Time for a Touch of Whimsy

As much as I love charcoal drawings of leaves
(and I srsly do)
I felt I needed to take a break and do something different.

So I perused through my files of old drawings and found an Inktober drawing that I really liked:

I've wanted to see it in color ever since I finished this sketch.

It took a slightly different turn than I had originally imagined, but that's how the creative process goes sometimes.
Here's the finished piece:

You can find it in all the Suspended Dreams shops. Check it out. Like it. Share it.
Because that would be great.
Thanks!

Two Tone WIP

After those tentacles, I wondered what this octopus:

...would look like in two tones.

The results:

Which is fun. And then my brother-in-law asked me if I was trying to become "The Octopus Lady."

...no?

Let me start by saying, I don't have anything against octopi. They're fascinating creatures, besides being very popular these days, and they're pretty fun to draw.

...but my REAL passion...
(is going to sound dumb, brace yourself)
...is drawing LEAVES.

WIP Leaves in charcoal drawing

This was done digitally; I used the "charcoal" tool for this instead of the pen. Personally, I like the textures that resulted (plus it took a FRACTION of the time!), I hope other people like it, too.

This is a work-in-progress, in case you were thinking it looked a little unfinished. I'm going to add other nature/organic embellishments - add some rhythm and flow in there.

Again, thanks for watching. Keep checking back for the finished picture.

Wow I love drawing leaves...

Make Your Soul Happy

I knew I wanted to make some art today (cuz it's been a while, and when you're an artist not making art for a while, your soul starts to feel it). Wasn't sure how far I'd get.

Imagine my surprise when I was able to FINISH a whole piece.

Might touch up on this a bit tomorrow. Then it'll be posted all over the place, Redbubble, DesignByHumans, and the new store: TeePublic! Check 'em all out, which is your favorite?

Color Abuse

I have this terrible habit when I work digitally...

...of changing the color of the entire piece, over and over and over again.

Because it's so easy! You just move a slider back and forth and suddenly, "Oh hey! This looks even better in blue!"

If I were painting in oils or acrylic, I would not have this option. I would have to choose my colors ahead of time and hope I made the best choices because once it's on the canvas
-BOOM-
you're committed to it.

But I don't have that problem on the computer. And I do abuse the hue/saturation sliders. I'll admit that.

It's not just for my wishy-washy non-committal self that I do this. It's for YOU, really.
Cuz now you have more options!

Both of these (and the original green) can be found on Redbubble and no-background versions can be found on Design By Humans
And another pleasant surprise for you:

I finished the Hobbit Puppets!

*victory dance*

I hope this proves to be the beginning of more puppet paintings based on characters from books (and/or movies, I guess). More Lord of the Ring puppets are in order, and I've got some Alice in Wonderland puppets on the back of my mind, too....

What book/movie characters would you want to see as puppets? Tell me in a comment below!

No Sick Days Here

Been sick in bed with terrible phlegmy cough all week (tmi? Idk). Want to know what happens when you're stuck in bed for a week?

Not much.

But if you have a laptop and a Wacom tablet, between coughs you can make stuff like this:

w00t.

I would have more cool new stuff to show you, but I've been asleep a lot this week.

Like, srsly, a lot.

But the phlegmy cough is finally letting up a little bit, hopefully I will have a finished Lord of the Rings Puppet painting by next week.

Looking forward to it? I AM.

I also touched up on an old favorite of mine.

Why do I like skeleton keys in a tree? Why does that even make sense?

Doesn't matter IT'S STILL COOL AND I LOVE IT.

(like these pictures? Check it out on Redbubble, you can get them printed on clothing, posters, bags, notebooks, phone and laptop cases, and LOTS more awesome stuff. Click here.)

The Tree Addiction Begins

Once upon a time, not so long ago, I drew a tree.

This tree:

And I've been thinking about trees ever since.

I might be addicted to drawing trees.

Last night I drew this:

If there's a support group out there for tree-drawing addicts, send the info my way.

Skull Nouveau

Latest painting:

Made this with a specific friend in mind. Started as a really small sketch in a really small notebook. Thanks to the magic of technology, it's now a fully realized, inked and colored finished piece.

Thank you Wacom tablet I LOVE YOU.

Oh yeah, and Manga Studio. You helped, too. Thanks.

Deep Sea Line Art

Newest paintings...

For the deep sea creature lovers out there. All these can be printed on phone cases, tablet cases, notebooks, and more at the Redbubble Store.

Remember the Creepy Puppets? (of course you do, silly question)
They are PERFECT on these new Graphic Tees (also at Redbubble)




I would wear that. Freaking all the freaking time.

 I've got a lot of ideas, dishes to do, and a daughter to feed; there are not enough hours in a day. Can't wait to get on the Wacom tablet again.
Lots more to draw.

But not another octopus.

O_O

That octopus was INTENSE.

Line and Texture

I sat down with my Wacom tablet the other day (after dusting it off and apologizing for neglecting it for so long in favor of crochet) and stared blankly at my computer screen.

Waiting for inspiration.

(which is fruitless, I know, but I do it anyway)

When none was forthcoming, I just started moving the stylus around.
Opened some new brush files.
Played with my favorite colors.
Drew a flower.

And that's when Inspiration walked in.

I still have more ideas, so I'm not done with this style, yet.
I see aquatic life.
The moon.
Gears.
And more leaves.

Because nature.

I'm calling this collection Line and Texture, you can see it on Redbubble (click here) and eventually I will add a new section to the Gallery on this blog.

Thanks for stopping by. If you have a minute, we should connect - show your support, let me know what you think I should try next. Thx!

GAM Prepping...part 1

There's a local convention coming up in August. It's called G.A.M. Con - Games, Anime, and More (their facebook page is here). Just a little gathering of awesomeness and family fun.

My sister Good Moe-Jo and I are going to have an artist's booth together. If you're in the Vernal area, you ought to come see us! We're going to set up our laptops and television screens so you can watch us paint digitally. It's going to be great!

I'm finished the Hobbit illustration series for the convention. Here's a preview of what will be there:

Riddles in the Dark

Sleeping Smaug

Unexpected Party

 I'm excited for the convention even though anime fascination was years ago...and the only game I really consistently play is The Legend of Zelda...but I've got the "more" part totally covered!

There will be some Zelda pictures, Studio Ghibli fanart, and awesome crocheted goodies.

But what about puppets? Will puppets be there?

Um...yes. Sort of. I mean...sure! Puppets will be there! 

Subscribe to this blog or my facebook page to keep up with my G.A.M. Con progress. And I hope to see you there!

Quick Paint

Did this in about 20 minutes last night. It's all I had time for.

Just got back into town from visiting family, still getting back in the groove of painting regularly.

You spend all this time forming a habit, you know? And then *pfft* just like that, it's gone and you're starting from square one again.

Oh well. Such is life. If you're passionate enough about the habit, re-establishing the routine gets easier.

Right?

Word.

I've always loved quotes - in college I had a "quote wall" that was huge and traveled with me to at least four different apartments - but I haven't thought about quotes for a long time.

I'm rediscovering that old fascination. Behold:

They should have a special place in the gallery. I'm thinking, "Suspended Quotes." I'll get on that.
Also!
You can see these on Redbubble on t-shirts, notebooks, cases, covers, etc.

Do you have a favorite quote that you'd want to see in the redbubble store? Tell me! Send an email or leave a comment, or Twitter or Facebook or homing pigeon.

Bilbo in Mirkwood - In Color!

Finished!!

It has crossed my mind that these pictures would make a fun coloring book. Anyone know where one would go to have a coloring book printed, bound, and distributed?

Share if you do. And if you don't, head over to Facebook.com/KennaArt and leave your mark.

Peace out.

Back From Vacation!

Went on vacation to visit family out of state. On my way back I kidnapped my sister, Good Mo-Jo, so she could teach me how to do this:

I guess technically I already knew how to do this part, but I was really slow at it. She's helped me get faster so I'm not wasting my life away on line art.

Today she's going to show me how she is able to paint so crazy fast. Stay tuned for the final picture!

Check out her FB page to see her artwork: facebook.com/jomoellmer

Problem-Solving

When I look at this picture, I imagine this puppet is hard-core problem solving.
You can almost see the wheels turning in his head, right?

Which is fitting, because this painting sat for a LONG time, waiting to be finished, waiting for me to solve the problem I was having with the colors.

Took me (freaking) long enough. But now he's done!

I'm having similar issues with color and The Hobbit illustrations -

- but I have some exciting news about that. I'm going to collaborated with an artist I've been wanting to collaborated with for years (our styles just differ too much for us to do projects together before now), and she's agreed to paint them for me. :D

This may be premature to announce, she hasn't started yet and it may not work as harmoniously as we're hoping...but I am optimistic!

The artist happens to be my sister, Good Moe-Jo!
(aka: comicstrip, to some)

I think her more graphic approach to coloring will be just right. I'll post finished pieces for you as we complete them!

Commission!

I was recently commissioned to paint a puppet for a full chest tattoo.

COOL.
And also -
O_O

Never done a piece for a tattoo before. Slightly intimidated.

But what a COMPLIMENT to my puppets that someone wants it permanently in their skin!

They were great to work with, a perfect client. I hope they had a good experience commissioning me. (fingers crossed)

Here's the finished piece:

Want your own puppet? Just ask!

Burton Needs a Make-Over

You remember this puppet that I drew and I loved (still love) and it took me forever to paint him?

Yeah, this one. You remember. I call him Burton.

He's painted now, so he's done, right?

WRONG

It didn't come out the way I had envisioned and no matter how hard I try, I just cannot be happy with it.

So I painted a couple new versions (none of which came out how I envisioned. I guess I just don't have the skill yet to make him as I saw in my mind.) but they're better than what he is now.

In your opinion, which one is better?
I won't comment because my opinion is wrong.
Nonsense! Please comment, I really want to know what you think. There is no wrong answer here. 
I'll just look but probably won't comment. She's not interested in my opinion.
Not true! I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on this, and especially yours. :)

Here they are:

I really wanted him to POP as orange, so I tried a green background.

Then I wondered what a more monochromatic approach would look like, still trying to keep to the orange.

I had this background already made and pasted him on. It would need more work, but the colors are nice.

These colors were surprising, but they add an interesting mood that I think is quite fitting.

Aaaand that's all I have for you. Please pick one so I can add a shadow and finally be done with Burton.

Two New Puppets

He's painted!
(finally)

Not exactly what I'd imagined, but it's good. And it's done.

 I'm lost as to what to title this one. I've been calling him Burton but...that's not really title.
(no, I don't name all the puppets, this is the first time. probably because he's been waiting so long to be painted.)

You know what else happens when you wait a LOOONG time to paint a puppet?

Puppets behind him in line literally POP OUT into reality.

w00t

This guy took a couple of days, whereas the one before him took over a month. O.o
I didn't even know he was waiting in the wings, or that he was getting so impatient, but judging by the speed at which he came into being I'd say he's been cooking in my subconscious for quite a while.

I've been calling that second one "Climbing." Uber boring, I know.

So what would you call him?

Thanks for reading! I hope to see you again for the next creepy puppet painting.

Re-Ignite!

I drew this puppet and I'm in love with him and I want to paint him.

Really want to paint him.

I think about it all the time.

But every time I've tried, I get...stuck.

Either the colors aren't right or the values are unappealing and it's been a really heart-breaking ordeal.

This puppet has been waiting to be painted for a couple of months now.

So what's an artist to do?
Well...I've expanded my toolbox to include Photoshop and Painter (to compliment my crazy Paint Tool SAI skillz), and I've been drawing a lot of things that are not creepy puppets. I read 3 novels and a self-help book, and I visited family for a week.

The result?

I feel rejuvenated and I'm ready to jump back into the creepy-puppet-painting saddle.
Everybody ready?
Yee--HAW!

Next time you see this guy, he WILL be painted and finished!

 (btw, Prince Lir is finally available on redbubble - yay!)

Expansion

I've been playing around with painting in Photoshop and Corel Painter. All my work so far has been done in Paint Tool SAI (which is a pretty great program, no lie) but I'm running into its limitations and need to expand.

It takes time to learn new software. Period. It just does.

I don't know if any of this is print-worthy, but I'd still like to share what I've been doing. Here are early paintings in Photoshop of old sketches.

More to come! And puppets will be making a reappearance soon, too. Are you excited cuz I know I am!