inspiration. I find I get most inspired looking at other people’s works and seeing what they have come up with. If I find myself stuck on certain details, I love looking at what other people have added to their characters as a reference. What type of shoes to give the character I’m working on, pockets and belts, certain embellishments and ornamental aspects in their clothing or cloaks, brooches, etc.
Additionally, I find inspiration in looking at other peoples art if I particularly like their style. It encourages me to work harder as an artist to meet the expectations I have for myself. I want to be able to paint digitally more realistically, continue to practice my proportions and anatomy, and I want to be able to add much more detail to my work. This piece has been one of my favorites that I’ve worked on digitally recently because I pushed myself to do more than I would usually add. This piece so far has been the image of my business card, cover and profile pictures for my social media, and recently was accepted into a gallery showing and won second place for illustration. I want to continue to do work like this and become even better- I want to be like the artists that I’ve been looking up to.

Kehinde Wiley works with poses taken from paintings done in the past and applies them to modern black men and women.
I love Kehinde’s work and the message he sends with it. Seeing the renaissance like poses as well as the vivid colors feels regal and makes the piece more empowering in my eyes. Taking this and applying it to any man he finds on the street perfectly sends across his message of empowerment of minorities and him wanting to lift up black men and women. Showing they too deserve to be respected and forcefully putting a mark in history with his art. History isn’t just white, it’s filled with color, and I appreciate his efforts and contributions. I feel as if many who feel rather entitled to themselves would cry that it’s unfair he only paints one subject, but this card has been played on the flip side for hundreds of years by many artists who refuse to paint any person of color. His work is very inspiring to me and most likely thousands of PoC to view. His style of painting is very clean and smooth, he puts in so much detail, his work has a very soft aesthetic to it, the backgrounds on their own are incredible. 
To quote Kehinde from an interview, he believes art should “show you something you’ve never seen before. Art should take the familiar and represent it in such a way that it gives us hope and that it redeems the value of life itself.” It’s particularly aspiring for the message that anyone can make or become part of history. All the subjects he’s painted that have been living normal day to day lives, perhaps even struggling to get by and/or in poverty, can still be the subject of a masterpiece given the opportunity. 
Kehinde’s works are typically very large scale paintings that have the intent of being imposing and awe-inspiring. He plays with angles to ensure this, setting cameras just below eyes level. The poses show a sort of authority that contributes to the feeling of empowerment. He is, as he puts it, “playing with the language of power” with these efforts. Forcing others to view his work due to the sheer size, forcing them to view the subjects in a new light. His subjects are beautiful, they’re eye-catching and abundant. 
One day I hope to personally observe his paintings in a gallery to see up close these details, the ornamental design of his backgrounds, the elegance, vibrancy, and the play on power. I hope to see other people’s reactions to his work as well and will use him as an inspiration for some of my upcoming pieces. 

Battle of Heart

I’m sure plenty of artists out there answer the same way when asked how long they’ve been creating- “I’ve been drawing since I could hold a pencil”. This statement is no different for myself. 

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Still kind of proud of this now that I’ve taken a few months away from it. Still life drawn of a stuffed swan done on drawing paper with white and black charcoal. 

Zentangle A Day

Zentangling has been a strange experience for me. Doodling is always something I’ve loved doing and in fact, before I started drawing for books and shows I liked, I doodled and scribbled to my heart’s content. In zentangling for a class I currently take I’ve found peace not only from the calming and relaxed mindset it puts you in, but in the nostalgia as well.

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