Audience of Two

This is another illustration-in-progress from the book I'm working on. The old man has found his flute at last & plays it, hoping to bring the missing wildlife back after a lonely year. (See my previous post here, Only Waiting.)

At first he heard nothing. Then suddenly two small brown birds flew out of the forest & circled his head. The old man was delighted. Perhaps more will come, he thought.

Acrylic on text & maps on canvas, ~7x10"detail of the full painting, which is 9x12".

From The Old Man and the Cat, by Anthony Holcroft, to be published in 2011 by Penguin NZ.

It occurred to me as I was painting this that every artistic creation is a similar cry in the wilderness... hours of solitary work, never really knowing whether the result will touch others...

Recently I've felt this way even more than usual since I've been spending so much of my time on this book. Almost done now, but it has been a very long stretch devoted to a project that won't reach its audience for some time yet.

So I was particularly grateful this morning to find this lovely message from Linda Hensley:
Hi! I think you're pretty stylish and I have an award for you! Please visit me, where you may find it and share with other blogging friends!

That's why I'm posting this image here, instead of on my process blog where I'd normally show it. (I'm really not satisfied with it yet & I'll be making several changes, but it does seem appropriate for the occasion.) It's awfully nice to know someone is out there! Thank you, Linda!

So, on to the award. I'm supposed to tell seven things about myself.
1. I'm a mother of twins, & when the boys were little, they had their own language. They also spoke English, luckily, but often veered off into realms of unknown vocabulary. It was fascinating but also rather frustrating, since they refused to translate. Once they started school, the Bipper language (as we called it, after the most frequently used word) slowly faded away.
2. I'm obsessed with hoop dance. I re-learned to hula hoop in 2009, & it's become my favorite way to work out the kinks after being curled up like an overcooked shrimp all day at the drawing table. If you don't know what hoop dance is, check out the links below.
3. I've always loved animation, & this year I've been awarded a grant to learn Flash! I'm very excited about it. The idea of making my creatures move tickles me no end. I won't be starting the class until the book is done, but when I start animating I'll be posting my efforts on yet another blog, Curious Illumation. Yes, I know, I'm not so great at keeping up with the blogs I already have. But I thought there should be a separate place for these motion experiments. Have you guessed that I'm a bit obsessive-compulsive?
4. Speaking of which, I love boxes. And tins. And baskets with lids. And cabinets with cubbyholes or tiny drawers. And old type cases. Being a collage artist, a collector of oddments & curiosities, & a dabbler in many crafts, I have a lot of small objects & supplies that need organizing. And I love containers that are pleasing objects in themselves. I even miss old library card catalogues, though I admit the computer does a much better job of indexing.
5. Despite my love of order, I can be very, very, very messy (especially in mid-project). Oh, really very messy. You can't imagine the chaos. Somehow I'm completely unaware of the havoc that surrounds me until the project is completed & then it always comes as a shock to look around & see the devastation. It's a little like Dr. Jeckyll waking up after a night as Mr. Hyde.
6. I can also be very, very, very silly. It's a family tradition. I have a large extended family, & you should see us at family gatherings, unless you hate seeing people getting silly. Bad puns & nonsense are in our genes, & anyone who marries in eventually becomes silly as well, probably out of sheer self-defense.
7. On a related note, my brother & I have both had letters published in MAD magazine. As adults, mind you. We're ridiculously proud of this dubious distinction! Said brother is a very successful electrical engineer & he actually lists his MAD letter on his resume under publications! As I said, silliness is a family tradition. This is what got me into MAD, by the way.

And now for some links, from all over the virtual map:
Escape from Illustration Island If any of you have yet to discover this blog & its equally amazing podcast, hurry right on over there for loads of great information & a warm illustration-related community led by Thomas James, who must never sleep at all.
Muddy Colors A fairly new group blog featuring lengthy posts by masterful artists, about the art & technique of painting & illustration, mostly fantasy-related, but with many ideas applicable to other styles.
Erratic Phenomena A blog focusing on new contemporary art, with interesting artist interviews
A Journey Round My Skull Visiting this blog is like having the best vintage/antique bookstore ever in your very own home. Crazy variety, endlessly inspiring.
Bioephemera Good artsy-science-y fun
Cartoon Brew A wonderfully eclectic collection of animation & articles on the subject, from experimental student shorts to full length studio feature reviews.
Ghettomation A blog & podcast devoted to DIY, at-home animation using whatever tools the artist has at hand (Some subject matter may be a bit NSFW, so be warned.)
Lineboil Another animation collection blog
Isopop A hoop dance blog by Rich Porter with links to other hooping sites.
The Happy Hoop Another hooping blog.
Revolva Hoop Dance Yet another.
Okay, enough hooping, I know! Now here are some great artist/illustrator blogs:
Dani Torrent
Laprisamata
Jen Lobo
Light Night Rains

Show & Tell

Show:
Hey folks, if you happen to be near Raleigh, please stop by Cameron Village Library, where my work is on display this month. I adore this library: it has provided me with acres of free reading material, not to mention the recorded books that keep my brain alive while I work on tedious bits. Without the library, I would surely be both broke & insane. Or maybe I should say broker & insaner.

I brought in lots of stuff for the show including several paintings you've seen here, some curiollages, plus a new (12x24"--big for me!) painting created for the show, a bookworm called "Voracious." The bad news is that my scanner has decided to stop working, so I can't include an image yet. The good news: Patti, the library art curator, promises that if I get it going again (please, please, please?) I can borrow the piece back & scan it so you can see it here.

Tell:
I was tagged twice last week, but due to show-prep-frenzy, Thanksgiving family stuff, & a wicked chest cold, I've been slow to get into the game. Apologies to Cynthia DiBlasi & Isabelle Gauthier for being such a sluggish player. No wonder nobody wanted me on their team in elementary school.

Here are the rules (from Isabelle):1. Link to your tagger and post the rules2. Post 7 random facts about yourself3. Tag 7 friends at the end of your post and link to them4. Let them know they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

The rules (from Cindy):
1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Mention these rules.
3. Tell six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six other bloggers by linking to them.
5. Go to each person’s blog and leave a comment letting them know they’ve been tagged.

Seven random habits of highly ineffective Leah:

1. I wear lots of hats. I mean that literally. My favorites are vintage cloches from the 20's & 30's, but I wear new ones too. In fact I hardly ever leave the house without a hat. I started wearing them because I have fair skin that doesn't appreciate sun, but I came to like the vintage look, & also the way I can hide behind them if I have a sudden attack of shyness.

2. I write nearly everything with a dip pen (Hunt's 108) . Letters, checks, invoices, my journal, even grocery lists. So far I don't carry it everywhere in my purse, but I fear I may cross that dangerous, inky line at any time.

3. I love dreaming that I can fly. Also I occasionally have lucid dreams. Either one can make me ridiculously happy for days afterwards. Now that I think of it, I should sleep a lot more.

4. I am hopelessly addicted to cryptic crosswords. I can stay away from them for a time, but I always fall off the wagon eventually.

5. I hate driving & bananas.

6. I love walking & all other fruits.

7. I'm a member of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America, because I'm fixated on Alice. I was imprinted at the age of six when my folks bought an unabridged recording to amuse me when I was sick & had to spend hours a day on my back with my eyes covered. I was drifting in & out of fevers as I listened to it over & over. I have no doubt that the experience permanently warped my mind, & for that I'll always be grateful.


Since I was tagged twice, surely I should get to post extra links! Even so I've left out many favorites... someday I'll do another chapter.

1. Allison Sommers, an erstwhile history major in Virginia, whose painted (& recently, sculpted) alternate universe is peopled by curious, often disturbing longneck creatures, dressed in quaint fashion, rendered in gouache with amazing precision & rich with historical, anthropological & anatomical wonders

2. Ellis Nadler of London, a madly prolific artist, master of many styles & media, whose work is unpredictable, imaginative, erudite, often delightfully nonsensical, sometimes profoundly moving

3. Steve of go flying turtle, by day a mild-mannered art teacher in Virginia, whose superpowers enable him to fill countless moleskines with closely-observed nature studies, imaginary characters, & experiments with various styles & media, not to mention creating paintings, comics, & countless other projects in his spare time

4. Koldo Barroso, a Madrid native now living in Bellingham,Washington, whose imaginative & mysterious tales & illustrations always suggest hidden depths

5.Neil Ornstein of Snorkblog, a Canadian whose richly layered, atmospheric art (sparked by seemingly random phrases plucked from google) is always interesting & often moving

6. Dani Torrent of Barcelona, whose paintings feature wonderful swirling composition, rich color, & great imagination & feeling

7. Emily, of art of the masses, a Swedish writer-illustrator, whose pen-&-ink world features amazing architectural & natural settings, occupied by bunnies, hedgehogs, birds & turtles, & nearly always accompanied by a delightful story

8. Lisa Evans, a British artist whose dreamlike illustrations possess a delicious lightness

9. Tanaudel, aka Kathleen of Errantry, an Australian writer/illustator, whose blog includes book reviews, travel sketches, & all manner of intriguing stuff in addition to her drawings, often in scratchboard or pen & ink

10. Rima, of the Hermitage, an enchanting cross between 21st & 12th centuries, living her fairytale life in Scotland, making lovely & imaginative clocks, drawings & oil paintings, traveling in a hand-crafted gypsy caravan & documenting it all online (including the rough spots) with great wit & tenderness

11. Q Cassetti of the Rongovian Academy of Fine Arts, who creates strong, yet intricate artwork, & generously shares her experience & inspiration as she learns from illustration masters

12. Charley Parker of lines and colors, who tirelessly seeks out, researches & writes insightful articles on artists and illustrators of all eras, styles & media-- an amazing resource for both artists & art-lovers

13. BibliOdyssey, that miracle of inspiration brought to the world by Peacay, providing enough antiquarian gorgeousness to set any rare-book-lover's head spinning with every post

Skulls & Monsters!

Halloween must be near... in the past week my work has appeared on Skull-a-Day and Monster Brains! You've seen both the pieces here before ("Lungfish" & "Last Ride"), but I couldn't resist posting because I'm tickled to be in such beautifully creepy company!