And then here are some pictures that sparked my interest for whatever reason. Hoorah.

To start off, this is a website that has minimalist fairy tale posters. And I liked them quite a bit:

http://www.mymodernmet.com/profiles/blogs/minimalist-fairy-tale-posters

And then these are just pictures that I thought were interesting. 

Yep.

That's about it. 

I promise that this is art related haha. 

My interest in comic books and superheroes in general started when I was about 3 years old, oddly enough, circa 1997. My fascination with superheroes truly sparked because of my cousin, who would always watch Operation: Zero Tolerance at our house, which was a crossover story line that ran through Marvel Comics’ X-Men related titles. As the years went on, my interest in Marvel & DC comics continued. I would always watch superhero related TV shows such as The Avengers: United They Stand, X-Men: Evolution, Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes, & Wolverine and the X-Men. To say the very least, I liked them a lot.  

Anyway, as I grew older I began to appreciate how well written the stories were, and how great the character development was, even though it wasn’t until we were almost in high school when I actually picked up a comic book and read it. I was shocked at how well written some of the stories were, and how excellent the character development was. This mix of bright, sharp, colorful images and well put together dialect was very appealing to me. It was mainly the artwork, though. The style and how it is organized it is to give you that suspensive story feeling. Below are a few examples of some of the first X-Men art references. I just love how vivid and defined everything is. The colors are so crisp and perfect. These are excellent examples of how to make cartoon-like drawings into something fantastic.

This blog was kind of spontaneous and really has nothing to do with my concentration whatsoever.

Aa;ldsfj'alsdfasfjasdf. I'm running out of ideas.

This concentration and I are pretty much killing each other. It would be pretty dandy if you could just be like, "Hello ideas, go into my brain please. And when you get there, magically appear in front of me in the form of art." 

And then there's the problem where the ideas that I do have are really complex and I wouldn't have enough time to finish them even if I tried. 

Nevertheless, I still managed to find some art that's nice in a sort of weird way. I kind of like it.

The whole adding a link thing is being uncooperative, but here:

http://kylehughesodgers.com/artwork

Melanie Colosimo is an interdisciplinary artist, originally from Southeast New Brunswick, but has lived the last several years between Halifax, Nova Scotia and Windsor, Ontario. Her work employs drawings, miniatures and stop-motion video to negotiate the space around construction/ creation and themes of nostalgia and dislocation. She received a BFA from Mount Allison University in Sackville, NB and an MFA from the University of Windsor, in Windsor, ON. Her work has been exhibited and screened in galleries and festivals across Canada such as the Art Gallery of Windsor, the Atlantic Film Festival and most recently Eastern Edge Gallery. Currently she is the Exhibitions Coordinator at the Anna Leonowens Gallery.

Themes of longing and nostalgia are a catalyst for her work. She is not exploring nostalgia as a yearning for a specific place or thing, but as a desire for the intimacy that home represents. Through drawings and stop motion animation, she experiments with intermediate narratives using low-tech and often recycled materials to create an illusionary reality that focuses on the emotions tied to nostalgia and moments of homesickness.

Dat Quilling

(A different type of blog, but still a relevant one nonetheless.)

Okay, so I’ve been doing some research on a type of medium called quilling.

Quilling is an easy paper craft that requires minimal tools. It produces amazing results which can be used for decorating papers, cards, and other embellishments.

The art of twirling paper started during the Renaissance when nuns decorated bibles and religious texts with swirly strips of paper. Back then, they used feathers (quills) for writing and it is believed that they rolled the strips of paper around the quill - thus the term "quilling".

In quilling, a narrow strip of paper is rolled around a slotted quilling tool to form a tight roll (called a coil). The loose end of the coil is glued onto the roll to prevent unrolling. The coil may be allowed to unroll itself slightly before the loose end is glued on: this forms a "loose coil". Loose coils can be shaped by pinching the ends to form teardrop or crescent moon shapes. These coils are then arranged into flowers, fruits, animals, and any shape imaginable.

Quilling requires very few tools, which is great. Something I can easily do in class. For a beginner (that’s me), you will need strips of paper, a slotted quilling tool, and glue. However, as with any craft, you begin to desire more tools as your projects progress in complexity. For example, serious quilling enthusiasts will use a circle template, a cork board, pins, forceps, scissors, and a quilling fringer.

 Aw yeah.

I look forward to it.

Historical Work of Oscar-Claude Monet

Monet’s San Giorgio Twilight

We all know that impressionist paintings include relatively small, thin, yet visible brush strokes; open composition; emphasis on accurate depiction of light in its changing qualities; common, ordinary subject matter; the inclusion of movement as a crucial element of human perception and experience; and unusual visual angles. The hues in this piece are more vivid with the renderings of sunlight and its interplay with nature. It gives off a very warm feeling. Oddly enough, Monet’s simply impressionist style has pulled off the illusion of depth many times with his contrasting warm and cool colors. He manages to create shadows without using black, which he had banished from his pallet anyway. The lighting and shadows are absolutely perfect. You can clearly tell from his color choices that this is during a setting sun (if the title wasn’t what it is, that is), due to the warm reds and oranges. His brushstrokes seem to be closer together and more blended in the background to resemble the sky, while the longer and thicker strokes resemble the ocean. Monet was an expert at what he did, and I’m proud to call him one of my favorite artists. 

Response to an artist #2

Linda Bergkvist was born on September 5th, 1977 in Umeå, Sweden. She is an extremely talented illustrator and digital fantasy artist. Known as Enayla on several online art communities, Bergkvist is drawn towards illustrating dark fairy tales, focusing on the unnatural and the unreal. 

Bergkvist won two master awards in Ballistic Publishing's book "Exposé I", then co-authored "d'artiste: Digital Painting" with three other leading artists. She has been planning a dark fairy tales book that will feature her paintings, but has not yet announced when the book will be finished. 

I love the visual element of her fairy tales. How she includes images that are fantastical and unnatural and not quite real fascinates me to no end. She seems to revolve around old, cruel tales and the how wickedness comes wrapped up in lovely forms. I suppose, in a way, Linda mixes fantasy and horror with a little twinge of romantic idealization. Her digital art is absolutely flawless, not to mention extremely beautiful. I can honestly say that I am truly inspired by her work. 

Career I love #2 - Animator

An animator, as we all know, is an artist who creates multiple images that give an

illusion of movement when displayed in rapid sequence.

Salary - The median expected salary for a typical animator in the United States as of right now is $46,825. But it really all depends on who you’re working for. Disney animators make twice as much, for example, topping at around $160,000. 

Education - Aside from talent, an animator's skills can be improved vastly by college and university training, such as the Bachelor of Arts degree in Animation, which provides academic and hands-on learning experiences. Associate degrees and certificates in animation also are available from professional schools (2 or 3 years in duration). But it really comes down to how good you are at it. The more credibility you have, the more likely you are to get a better job offer. 

Variations on the job - Animators can work in a variety of fields including film (which I like the most), television, video games, and the all mighty internet. Some artists contribute to animated cartoons, but they technically aren’t animators. They include layout artists, storyboard artists, and background artists. Still very important, but not quite at the tip top.

Expenses - Besides paying for school, there really aren’t a whole lot of personal expenses. Your employer will have everything necessary for you to complete your work. 

I’m not a fan of all types of animation, unfortunately. Newer TV shows that my little sister watches such as “Adventure Time” and “Regular Show”... well, they’re just not my cup of tea. I’m a big fan of claymation though, and it’s practically the best thing ever. Tim Burton & Henry Selick films, for example. I am a huge gigantic monstrous fan of them. Not all of them are directly set on claymation, but even the ones with human actors have some form of claymation in them. Some favorites of mine include: 

The Nightmare Before Christmas

Corpse Bride

And lastly, James and the Giant Peach

(Which is one of my favorite movies of all time)