Too Tired for 'Real' Art

I've been very busy the last couple weeks working on some home projects that leave me very tired at the end of the day. I haven't felt much like working on craft projects or art in my craft room but I still feel like creating something. That is when I sit at my computer or with my iPad and play with images to create a composition. These are a few of my recent digital play results:

Postcards from Digital Art

I love creating my own stationary. There are so many ways you can design and have cards printed. I often use shutterfly.com to make blank cards or cards for holidays. I also like the cardstore.com because they also have nice postcards. Recently I had some of my digital art printed on postcards to send to family and friends. They came out great! Can't wait to send them.

Butterfly Wings

There a finite number of butterfly wing shapes but a seemingly infinite number of Wing patterns. I have been going through my butterfly encyclopedias and sketching some of these patterns. I am working on some collages and I wanted to break down the wing patterns into the basic shapes and layouts. During this process I have come across the exceedingly simple one solid color wing to the outrageously complex mosaic patterns with spots. It's all just camouflage depending on what the butterfly needs to blend in. The ultimate blender is the transparent wing butterfly that is simply a window to whatever environment it is in. This process has helped me understand a little more about butterflies and evolution but mostly given me ideas for creating new butterflies inspired by the patterns of nature.

 

I started just sketching the basic shapes and markings patterns but also did a few in color.

I wasn't trying that hard but I liked how they turned out so I took the the half butterfly sketches and edited them in Photoshop Elements (PSE8) to create a few digital pictures.

A Little Digital Art

I have been busy with a few different things and I am still working on those denim booklets but I still find time to play on my iPad. There are so many great art apps and I particularly like ArtRage. It creates a great simulated painting textured surface and the blending of paint and colors seems very realistic. I like to just 'finger paint' and create interesting digital abstracts. Once I finish a digital painting I often edit it further in a photo app or use the picture in a collaging app.

Fabric Booklet Covers

Today I'm working on denim fabric covers for booklets made of painted scrap papers. The denim is from old jeans and I'm trying to get a nice frayed look. The pages will be randomly painted papers that are a byproduct of my other painting projects. Here are some pictures of the 'ingredients' that I am using.

Completed Collage

This collage took a little more time than some of my smaller projects. It was completed in multiple layers and a number of finish coats that took time to dry. This collage is on a 20 x 20 canvas panel. It includes a number of different papers, acrylic paint, and paint stained cotton yarn. I enjoyed making this collage and have already moved on to new projects. You'll see those later.

Collage Fun

I've discovered that making collages is an ongoing unexpected experiment. This is a photo synopsis of one I am currently working on: