Interview with Artist….Janet Briggs

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!

To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked 5 artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout this month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



To conclude my October Interview series I’d like you to meet a very special Flickr-Blogger friend, Janet Briggs.  When I first found Janet she was participating in so many on-line art classes that she was a walking-talking-artsy advertisement.  She oozed creativity and color.  But where my twin (we share the same birthday) and I differ, is she is drawn to purple and I avoid purple at all costs.  She makes it work, and I make it muddy!

Without further ado, here’s Janet about Janet.

1. What word best describes your art/style?
I'm never sure how to describe my art. If I had to come up with one word it would have to be playful. I hope my art makes people smile and feel good. I'm not a very "heavy" person. I don't dig deep and think about what I'm creating as much as I just do it. I don't plan out my art. I just jump in and start playing.

 

2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
I love the quote "art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time" by Thomas Merton. That's what happens to me when I'm making art. I find bits of myself I didn't know were there and I can completely lose myself in art.


                                         Georgia (above)

3. How has your work evolved?
I've always loved art but for a huge part of my life I convinced myself that I couldn't draw or paint. When I began drawing again back in the mid-90's it was mostly copying a face from a magazine...I didn't feel comfortable drawing something of my own creation. After taking many online classes and having the support of the online art community I now love to draw and paint. I keep several art journals going at once, and also several collages. Mixed media is perfect for me since I like to play with all sorts of art supplies. Now I'll try just about anything.



4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
Most of my interests are creative in some way...beading, crochet, knitting (at a beginner level!)...I love to read, and I love baking although I'm not an expert at it. I mostly bake to satisfy my sweet tooth. Walking is something I enjoy and this time of year is great for that. Getting out in nature is inspiring.



5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
I'm not sure I have a favorite blog post although I always have fun with my Academy Awards posts each year. I've been in such an art slump recently that I don't have anything new to share but one of my favorites is Calypso...and I also like Georgia.


                                    Calypso (above)

See what I mean about Janet?  Versatile! Colorful! Talented! Fun! Free-Spirit!  You know….we all have our role models and Janet is one of mine!  Thank you Janet for sharing your work and your art with us today. 

Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of Janet’s work.

website: http://jkbees.blogspot.com 
          or http://jkbeesartopia.blogspot.com
etsy: http://www.etsy.com/people/jkbees?ref=si_pr
twitter: http://twitter.com/jkbees
flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jkbees/
pinterest: http://pinterest.com/jkbees/

Gorgeous Graphite Girls

Went in and enhanced my shading since the background was darker.



Graphite highlights gave me a lot to think about.  Not too happy with my approach.



What a fun sketch of one of my favorite friends and her daughter.  Not perfect…but where’s the fun in that?

In Watercolor….Figure 1

Remember when…..I said I’d really like to learn watercolor drawing/painting?  I have a 36 watercolor pencil set that was just begging to be used.  My Art teacher thought I should give watercolor a try….see what I think….One advantage is it’s easier to cover large areas…it’s ten times faster than colored pencils.  We thought it would be an interesting study to do the same figure set in watercolor.  See the difference and if I even take to it.

Blocked all 3 figures out in class a few weeks ago. 



Then the next class time, I started in on the arms.  Didn’t dare try it on my own, had too many questions!

 

So far…I’ve approached the drawing in the same way as my color-sketches, except I stop and apply water to the pigment before I proceed to the next part. 



The watercolor pigment behaves a bit unpredictably (especially to me-the-novice)…which can make things better or worse. 



I was coaxed into abandoning my tedious ways by applying lots of water and lots of pigment….and just let the color expand. 



We use rubber cement to limit where the color can go (seen here in the lighter part of the jeans). it’s a whole new way of drawing and I can’t approach it the same way as a pure sketch.  It’s very addictive and I think I like it!

Interview with Artist….Lori Vliegen

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!


To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked 5 artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout this month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



I’d like you to meet a very talented Artist….Lori Vliegen.  I came across Lori’s blog (elvie studio) a couple of years ago and I was captivated.  She has an incredible way with word art!   Lori also draws very cute, fun, imaginative figures, from pots, flowers and adorable little houses to thumb print people.

1. What word best describes your art/style?
happy-with-a-twist-of-uncomplicated-whimsy




2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
"always follow your heart"



3. How has your work evolved?
My mom taught me to write my name when i was a little girl, and I've been nurturing a true love affair with the alphabet ever since. I've spent so much time studying the letters, though, that i really didn't have any idea how to combine them with some artwork. So, about five years ago, I began taking a few local workshops and some online classes to learn how to draw and watercolor. I still have lots to learn, but I'm having a blast going through the process!

4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
Spending time with my family, eating a really good bar of Belgian dark chocolate, watching "Downton Abbey", using my camera, sewing, baking brownies, decorating our home, riding my bike, and window shopping in my collection of “pottery barn” catalogs.



Above image from blog post: http://elviestudio.blogspot.com/2012/01/inspiration-monday_16.html

5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
My pottery barn journal.  You can see a video peek inside here: http://vimeo.com/50724979

Thank you Lori for taking the time to answer my questions and to share your Beautiful Artwork and calligraphy.  Doesn’t Lori’s work make you want to write big colorful words in your journals too!   Or take your favorite quote and display it for all to see!

Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of  Lori’s work.
website: www.elviestudio.blogspot.com
flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/elviestudio/
pinterest: http://pinterest.com/lorivliegen/

Figure 3….Standard Pose

Ahhh….the Standard Pose….we learn it when we are becoming more self-aware…you know around 8-10 yrs old.  Rarely do I see pre-schooler’s standing like this unless they are mad at someone.  

Personally, it’s my favorite way to stand…but I guess if I’m listening to all the psychology talk then I must be very hard to approach when standing like this!  Not such a bad thing!! Haha…just kidding!!  I guess I could put my hands in my pockets and play with my keys and my coins….just make a racquet….but that’s not my style.



It takes me a few days to figure out my colors…I was having a very hard time layering the green for the top. 



Totally ad-lib here….or rather ad-draw!!



I was introduced to a new product this week…these ebony pencils by Prismacolor….Very dark, very cool, very inexpensive.  I’m outlining here.  My .005 micron markers have dried out and I’m a bit bummed because I didn’t use them that much.  Must’ve been a faulty lot.



People respond well to the jeans!! They like all that color and all those creases!  I like them enough…but after doing three pairs of jeans….I’ve become rather bored with them!  I’m going to have to fix that seam under the zipper!  I didn’t realize it was so light….looks rather dorky!



This is what I saw in my head before I started the series!  Actually when I took these pictures I was trying to replicate a picture I had seen on pinterest….where a woman was holding flowers and she had jeans on…..Well, the flower shots were a complete waste of time!  Way too staged for my tastes.  I finally dropped all props and just stood still. 

Graphite Girls

I love it when a friend asks me to draw something for them!  And when I asked “do you want it in color?”…..she said… “Oh, No! Black and white please”.



It’s been 6 months since I’ve drawn anything in graphite.  I guess I’m liking the colored pencils.  My art teacher said that I may find that my colored pencil time may help my graphite work….but not necessarily the reverse.



I knew what I needed to do to make the pupils right….but I got a little cocky and didn’t wait to use my circle template….my punishment was erasing and erasing! Ugh!



The original picture has a very dark background and both of these cute ladies have dark hair!  I get to interpret their head shape any way I want to!  Haha!



The advantage to the dark hair is the ability to veg out while getting that graphite down.  To balance out that dark hair….I’ll need to strengthen the shading in the face.

Interview with Artist….Sheila Arthurs

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!

To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked 5 artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout this month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



Today I’d like you to meet another Flickr friend, Sheila (who lives in the UK).  I spotted her work in a doodling group on Flickr.  Sheila not only can doodle with world class flair, she incorporates actual figures into her doodles.  I would spot animals, fish, people in many of her doodles.  It was a bit like a seek-n-find!  Absolutely aMaZiNg!!



1. What word best describes your art/style?
These days I think of myself as a mixed media artist but at heart I am a doodling illustrator, dabbling in everything from stitching to paper sculpture.



2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
There are two quotes which constantly pop into my head, one is by Henry Ford who said “if you think you can, or think you can’t, you are probably right!” and as I am Queen of the Procrastinators the one I have to say to myself every day is “if not now, when?” especially as I realize the years remaining are not limitless and I want to try everything.



3. How has your work evolved?
I began work in the 1940’s as a commercial artist now more grandly called “graphic designer” and it has been my joy and frustration to live through so many changes – “From ‘Letraset’ to Photoshop” could be the title of my memoirs! I have designed packaging, games for Chad Valley Toys, picnic ware and toffee tins to name just a few and then I retired and discovered a whole new world of fabric, collage, beading, felting and the freedom to explore them all via the internet.

Doodling has become an obsession, from simple shapes to imaginary landscapes and to designing my own doodled font, which has probably been the most fun of all.



4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
Over the years I have been involved with volunteering locally and am a Trustee of several local Charities, one of which is Active Arts Castle Vale a group dedicated to raising aspirations through involvement in art. This year to coincide with the London Olympics, there was a local Cultural Games week and as part of the art exhibition I enrolled local women to crochet or knit a Rainbow Reef. The response was overwhelming, we ended up with nearly a thousand pieces and no two were identical.

I am a voracious reader and collector of art/craft books and never come home from an exhibition without bags stuffed full of new gadgets because it’s not as if my house is not already overflowing with stuff I am going to use next week to try a new ‘direction’!



5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
Probably my favorite piece is the animated video that my daughter in the Netherlands made using my doodled alphabet. It was her first attempt at animation and I think she made a great fun video. It is on my blog, posted on Sunday 5 Feb 2012



Isn’t Sheila just fun?  Wouldn’t you want to see how she decorates?



To do this kind of work…..with needle, thread and beads on fabric….stitching & stitching & stitching…. takes an extraordinary amount of patience.  What beautiful creations she has made with fabric!



Thank you Sheila for taking the time to answer my questions and to share all your Beautiful…Creative…Versatile Artwork.

Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of Sheila’s work.
Blog: http://2smart-clothencounters.blogspot.co.uk
Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/bostinstuff/

Figure 3….Strengthening Color

Sketching along and applying more and more color.  And….more folds whether the picture has them or not! Haha



Into my third pair of jeans here….becoming quite commonplace.



Personally, I like the jeans in this color….but the interest and skill level isn’t there to make these more realistic in this hue.



I have to laugh because of the variety of my indigo jeans.  I seem to be able to create a white-wash, an acid-wash, a dirty-wash and a faded jean….but ask me to create the same jean each time…and I’d be at a loss!!

Figure 3….Started

Started the third figure.  It’s always best to do a series in odd numbers I’m told and “sets of three” are a very popular quantity.



As is my habit, started on the arms first.



Changed the color of the top from orange/red in the first one to this complementary color, green.  Once I put the green down, the skin tone looked weak.



I’m getting to where I can’t copy the pictures much as I start to shade and color sketch.  I have started to work the color in the arm or the top as it’s being created. The picture is used more as a map than as reality, if that makes sense? 

Interview with Artist….Rachel Awes

As much as I love to blog and frequent my own blog to see how my latest color-sketch dimensions are really playing out on a piece….I’ve become quite sick of me!!

To infuse this blog with some entertainment and creativity I’ve asked 5 artists from varying backgrounds to be interviewed throughout this month. I’m very excited about their work and their agreeing to be put on the spot here.



I’d like you to meet a very talented artist….Rachel Awes.  A blogger friend.  I was not only drawn to Rachel’s fun, whimsical artsy style, I totally love the quotes and the thoughts she puts in her drawings, as well.  I’m so glad she’s agreed to share her thoughts and work with us today.

1. What word best describes your art/style?
i..just..want..to..love..people..up



2. What advice/quote do you respond best to?
From SARK; about being as true and as you, as you can be.  And then show it to us all.



3. How has your work evolved?
From abstract and more effort and slower TO more defined and easier and so fast that i can't sometimes keep up with my own feet. I seem to increasingly need more naps!




4. What interests do you have other than "art"?
Psychology. Walking/running/swimming. Being in nature. A great book. Time with friends. Time with my family. Movies. Looking for agates (a swirly rock found in northern minnesota). Writing. Praying. Thanking everything of beauty. Bowing. Napping.



Above photo courtesy of Carissa Paige. This book is now in Rachel’s etsy shop.  You can pre-order now. The book will be available by December 1, 2012!!!

5. What is your favorite blog post or piece of art that you'd like to share?
Hard to pick a favorite but I will choose "the world waits" because it's one of the deepest invitations I want to extend to people's hearts. I also must add the blog post that is airing october 1, 2012. A book i have been working on for four years and is a culmination of all the love I can think of spilling into the world is in this book and I announce it on this day. endorsed by authors/artists SARK and KELLY RAE ROBERTS,...I am so thankful.

Thank you Rachel for taking the time to answer my questions and to share your Beautiful Artwork and Book.  I believe Rachel’s art and words make this a better world to live in.

Please check out the links below which will lead you to more of Rachel’s work.
Etsy Shop: http://rachelawes.etsy.com
Blog: http://allididwaslisten.blogspot.com
Facebook Page: 
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/all-i-did-was-listen/110783468961315
Pinterest: http://pinterest.com/rachelawes/rachel-awes-art/