Phoenix

This is a drawing I did in brush texta, metallic pen and colour pencil. I always like to mix my media.

The second one is the same drawing through a Photoshop filter (I think it was "Film Grain"). My husband liked the "burnt" quality of it.

Mask

I have the perfect piece for this topic. It's a piece I did for my art exam at high school...oooh, more years ago than I care to remember - but the subject is King Tutankhamun's funerary mask and tomb items. Because I am a nerd, I had drew items which were actually found in the tomb with King Tut.

Unfortunately, I framed the piece a few years ago, so I got my husband to take a photo of it in its frame. He had to slope the picture backwards so as not to appear in the reflection. So it doesn't quite do justice to the piece. It was done in oil pastel.

Illustration Friday - Might

My cousin had a project in which he had to write propaganda for Macbeth. We were trying to think of a good image to represent Macbeth's reign, and the gauntleted fist is what we came up with. For some reason, that's what came into my head when I saw this week's topic.

I don't know what exactly this next cartoon is about. That's the other image that came into my head. The soldier is so focussed on his mission that he doesn't see the flower in front of him.

Illustration Friday - Invention

The Tyger

Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night:
What immortal hand or eye,
Could frame thy fearful symmetry?

In what distant deeps or skies
Burnt the fire of thine eyes!
On what wings dare he aspire
What the hand, dare sieze the fire?

And what shoulder, & what art,
Could twist the sinews of thy heart?
And when thy heart began to beat,
What dread hand? & what dread feet?

What the hammer? what the chain,
In what furnace was thy brain?
What the anvil? what dread grasp,
Dare its deadly terrors clasp?

When the stars threw down their spears
And water'd heaven with their tears:
Did he smile his work to see?
Did he who made the Lamb make thee?

Tyger Tyger, burning bright,
In the forests of the night:
What immortal hand or eye,
Dare frame thy fearful symmetry?

-William Blake

I love this topic: invention. The drawings above and below are ones I did some time ago, inspired by that William Blake poem above. The top one is like a draftsperson's "design" of a tiger, hence the link with "invention".

I hope to do another drawing this week. I haven't had much time lately. I've been flat out marking exams. I like teaching, but I really don't like marking.

I didn't get a chance to do a drawing for "Thanksgiving", although I'm glad of the topic, because it made me go and find out what exactly what Thanksgiving is. We don't celebrate Thanksgiving in Australia. I'd heard of it in American sitcoms, and knew that it involved eating turkey in some way, but that was about it. I didn't realise that it was celebrated in Canada too, or that it was based on the Harvest Festival. And yes, it involves eating turkey (I got that right).

I had an idea for a cartoon of some sad turkeys called Hank and Jed talking in a Southern American drawl (or my Australian interpretation thereof):
Hank: "Well, Jed, I don't know what we're giving thanks for?"
Jed: "Hank, it sure beats me."
But I never got around to drawing it.

Illustration Friday - Clear

I haven't been very good at art blogging lately. Unfortunately, work stress and a sick baby have been taking up most of my time. My poor little girl has had gastro, but she's a lot better today, so hopefully she will be all better soon.

Anyway, I thought I'd just do a really quick pencil sketch, just so I could do something. I feel miserable if I don't get to draw at least once a week.

I drew a glass of water on the coffee table with a pen and a piece of paper behind it. I didn't realise until I sat down to draw that the water not only bent the image of the pen and the paper, but it reflected it as well. It was quite hard to draw. Obviously, both the glass and the water are "clear". I was thinking as I drew how precious water is. We have a drought here in Australia at the moment: clean and clear water should never be taken for granted.

Illustration Friday - Wind

This sketch was done in ball point pen, then coloured and adjusted in Photoshop. The other day when I went into work, I made the mistake of wearing a short flippy little skirt (and I didn't look at the weather report that closely). This is a little drawing of me as I walk to work...

Illustration Friday - Ghost

I haven't done a post for the last two Illustration Friday topics. I haven't even had a chance to look at anyone else's site. It's pretty sad when life gets in the way of art. Unfortunately, I was swamped by marking (114 essays for the university subject I teach). Then my poor old husband had to have a sinus operation last week. Fortunately, my husband is now fine, and I finished all my marking this afternoon (finally!).

Anyway, I've got a couple of different pictures for Ghost. The first one is a drawing of the phantom hounds of the Wild Hunt. I've decided my dogs are Welsh and belong to Gwyn ap Nudd. I remember reading a charming story about a family finding one of the hounds left over from the Wild Hunt, so they rescued it and took it in. The dog was white as snow, but had red eyes and ears, and a bell-like bark. They had to tie it up every Halloween lest it escape and rejoin the pack.


The second two pictures are derived from a Japanese ghost story I read once about a giant ghost cat. Somehow it just seemed really creepy to me. I think Japanese ghosts are much creepier than Western ghosts. My Japanese isn't crash hot these days, but I have attempted to write over the cat is "Dream of a ghost cat" in Japanese.